Chapter 5 Accounting for Merchandising Businesses
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Example Exercise
5-1 Gross Profit
During the current year, merchandise is sold for 250,000 cash and for 975,000 on account. The cost of the merchandise sold is 735,000. What is the amount of the gross profit?
Follow My Example 5-1
The gross profit is 490,000 250,000 + 975,000 − 735,000.
Practice Exercises: PE 5-1A, PE 5-1B
Example Exercise
5-1 Gross Profit
The Operating Cycle
Products Cash
Sales Activity Purchasing
Activity Collection
Activity
Accoun ts
Receiv able
The operations of a merchandising business involve the pur- chase of merchandise for sale purchasing, the sale of the
products to customers sales, and the receipt of cash from customers collection. This overall process is referred to as
the operating cycle. Thus, the operating cycle begins with spending cash, and it ends with receiving cash from
customers. The operating cycle for a merchandising
business is shown to the right.
Operating cycles for retailers are usually shorter
than for manufacturers be- cause retailers purchase
goods in a form ready for sale to the customer. Of
course, some retailers will have shorter operating cycles than others because of the na-
ture of their products. For example, a jewelry store or an au- tomobile dealer normally has a longer operating cycle than a
consumer electronics store or a grocery store.
Businesses with longer operating cycles normally have higher profit margins on their products than busi-
nesses with shorter operating cycles. For ex- ample, it is not unusual for
jewelry stores to price their jewelry at 30–50 above
cost. In contrast, grocery stores operate on very
small profit margins, often below 5. Grocery stores
make up the difference by selling their products more
quickly.
THE OPERATING CYCLE
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Business Connection
HR BLOCK VERSUS THE HOME DEPOT
HR Block is a service business that primarily offers tax
planning and preparation to its customers.
The Home Depot
is a large home improvement retailer. The differences in the operations of a service and merchandise business are
illustrated in their recent income statements, as shown below.
HR Block Condensed Income Statement
in millions
Revenue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,775 Operating expenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
3,109 Operating income . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
666 Other expense net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
2 Income before taxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
664 Income taxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
258 Net income . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
406
As discussed in a later chapter, corporations are subject to income taxes. Thus, the income statements of HR
Block and The Home Depot report “income taxes” as a deduction from “income before income taxes” in arriving
at net income. This is in contrast to a proprietorship, such as NetSolutions, which is not subject to income taxes.
The Home Depot Condensed Income Statement
in millions
Net sales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67,997 Cost of merchandise sold . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
44,693 Gross profit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23,304
Operating expenses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17,465
Operating income . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5,839
Other expense net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 566
Income before taxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5,273
Income taxes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1,935
Net income . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3,338
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Chapter 5 Accounting for Merchandising Businesses