Ask Financial Accounting Expert

Please respond to the post below on whether you agree with their view or not and why you feel this way. Must be at least two paragraphs.

Some common sense talking points are moving around in our discussions this week. As always there are very solid themes coming to the forefront. Ben McClure writes for Investopedia, and I think some of his ides here are valuable to this discussion. The question of too much cash really depends on how the cash got there, what kind of business this is, and what managers are going to do with cash on hand.

There are cases when cash is good. Keeping extra cash can make a company look good to some investors. It makes a company look strong. If money is accumulating really fast, it might attract more people. There is a need for strength and optimism among many investors. Out text and others talks about the dangers of having too much cash available. A prudent business should keep enough to cover emergencies, along with interest, expenses, and capital improvement expenditures. Beyond that, extra cash might be considered an opportunity lost if sitting on it instead of investing means little if no returns. Perpetually keeping large sums on hand without using any of it might make a firm look lazy. "Why isn't all that cash being used?" should be part of a smart investor's questions. Companies that hold excess cash carry agency costs whereby they are tempted to pursue "empire building". Top managers can fritter away cash on wasteful acquisitions and bad projects in a bid to boost their personal power and prestige (McClure, 2015). Some companies might lose control of spending and get sloppy with all the extra money. It might even lower the need to produce among employees and managers which could lead to downfall.

With this mind, be wary of balance sheet items like "strategic reserves" and "restructuring reserves". They are often just excuses for hoarding cash (McClure, 2015).

Different kinds of companies may need more money at different times. Highly successful firms in sectors like software and services, entertainment and media don't have the same levels of spending required by capital-intensive companies. So their cash builds up (McClure, 2015). By contrast, companies with a lot of capital expenditure, like steel makers, must invest in equipment and inventory that must be regularly replaced. Capital-intensive firms have a much harder time maintaining cash reserves. Investors should recognize, moreover, that companies in cyclical industries, like manufacturing, have to keep cash reserves to ride out cyclical downturns. These companies need to stockpile cash well in excess of what they need in the short term (McClure, 2015).

Should a firm have too much, they have options like dividends and redistribution to stockholders. Spending it on acquisitions and expansion are also considerations. On balance, I think the fundamentals within our text are sound and make the best of many situations. Looking at an individual company, its performance, balance sheet and how it stacks up within its own industry are all sound research considerations.

Financial Accounting, Accounting

  • Category:- Financial Accounting
  • Reference No.:- M91592782

Have any Question?


Related Questions in Financial Accounting

Case study - the athletes storerequiredonce you have read

Case Study - The Athletes Store Required: Once you have read through the assignment complete the following tasks in order and produce the following reports Part 1 i. Enter the business information including name, address ...

Scenario assume that a manufacturing company usually pays a

Scenario: Assume that a manufacturing company usually pays a waste company (by the pound to haul away manufacturing waste. Recently, a landfill gas company offered to buy a small portion of the waste for cash, saving the ...

Lease classification considering firm guidance issues

Lease Classification, Considering Firm Guidance (Issues Memo) Facts: Tech Startup Inc. ("Lessee") is entering into a contract with Developer Inc. ("Landlord") to rent Landlord's newly constructed office building located ...

A review of the ledger of oriole company at december 31

A review of the ledger of Oriole Company at December 31, 2017, produces these data pertaining to the preparation of annual adjusting entries. 1. Prepaid Insurance $19,404. The company has separate insurance policies on i ...

Chelsea is expected to pay an annual dividend of 126 a

Chelsea is expected to pay an annual dividend of $1.26 a share next year. The market price of the stock is $24.09 and the growth 2.6 percent. What is the cost of equity?

Sweet treats common stock is currently priced at 3672 a

Sweet treats common stock is currently priced at $36.72 a share. The company just paid $2.18 per share as its annual dividend. The dividends have been increasing by 2,2 percent annually and are expected to continue doing ...

Highway express has paid annual dividends of 132 133 138

Highway Express has paid annual dividends of $1.32, $1.33, $1.38, $1.40, and $1.42 over the past five years, respectively. What is the average divided growth rate?

An investment offers 6800 per year with the first payment

An investment offers $6,800 per year, with the first payment occurring one year from now. The required return is 7 percent. a. What would the value be today if the payments occurred for 20 years?  b. What would the value ...

Oil services corp reports the following eps data in its

Oil Services Corp. reports the following EPS data in its 2017 annual report (in million except per share data). Net income $1,827 Earnings per share: Basic $1.56 Diluted $1.54 Weighted average shares outstanding: Basic 1 ...

At the start of 2013 shasta corporation has 15000

At the start of 2013, Shasta Corporation has 15,000 outstanding shares of preferred stock, each with a $60 par value and a cumulative 7% annual dividend. The company also has 28,000 shares of common stock outstanding wit ...

  • 4,153,160 Questions Asked
  • 13,132 Experts
  • 2,558,936 Questions Answered

Ask Experts for help!!

Looking for Assignment Help?

Start excelling in your Courses, Get help with Assignment

Write us your full requirement for evaluation and you will receive response within 20 minutes turnaround time.

Ask Now Help with Problems, Get a Best Answer

Why might a bank avoid the use of interest rate swaps even

Why might a bank avoid the use of interest rate swaps, even when the institution is exposed to significant interest rate

Describe the difference between zero coupon bonds and

Describe the difference between zero coupon bonds and coupon bonds. Under what conditions will a coupon bond sell at a p

Compute the present value of an annuity of 880 per year

Compute the present value of an annuity of $ 880 per year for 16 years, given a discount rate of 6 percent per annum. As

Compute the present value of an 1150 payment made in ten

Compute the present value of an $1,150 payment made in ten years when the discount rate is 12 percent. (Do not round int

Compute the present value of an annuity of 699 per year

Compute the present value of an annuity of $ 699 per year for 19 years, given a discount rate of 6 percent per annum. As