The Financial Numbers Game: Detecting Creative Accounting Practices

by Charles W. Mulford; Eugene E. Comiskey

• ISBN13: 9780471211303
• ISBN10: 0471211303
• Format: eBook
• Copyright: 2002-04-01
• Publisher: Wiley

Summary

"After reading The Financial Numbers Game, I feel as though Ive taken a masters level course in financial statement analysis. Mulford and Comiskeys latest book should be required reading for anyone who is serious about fundamentally analyzing stocks." Harry Domash, San Francisco Chronicle investing columnist and investment newsletter publisher

Author Biography

Charles W. Mulford is Invesco Chair and Professor of Accounting Eugene E. Comiskey is Callaway Chair and Professor of Accounting in the DuPree College of Management at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta. Both have doctorates in accounting and are professionally qualified as Certified Public Accountants

Table of Contents

1 Financial Numbers Game.

Rewards of the Game.

Classifying Creative Accounting Practices.

Plan of This Book.

Summary.

Glossary.

Notes.

2 How the Game Is Played.

Accounting Policy Choice and Application.

Fraudulent Financial Reporting.

Cleaning Up after the Game.

Clarifying Terminology.

Summary.

Glossary.

Notes.

3 Earnings Management: A Closer Look.

What Is Earnings Management?

Incentives and Conditions for Earnings Management.

Earnings Management Techniques.

Evidence of Earnings Management.

Effectiveness of Earnings Management.

Is Earnings Management Good or Bad?

Summary.

Glossary.

Notes.

4 The SEC Responds.

The Chairman’s Speech.

The Action Plan.

Subsequent Developments.

Enforcing the Securities Laws.

Summary.

Glossary.

Notes.

5 Financial Professionals Speak Out.

Survey of Financial Professionals.

Survey Results.

Summary.

Glossary.

Notes.

6 Recognizing Premature or Fictitious Revenue.

Is It Premature or Fictitious Revenue?

When Should Revenue Be Recognized?

Detecting Premature or Fictitious Revenue.

Checklist to Detect Premature or Fictitious Revenue.

Summary.

Glossary.

Notes.

7 Aggressive Capitalization and Extended Amortization Policies.

Cost Capitalization.

Detecting Aggressive Cost Capitalization Policies.

Amortizing Capitalized Costs.

Detecting Extended Amortization Periods.

Checklist to Detect Aggressive Capitalization and Extended Amortization Policies.

Summary.

Glossary.

Notes.

8 Misreported Assets and Liabilities.

Link with Reported Earnings.

Boosting Shareholders’ Equity.

Overvalued Assets.

Undervalued Liabilities.

Checklist to Detect Misreported Assets and Liabilities.

Summary.

Glossary.

Notes.

9 Getting Creative with the Income Statement: Classification and Disclosure.

Current Income Statement Requirements and Practices.

Reporting Comprehensive Income.

Creative Income Statement Classifications.

Creativity with Other Aspects of the Income Statement.

Summary.

Glossary.

Notes.

10 Getting Creative with the Income Statement: Pro-Forma Measures of Earnings.

Recasting the Bottom Line: Pro-Forma Earnings Measures.

Summary.

Glossary.

Notes.

11 Problems with Cash Flow Reporting.

Reporting Cash Flow.

Problems with Reported Operating Cash Flow.

Using Operating Cash Flow to Detect Creative Accounting Practices.

Checklist for Using Operating Cash Flow to Detect Creative Accounting Practices.

Summary.

Glossary.

Notes.

Subject Index.

Company Index.