Intermediate Accounting I
Greg Sommers, PhD CPA
gsommers@smu.edu
http://gsommers.cox.smu.edu/acct3311/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/312531215573126/
Syllabus
• It is our contract to protect you, me and your fellow
students.
• Read it, know it.
Expectations – Content
• Accounting is different than 8th grade social science
where you learned it and then after the test could forget
it. The content you learn in each accounting course is
the basis for the next course and must be retained.
• You are expected to know and be ready to use what you
learned in Introductory Financial Accounting.
– Solid Footing
• Chapter 3 is essentially a review of Introductory
Financial Accounting. Chapter 6 is Time Value of Money
which most have learned in prior classes.
Expectations – Behavior
• Be ready to begin the discussion promptly and attend the
section for which you registered.
– Your superiors, peers, and client personnel will have the
same expectations in your firm and client assignments.
• You are to occupy available seats from the front of the
classroom first.
– Your superiors and clients would not expect you to sit a
significant distance away during meetings/interactions.
• The use of laptop and other hand-held devices and/or
audio/video recording devices during the class period is
restricted without prior written consent.
– These devices are distracting and their use has the ability
to cause others to be skeptical of your intentions and
commitment.
CHAPTER 1
FINANCIAL ACCOUNTING AND
ACCOUNTING STANDARDS
Sommers – ACCT 3311
Discussion Question
Q1-1 Differentiate broadly between financial accounting
and managerial accounting.
Discussion Question
Q1-4 What is the objective of financial reporting?
Objective of Accounting
What is the primary objective of financial accounting?
The primary objective of financial accounting is to provide
financial information about the reporting entity that is
useful to

present and potential equity investors,

lenders, and

other creditors
in making decisions in their capacity as capital providers.
Discussion Question
Q1-7 What is the likely limitation of “general-purpose
financial statements”?
Objective of Financial Accounting
General-Purpose Financial Statements

Provide financial reporting information to a wide variety
of users.

Provide the most useful information possible at the
least cost.
Equity Investors and Creditors
Investors are the primary user group.
Objective of Financial Accounting
Entity Perspective
Companies viewed as separate and distinct from their
owners.
Decision-Usefulness
Investors are interested in assessing the company’s
1. ability to generate net cash inflows and
2. management’s ability to protect and enhance the capital
providers’ investments.
Investment-Credit Decisions ─
A Cash Flow Perspective
Shareholders
Receive
Cash
1. Dividends
2. Sale of Stock
Creditors
Receive
Cash
1. Interest
2. Loan Repayment
Accounting information should help investors
evaluate the amount, timing, and uncertainty
of the enterprise’s future cash flows.
What do the numbers mean? (p. 5)
“It’s the accounting.” That’s what many investors seem to be saying these
days. Even the slightest hint of any accounting irregularity at a company
leads to a subsequent pounding of the company’s stock price. For
example, the Wall Street Journal has run the following headlines related to
accounting and its effects on the economy.
•
Stocks take a beating as accounting woes spread beyond Enron.
•
Quarterly reports from IBM and Goldman Sachs sent stocks tumbling.
•
VeriFone finds accounting issues; stock price cut in half.
•
Bank of America admits hiding debt.
•
Facebook, Zynga, Groupon: IPO drops due to accounting, not
valuation.
It now has become clear that investors must trust the accounting numbers,
or they will abandon the market and put their resources elsewhere. With
investor uncertainty, the cost of capital increases for companies who need
additional resources. In short, relevant and reliable financial information is
necessary for markets to be efficient.
What do the numbers mean? (p. 6)
In addition to providing decision-useful information about future
cash flows, management also is accountable to investors for the
custody and safekeeping of the company’s economic resources
and for their efficient and profitable use. For example, the
management of The Hershey Company has the responsibility
for protecting its economic resources from unfavorable effects of
economic factors, such as price changes, and technological and
social changes.
Because Hershey’s performance in discharging its
responsibilities (referred to as its stewardship responsibilities)
usually affects its ability to generate net cash inflows, financial
reporting may also provide decision-useful information to assess
management performance in this role.
Financial Accounting Environment
• Relevant financial information is provided
primarily through financial statements and
related disclosure notes.
–
–
–
–
Balance Sheet
Income Statement
Statement of Cash Flows
Statement of Shareholders’ Equity
Expectation GAAP
What the public thinks accountants should do vs.
what accountants think they can do.
– Difficult to close in light of accounting scandals.
– Sarbanes-Oxley Act (2002).
– Public Company Accounting Oversight Board
(PCAOB).
Financial Reporting Challenges
•
•
•
•
•
Non-financial measurements.
Forward-looking information.
Soft assets.
Timeliness
Understandability