Which of the following accounts would not be used to compute the acid-test ratio?
The acid test ratio measures a company’s short-term liquidity, indicating its capacity to pay off current commitments using just its most liquid assets. It is calculated by dividing the sum of cash, cash equivalents, marketable securities or short-term investments, and current accounts receivables by the total current liabilities. Understanding the acid test ratio is very important as it shows the company’s potential to quickly convert its assets into cash to satisfy its current liabilities. For example, suppose an entity has an adequate liquid asset to cover its current liabilities. In that case, it does not need to liquidate any of its long-term assets to meet its current obligations. This is paramount since most businesses rely on long-term assets to generate additional
revenue. Acid Test Ratio = (Cash + Cash Equivalents + Marketable Securities + Current Accounts Receivables) / Total Current Liabilities You are free to use this image on your website, templates, etc., Please provide us with an attribution
linkArticle Link to be Hyperlinked Another more popular formula calculates the acid test ratio first by deducting inventory from the total current assetsCurrent assets refer to those short-term assets which can be efficiently utilized for business operations, sold for immediate cash or liquidated within a year. It comprises inventory, cash, cash equivalents, marketable securities, accounts receivable, etc.read more and dividing the value by the current liabilitiesCurrent Liabilities are the payables which are likely to settled within twelve months of reporting. They're usually salaries payable, expense payable, short term loans etc.read more. Inventory is excluded in this formula because it is not considered a rapid cash convertible. Mathematically it is represented as: – ExamplesBelow are some examples to understand the concept in a better manner. Example #1The following are the current assets and current liabilities of ABC Ltd.: –
The following are the current assets and current liabilities of Apple Inc. for the period ending 29 September 2018: – Calculate the acid test ratio of Apple Inc. for the period ending 29 September 2018: –
Interpretation
Apple’s ExampleNow let us take the real-life example in Excel of Apple Inc.’s published financial statement for the last four accounting periodsAccounting Period refers to the period in which all financial transactions are recorded and financial statements are prepared. This might be quarterly, semi-annually, or annually, depending on the period for which you want to create the financial statements to be presented to investors so that they can track and compare the company's overall performance.read more. You can easily calculate the ratio in the template provided. Based on the publicly available financial informationFinancial Information refers to the summarized data of monetary transactions that is helpful to investors in understanding company’s profitability, their assets, and growth prospects. Financial Data about individuals like past Months Bank Statement, Tax return receipts helps banks to understand customer’s credit quality, repayment capacity etc.read more of Apple Inc., we can calculate the ratio for the accounting years 2015 to 2018. The result will be:- From the above table, it can be seen that the acid test ratio of Apple Inc. has been continuously greater than 1.0 during the period mentioned above, which is a positive sign for any company as it signifies a comfortable liquidity position. VideoRecommended ArticlesThis article is a guide to Acid Test Ratio and its meaning. We discuss the formula for the acid test ratio along with an acid test ratio example. You may learn more about financial statement analysis from the following articles: –
What accounts are included in acidThe acid-test ratio compares a company's “quick assets” (cash and accounts receivable) to its current liabilities.
What is excluded from current assets to calculate acidThe Acid Test Ratio, or the “quick ratio“, is used to determine if the value of a company's short-term assets is enough to cover its short-term liabilities. Compared to the current ratio, the acid test ratio is a stricter liquidity measure due to excluding inventory from the calculation of current assets.
Which of the following is not included in the computation of the quick ratio?The quick ratio does not include inventory, prepaid expenses, or supplies in its calculation.
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