Vần L

[cayman]

Accounting Dictionary – 45 - LEG

KAIZEN COSTING means "improvements in small steps" (i.e., continuous improvement). It was developed in Japan by Yashuhiro Monden. Kaizen Costing is applied to product that it already under production.

KEOGH is a pension plan in the United States that allows a business to contribute a portion of profits into a tax-sheltered account.

KEYNESIAN GROWTH MODELS are models in which a long run growth path for an economy is traced out by the relations between saving, investing and the level of output.

KEYNESIAN MACROECONOMICS is the theory that shows how a market-based capitalist economy may reach equilibrium with large scale unemployment and how government spending may be used to raise it out of this to a new equilibrium at the full-employment level of output.

KITING, when used in the context of banking, refers to the practice of depositing and drawing checks at two or more banks and taking advantage of the time it takes for the second bank to collect funds from the first bank. Can also refer to illegally increasing the face value of a check by changing the printed amount of the check. When used in the context of securities, it refers to the manipulation and inflation of stock prices.

LABOR INTENSIVE is used to describe industries or sectors of the economy that relies relatively heavily on inputs of labor, usually relative to capital but sometimes to human capital or skilled labor, compared to other industries or sectors.

LAG TIME is the period of time between two closely related events, phenomena, etc., as between stimulus and response or between cause and effect: a time-lag between the declaration of war and full war production.

LAND, in terms of accounting, is the value of real estate less the value of improvements, e.g. buildings.

LARGE-CAP is a stock with a level of capitalization of at least $5 billion market value.

LBO see LEVERAGED BUY-OUT.

LCL see LESS THAN CONTAINER LOAD.

LCM is Lower of Cost or Market.

LCM RULE is an abbreviation for lower-of-cost-or-market rule. LCM requires that an asset be reported on the financial statements at the lower of purchase cost or market value.

LEAD-TIME is the time between the initial stage of a project or policy and the appearance of results, for example, the long lead-time in oil production because of the need for new field exploration and drilling.

LEASEHOLD IMPROVEMENTS are those repairs and / or improvements, usually prior to occupancy, made to a leased facility by the lessee. The cost is then added to fixed assets and amortized over the life of the lease.

LEASE RATE FACTOR is the periodic lease or rental payment expressed as a percentage (or decimal equivalent) of equipment cost. Used to calculate payments given the cost of equipment (e.g. A lease rate factor of 0360 on an equipment cost of $5,000.00 requires a monthly payment of $180.00 (0360x$5,000.00=$180.00).

LEDGER is a book of accounts in which data from transactions recorded in journals are posted and thereby classified and summarized.

LEGAL ENTITY is a person or organization that has the legal standing to enter into contracts and may be sued for failure to perform as agreed in the contract, e.g., a child under legal age is not a legal entity, while a corporation is a legal entity since it is a person in the eyes of the law.

LEGITIMACY THEORY posits that businesses are bound by the social contract in which the firms agree to perform various socially desired actions in return for approval of its objectives and other rewards, and this ultimately guarantees its continued existence.

 

[cayman]

Accounting Dictionary – 46 - LOA

LEHMAN FORMULA is a compensation formula originally developed by investment bankers Lehman Brothers for investment banking services:
• 5% of the first million dollars involved in the transaction for services rendered
• 4% of the second million
• 3% of the third million
• 2% of the fourth million
• 1% of everything thereafter (above $4 million)
NOTE: Most investment bankers now require an additional multiplier to offset inflation.

LESS THAN CONTAINER LOAD (LCL) is a shipment in which the freight does not completely fill the container; or a particular consignor's freight when combined with others to produce a full container load.

LETTER OF AUTHORIZATION (LOA) is a form that permits a Donor to provide written instructions to transfer a stock certificate in the Donor’s name in full or in part to another party, such as a charitable organization, without using a transfer agent. This form given to the charitable organization with the designated stock certificate and a separate Stock Power is usually executed by the charitable organization’s brokerage to expedite the sale and receipt of proceeds from the gift of securities.

LETTER OF CREDIT (LOC) is a legal document issued by a buyer’s bank that upon presentation of required documents payment would be made. Usually confirmed by the seller's bank, protection is given to the seller that payment will be made if the goods are shipped correctly, and protection is given to the seller that the goods will be shipped before payment is made.

LETTER OF CREDIT, CONFIRMED is a letter of credit that is guaranteed by a bank that is acceptable to a seller (usually a local bank), regardless of buyer's bank.

LETTER OF CREDIT, IRREVOCABLE is a letter of credit where payment is guaranteed as long as the seller meets all conditions stipulated. A revocable letter of credit can be cancelled or altered by the buyer without permission of the seller.

LEVERAGE is property rising or falling at a proportionally greater amount than comparable investments. For example, an option is said to have high leverage relative to the underlying stock because a price change in the stock may result in a relatively large increase or decrease in the value of the option. In general, in finance, leverage is the use of debt financing. Leverage, within a corporation, is the use of borrowed money to increase the return on investment. For leverage to be positive, the rate of return on the investment must be higher than the cost of the money borrowed.

LEVERAGED BUY-OUT (LBO) is a transaction used for taking a public corporation private, financed through the use of debt funds: bank loans and bonds. Because of the large amount of debt relative to equity in the new corporation, the bonds are typically rated below investment grade, properly referred to as high-yield bonds or junk bonds. Investors can participate in an LBO through either the purchase of the debt (i.e., purchase of the bonds or participation in the bank loan) or the purchase of equity through an LBO fund that specializes in such investments.

LEVERAGED LEASE is a lease arrangement under which the lessor borrows a large proportion of the funds needed to purchase the asset and grants the lender a lien on the assets and a pledge of the lease payments to secure the borrowing.

LEVERAGE RATIOS measures the relative contribution of stockholders and creditors, and of the firm's ability to pay financing charges. Value of firm's debt to the total value of the firm.

LIABILITY, in insurance, is a term used when analyzing insurance risks that describes possible areas of financial exposure / loss. Presently, there are three forms of liability coverage that insurers will underwrite: The first is general liability, which covers any kind of bodily injury to non-employees except that caused by automobiles and professional malpractice. The second is product liability, which covers injury to customers arising as a direct result of goods purchased from a business. The third is public liability, which covers injury to the public while they are on the premises of the insured.

LIABILITY, in accounting, is a loan, expense, or any other form of claim on the assets of an entity that must be paid or otherwise honored by that entity.

LIBOR see LONDON INTERBANK OFFERED RATE.

LIEN is the right to take another's property if an obligation is not discharged.

LIFO (last-in, first-out) is an inventory cost flow whereby the last goods purchased are assumed to be the first goods sold so that the ending inventory consists of the first goods purchased.

LIFO LIQUIDATION is a reduction in the reported value of inventory below levels established in prior years under the LIFO method; arises when purchases for the period are not sufficient to offset the sale of inventory in the period.

LIFO RESERVE is the difference between the ending inventory under LIFO and FIFO (or other method that might be chosen).

LIKE KIND, in taxes, refers to property that is similar to another for which it has been exchanged: real estate exchanged for real estate, for instance. The definitions of like kind properties can be found in the US Tax Code at Section 1031.

LIMITATION, in contracts, is a certain period limited by statute after which actions, suits, or prosecutions cannot be brought in the courts.

LIMITED LIABILITY is one that does not go beyond the owner's investment in the business.

LIMITED PARTNER is a partner in a venture who has no management authority and whose liability is restricted to the amount of his or her investment.

LINE ITEM BUDGET is a budget initiated by government entities in which budgeted financial statement elements are grouped by administrative entities and object. These budget item groups are usually presented in an incremental fashion that is in comparison to previous time periods. Line item budgets are also used in private industry for comparison and budgeting of selected object groups and their previous and future expenditure levels within an organization.

LINE OF CREDIT is an agreement whereby a financial institution promises to lend up to a certain amount without the need to file another loan application. The borrower is required to reduce the debt whenever the limit of the full amount of credit has been reached.

LIP ACCOUNT see LOAN-IN-PROCESS ACCOUNT.

LIQUID ASSET is cash and any asset that can quickly be converted into cash (e.g., cash, checks and easily-convertible securities).

LIQUIDATING DIVIDENDS are dividends paid by a corporation that is in the process of liquidation/bankruptcy. Liquidating Dividends are paid from the capital of the corporation as opposed to earnings. Recipients of Liquidating Dividends are typically shareholders, bond holders and/or creditors. In the U.S. such dividends are generally nontaxable under the Internal Revenue Code.

LIQUIDATION VALUE is a type of valuation similar to an adjusted book value analysis. Liquidation value is different than book value in that it uses the value of the assets at liquidation, which is often less than market and sometimes book. Liabilities are deducted from the liquidation value of the assets to determine the liquidation value of the business. Liquidation value can be used to determine the bare bottom benchmark value of a business, since this should be the funds the business may bring upon valuation.

LIQUIDITY is a company's ability to meet current obligations with cash or other assets that can be quickly converted to cash.

LIQUIDITY RATIO see CASH RATIO.

LISTED COMPANY is a public company listed or quoted on a stock exchange.

LISTED INVESTMENTS are those investments which are listed or quoted on a stock exchange.

LISTING is a written contract between an agent and a principal giving authorization to the agent to perform services for the principal involving the principal’s property; or, a record of a property for sale by a broker who has been authorized by the owner of the property to be sold.

LMA, among others, is an acronym for Lease Management Agreement, Local Marketing Agreement or Legal Marketing Association.

LOADED LABOR RATE is the employee hourly rate plus employee benefits, capital expenses, and other overhead.

 

[cayman]

Accounting Dictionary – 47 - LTM

LOAN is an agreement under which an owner of assets (the lender) allows another entity (the borrower) to use the assets for a specified time period. In return, the borrower agrees to pay the lender a payment (interest) and return the assets (cash) at the end of the agreed upon time period.

LOAN COVENANT is a legally enforceable promise or restriction in a mortgage. For example, the borrower may covenant to keep the property in good repair and adequately insured against fire and other casualties. A breach of covenant in a mortgage usually creates a default, defined by the mortgage, and can be the basis for foreclosure.

LOAN-IN-PROCESS ACCOUNT (LIP ACCOUNT) serves as a deposit account for construction funds. The buyer's down payment is deposited into this account and is used for the initial construction draws. Disbursements of actual loan funds begin once the buyer's money is depleted. Interest on the borrowed funds will be billed monthly on the amount withdrawn. Upon completion of the house, the buyer will be asked to furnish a homeowner's insurance policy and monies for completing the escrow account. Once final disbursements to the builder are made, monthly payments begin based on amortization of the balance at that time.

LOAN STOCK is stock bearing a fixed rate of interest. Unlike a debenture, loan stock may or may not be secured.

LOAN TO VALUE RATIO, in real estate, is the percentage value for the relationship between the amount of the mortgage loan and the appraised value of the property. Loan-to-value ratio is expressed to a potential purchaser of a property in terms of the percentage a lending institution is willing to finance.

LOC see Letter of Credit.

LOCKBOX is 1. a fireproof metal strongbox (usually in a bank) for storing valuables e.g., a safety deposit box; and, 2. a service offered by banks to companies in which the company receives payments by mail to a post office box and the bank picks up the payments several times a day, deposits them into the company's account, and notifies the company of the deposit. This enables the company to put the money to work as soon as it's received, but the amounts must be large in order for the value obtained to exceed the cost of the service.

LOI is Letter of Intent.

LONDON INTERBANK OFFERED RATE (LIBOR) is the rate that the most creditworthy international banks that deal in Eurodollars charge each other for large loans. It is equivalent to the federal funds rate in the U.S.

LONG-LIVED ASSETS are usually those assets that are not consumed during the normal course of business, e.g. land, buildings and equipment, etc.

LONG TERM DEBT is all senior debt, including bonds, debentures, bank debt, mortgages, deferred portions of long term debt, and capital lease obligations.

LONG-TERM DEBT TO EQUITY expresses the relationship between long-term capital contributions of creditors as related to that contributed by owners (investors). As opposed to DEBT TO EQUITY, Long-Term Debt to Equity expresses the degree of protection provided by the owners for the long-term creditors. A company with a high long-term debt to equity is considered to be highly leveraged. But, generally, companies are considered to carry comfortable amounts of debt at ratios of 0.35 to 0.50, or $0.35 to $0.50 of debt to every $1.00 of book value (shareholders equity). These could be considered to be well-managed companies with a low debt exposure. It is best to compare the ratio with industry averages.

LONG-TERM LIABILITIES are liabilities of a business that are due in more than one year. An example of a long-term liability would be a mortgage payable.

LOSS, in finance, is when expenses exceed sales or revenues, i.e. goods or services are sold for less than their cost.

LOSS LEADER is a featured article of merchandise sold at a loss in order to draw customers.

LRIC is an acronym for Long Run Incremental Cost. A service costing methodology used primarily in the telecommunications industry.

LTM means Last Twelve Months.