PCAOB Members Question Auditor “Narratives”

Public Company Accounting Oversight Board members Jay Hanson and Daniel Goelzer are warning constituents about the possible negative consequences of a PCAOB proposal that would require auditors to spin a “narrative” about their clients in addition to giving their usual pass/fail opinions on compa...

By David Katz • June 22, 2011

Spreadsheets: Eliminate the Pivot Table Blank Row Snag

Editor’s Note: To read more about spreadsheets, share a tip with other readers, or suggest a topic for Bill Jelen to cover in an upcoming column, click here to visit CFO.com’s Spreadsheet Tips Page.Reader Joe S. wins a copy of Pivot Table Data Crunching for this week’s question: “I use pivot tabl...

By Bill Jelen • June 22, 2011

Explore the Trendline➔

Tax policy shifts: What CFOs need to know to stay ahead

Discover how evolving tax policies are creating new opportunities and challenges for CFOs.

By CFO.com staff

SEC Puts Proxy Firms on Notice

The Securities and Exchange Commission plans to issue a proposal this fall that will address the role of proxy-advisory firms, SEC chairman Mary Schapiro said on Tuesday. “When we catch our breath from our Dodd-Frank responsibilities, I want to return to the issue of what we call proxy plumbing,”...

By Sarah Johnson • June 21, 2011

A Bright Line for Hybrid Tax Breaks?

Although issuing hybrid securities offers companies a chance to meet the needs of sophisticated shareholders, they sometimes get so complex that whether to define them as debt or equity becomes a thorny matter. The complexity also makes hybrids hard to peg as debt or equity for tax purposes.That’...

By Robert Willens • June 20, 2011

A Bright Line for Hybrid Tax Breaks?

Although issuing hybrid securities offers companies a chance to meet the needs of sophisticated shareholders, they sometimes get so complex that whether to define them as debt or equity becomes a thorny matter. The complexity also makes hybrids hard to peg as debt or equity for tax purposes.That’...

By Robert Willens • June 20, 2011

Nowhere to Hide on Hidden 401(k) Fees

Under ERISA, CFOs and other retirement-plan fiduciaries are required to understand the fees and expenses charged and the services provided to the plan. While ERISA does not specify a permissible level of fees, the Section 404(a) fiduciary rules require that fees charged to a plan be “reasonable.”...

By Jeff Mamorsky • June 20, 2011

Little Change in Audit Fees

Stability is the dominant theme of the Financial Executives Research Foundation’s latest annual survey of audit fees. For the most part, fees in fiscal 2010 were about the same as in 2009, while finance executives rated their auditors neutral to positive on various aspects such as the efficiency ...

By Alix Stuart • June 16, 2011

Spreadsheets: All about Zoom

Editor’s Note: To read more about spreadsheets, share a tip with other readers, or suggest a topic for Bill Jelen to cover in an upcoming column, click here to visit CFO.com’s Spreadsheet Tips Page.Reader Tom H. wins a copy of Slaying Excel Dragons for his question, “Is there a way to change the ...

By Bill Jelen • June 15, 2011

Federal Court Pans Wells Fargo’s SILOs

On tax day — April 15, 2011 — a federal appeals court agreed with a lower court and dealt Wells Fargo & Co. an unexpected tax blow by denying the bank $115 million in claimed deductions. The deductions were tied to transactions dating back to 1997, and involved 26 SILO (sale-in/lease-out) tra...

By Robert Willens • June 13, 2011

Federal Court Pans Wells Fargo’s SILOs

On tax day — April 15, 2011 — a federal appeals court agreed with a lower court and dealt Wells Fargo & Co. an unexpected tax blow by denying the bank $115 million in claimed deductions. The deductions were tied to transactions dating back to 1997, and involved 26 SILO (sale-in/lease-out) tra...

By Robert Willens • June 13, 2011

Supreme Court Eases Way for Class Action

A new U.S. Supreme Court decision makes it slightly harder for companies in some states to push back against securities lawsuits becoming classified as class actions. In a unanimous decision on Monday, the justices rejected a lower court’s decision that Halliburton shareholders could not sue the ...

By Sarah Johnson • June 8, 2011

How Not to Do a Reverse Morris Trust Deal

Does it make a difference, for taxes purposes, if the steps taken to complete a so-called reverse Morris Trust transaction are done out of sequence? A recent technical advice memorandum (TAM) from the Internal Revenue Service explains the potential problems, and why the order of the steps matters...

By Robert Willens • June 6, 2011

How Not to Do a Reverse Morris Trust Deal

Does it make a difference, for taxes purposes, if the steps taken to complete a so-called reverse Morris Trust transaction are done out of sequence? A recent technical advice memorandum (TAM) from the Internal Revenue Service explains the potential problems, and why the order of the steps matters...

By Robert Willens • June 6, 2011

What’s Your Return on Buybacks?

During informal discussions after a recent presentation to a company’s investors and analysts, I stood with the CFO and watched in dismay as he was barraged with questions about buybacks. He and his CEO had presented a strong growth strategy and were commended for it, yet the questions were dispr...

By Gregory V. Milano • June 3, 2011

Ready for Reform

Talk of taxes has dominated the air-waves for months now, as state and federal budget battles rage on and pundits wag their fingers at General Electric for its nonexistent tax bill. Amid the din, the outlook for genuine reform looks promising (see “Fit to Be Tied,” May), or at least possible. Giv...

By Kate O'Sullivan • June 1, 2011

Back on the Map

Ian Curley, CFO of Dublin-based Smurfit Kappa Group, has it better than most of his peers. Like many of the other companies in the ISEQ 20 — the Irish Stock Exchange’s benchmark index — SKG, a $9.3 billion packaging firm, has managed to survive Ireland’s economic meltdown by outgrowing its home m...

By Janet Kersnar • June 1, 2011

Better Not to Know?

In this quarter’s Deep Dive Survey, we poll CFOs about their attitudes toward corporate taxes, and their hopes for changes at the federal level (see “Ready for Reform“). A new study from PricewaterhouseCoopers, meanwhile, sheds some light on what companies actually pay around the world. Test your...

By CFO Editorial Staff • June 1, 2011

The Price Is (More) Right

After several years of cutting costs to the bone, many companies are reacting to today’s soaring energy and commodity prices with trepidation: they would like to raise prices to maintain margins, but aren’t sure when — or if — they can successfully pass along increased costs to customers.That may...

By Russ Banham • June 1, 2011

Spreadsheets: Split Column at Each Space

Editor’s Note: To read more about spreadsheets, share a tip with other readers, or suggest a topic for Bill Jelen to cover in an upcoming column, click here to visit CFO.com’s Spreadsheet Tips Page.Grace B. wins a copy of Learn Excel 97-2007 from CFO and MrExcel for her question: “Our accounting ...

By Bill Jelen • June 1, 2011

Ready for Reform

Talk of taxes has dominated the air-waves for months now, as state and federal budget battles rage on and pundits wag their fingers at General Electric for its nonexistent tax bill. Amid the din, the outlook for genuine reform looks promising (see “Fit to Be Tied,” May), or at least possible. Giv...

By Kate O'Sullivan • June 1, 2011

All in the Timing

The sequence of disasters that hit Japan starting on March 11 — the record-setting earthquake and associated tsunami, a series of aftershocks, and the ongoing crisis at the Fukushima nuclear power plant — are likely to affect the supply chains of many U.S. companies for some time to come.Particul...

By David Katz • June 1, 2011

Better Not to Know?

In this quarter’s Deep Dive Survey, we poll CFOs about their attitudes toward corporate taxes, and their hopes for changes at the federal level (see “Ready for Reform“). A new study from PricewaterhouseCoopers, meanwhile, sheds some light on what companies actually pay around the world. Test your...

By CFO Editorial Staff • June 1, 2011

Risks for Retailers: A New Top 10

Retailers are less worried about consumer spending these days, suggesting that their confidence level has risen from the doldrums, according to a recent review of regulatory filings by BDO USA.The accounting firm found that concern over consumer confidence and spending has fallen out of retailers...

By Sarah Johnson • May 31, 2011

When Are Legal Costs Nondeductible?

In the 1990s, Anthem, the predecessor of WellPoint and a for-profit seller of health insurance policies, acquired three nonprofit Blue Cross Blue Shield units — one each in Connecticut, Kentucky, and Ohio. Since both Anthem and the acquired Blues were at the time mutual insurance companies, the m...

By Robert Willens • May 31, 2011

When Are Legal Costs Nondeductible?

In the 1990s, Anthem, the predecessor of WellPoint and a for-profit seller of health insurance policies, acquired three nonprofit Blue Cross Blue Shield units — one each in Connecticut, Kentucky, and Ohio. Since both Anthem and the acquired Blues were at the time mutual insurance companies, the m...

By Robert Willens • May 31, 2011