General Mills Sales Rise on At-Home Food Demand

General Mills’ quarterly results beat analysts’ estimates as the cereal maker benefitted from increased demand for food consumed at home amid the coronavirus pandemic.For the first quarter, General Mills reported Wednesday that net sales rose 9% to $4.4 billion, led by a 14% increase for the comp...

By Matthew Heller • Sept. 23, 2020

Digital Sales Surge Fuels Nike Earnings Beat

Nike reported better-than-expected quarterly results as strong digital sales drove the company’s rebound from the coronavirus pandemic.For the first quarter, Nike reported net income of $1.52 billion, or 95 cents per share, from $1.37 billion, or 86 cents per share, as revenue fell 0.6% to $10.59...

By Matthew Heller • Sept. 23, 2020

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

Deloitte Fined Record $19M Over Audit Failures

Concluding a years-long investigation, the U.K.’s accounting watchdog has fined Deloitte a record 15 million pounds ($19.4 million) for “serious and serial failures” in its audits of software firm Autonomy.The Financial Reporting Council’s investigation focused on Deloitte’s audits of Autonomy’s ...

By Matthew Heller • Sept. 18, 2020

Opendoor to Go Public Through SPAC Merger

Online residential real estate platform Opendoor is listing shares publicly through a reverse merger that values the company at $4.8 billion.In a statement, Opendoor said it entered into a definitive business combination agreement with Social Capital Hedosophia Holdings II, a publicly traded spec...

By Lauren Muskett • Sept. 15, 2020

How Finance Leaders Can Drive Sustainability Transformations

Stakeholders, employees, and corporate leaders increasingly call on companies to meaningfully engage in the transition to a zero-carbon economy; businesses can no longer afford to maintain siloed sustainability programs. If they are to achieve their sustainability goals, companies must work acros...

By Jeff Waller • Sept. 14, 2020

Deloitte to Create Independent Audit Board

Deloitte is restructuring its operations to comply with regulatory changes that followed a series of high-profile audit failures at Big Four accounting firms.The Financial Reporting Council, the U.K. accounting watchdog, announced in July it had asked the firms to agree to separate their audit an...

By Matthew Heller • Sept. 11, 2020

Business Interruption: Insurers Balk at Paying Claims

When disasters strike, many businesses rely on insurance to carry them through economic and financial rough patches. Not this time.The COVID-19 pandemic and the subsequent government-mandated business shutdowns wrecked many companies’ top and bottom lines. While there are some noteworthy exceptio...

By Lauren Muskett • Sept. 10, 2020

CFTC Urges Changes to Climate Risk Disclosure

The Commodity Futures Exchange Commission has called for enhanced disclosure by public companies of climate-related financial risks to help prevent climate change from disrupting the U.S. financial system.In a report issued on Wednesday, a CFTC task force said disclosure is “an essential building...

By Matthew Heller • Sept. 10, 2020

PCAOB to Consider Revising Audit Evidence Rule

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board is making its own push to update standards for audit evidence to reflect the growing use of technology-based auditing tools.The PCAOB said Tuesday that its staff is assessing whether there is a need to change its AS 1105 standard, citing advancements ...

By Matthew Heller • Sept. 9, 2020

Michaels’ Sales Jump 11% on E-Commerce Push

Crafts retailer Michaels Companies posted strong quarterly results on Thursday as its e-commerce push fueled same-store sales growth despite the coronavirus pandemic.Michaels’ comparable sales, a key retail metric, rose 12.0% in the second quarter, while net sales increased 11.1% to $1.15 billion...

By Matthew Heller • Sept. 3, 2020

Be Ready to Distribute COVID-19 Vaccine in Two Months, CDC Says

The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notified public health authorities in all 50 states and five large cities to begin preparations to distribute two unidentified vaccines in late October or early November, the New York Times reported Wednesday.What Happened: The two vacc...

By Lauren Muskett • Sept. 3, 2020

Macy’s Shares Higher on Better-Than-Expected Q2

Retailer Macy’s reported second-quarter earnings and sales Wednesday that beat Street expectations.Macy’s reported revenue of $3.56 billion for the second quarter, down 36% year-over-year.Comp sales dropped 34.7% year-over-year. The retailer posted a net loss of $251 million versus a profit of $8...

By Lauren Muskett • Sept. 2, 2020

Metric of the Month: Cash-to-Cash Cycle Time

Cash-to-cash cycle time, also known as the cash conversion cycle (CCC), measures the amount of time it takes for a company to convert resources like inventory or investments in production into cash from sales. CCC is a critical measure of a business’s health and cash efficiency. If cash isn’t com...

By Perry D. Wiggins • Sept. 2, 2020

Walmart to Launch Subscription Service This Month

Walmart will be launching its long-speculated Walmart+ subscription service nationwide on Sept. 15, the company announced Monday.What Happened: Walmart was rumored to be rolling out a subscription plan earlier this year, but the idea was put on hold.The new program will cost $98 a year, or $12.95...

By Lauren Muskett • Sept. 1, 2020

Employers May Balk at Payroll Tax Holiday

President Donald Trump’s payroll tax holiday began on Tuesday but some employers may balk at offering the temporary relief to employees.Under Trump’s executive order, employees earning no more than $4,000 every two weeks are eligible for a deferral of the 6.2% tax that is deducted from their payc...

By Matthew Heller • Sept. 1, 2020

Zoom Revenue Soars on Remote Work Boom

The Zoom boom continued in the second quarter as the videoconferencing company’s revenue nearly quadrupled amid soaring demand from businesses whose employees are working from home.Zoom said revenue rose 355% to $663.5 million in the quarter ended July 31, crushing analysts’ estimates of $500.5 m...

By Matthew Heller • Sept. 1, 2020

Remote Workers, Learners Power Dell Sales

Dell Technologies shares jumped on Friday after the tech giant topped analysts’ estimates as stay-at-home workers and virtual learners fueled strong demand for laptops.As Reuters reports, “The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a rapid shift to cloud, spurring demand for products that allow organizatio...

By Matthew Heller • Aug. 28, 2020

Beware of the Working Capital Safety Net

Regardless of where an organization sits in its response to the COVID-19 pandemic—ranging from crisis management to growth mode to something in between—effectively managing working capital will likely continue to be paramount for finance and other leaders as long as uncertainty persists around th...

By Anthony Jackson • Aug. 28, 2020

Gap Blunts Covid Impact With E-Commerce Surge

Gap Inc. reported better-than-expected quarterly results as store reopenings and strong online business cushioned the retailer from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.Gap’s net sales fell 18% to $3.3 billion for the second quarter and the company swung to a net loss of $62 million, or 17 cent...

By Matthew Heller • Aug. 28, 2020

Coty Misses Estimates as Sales Plunge 62%

Coty shares fell sharply on Thursday after the cosmetics maker reported a larger than-expected quarterly loss, citing the “external shocks” of the coronavirus pandemic.For the fourth quarter, Coty’s net revenue plunged 62.8% to $560.4 million while its net loss narrowed to $722.8 million, or $1.0...

By Matthew Heller • Aug. 27, 2020

Work-From-Anywhere Future Exposes Holes in Operational Strategy

By 2030, Facebook will have at least half of its 50,000 employees working from home. Twitter and Square’s employees will be allowed to work wherever they feel most creative and productive, even once offices begin to reopen. In the UK, lawmakers are considering making it mandatory for employers to...

By Vincent Ryan • Aug. 27, 2020

E-Commerce Powers Best Buy Sales Gain

Best Buy posted its biggest same-store sales gain in two years but the retailer’s shares fell on uncertainty over growth in the second half of 2020.For the second quarter, Best Buy’s comparable sales jumped 5.8%, well above analysts’ estimates of a 2.3% increase even though stores were open by ap...

By Matthew Heller • Aug. 25, 2020

American Airlines to Suspend Flights to 15 U.S. Cities

American Airlines said it plans to suspend service to 15 U.S. airports, over 700 flights, in October as Congress mulls appropriating an additional $25 billion in payroll assistance to the industry.“This is the first step as American continues to evaluate its network and plans for additional sched...

By Lauren Muskett • Aug. 20, 2020

Walmart Online Sales Grow Record 97% in Q2

Walmart’s quarterly results crushed analysts’ estimates as record growth in online sales offset a decline in U.S. store traffic.According to CFO Brett Biggs, Walmart has expanded the availability of delivery and pickup time slots about 30% since February to accommodate the surge in ecommerce busi...

By Matthew Heller • Aug. 18, 2020

DraftKings Loses $161M Amid Lull in Betting

DraftKings reported a larger-than-expected quarterly loss on Friday but said business is picking up as major professional sports have returned to action after pauses or delays due to the coronavirus pandemic.The online gaming company’s shares dipped 6.5% to $33.70 on news that it lost $161.4 mill...

By Matthew Heller • Aug. 14, 2020