Companies Can CEOs, CFOs for High Tax Rates

Because CFOs are often held accountable for the corporate tax function, they’re more likely to be fired when the company’s tax rate is significantly higher than those of their peers, according to a new study of the relationship between corporate tax rates and their job risks for chief executive o...

By David Katz • Dec. 18, 2017

Investors Speak: Down With GAAP!

Will there come a time when accounting regulators bow to the inevitable and finally acknowledge that generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) have lost a great deal of their relevance?Surely, if accounting were being invented today, it would look a lot different than it does.After the Secu...

By David McCann • Dec. 18, 2017

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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

New PCAOB Chair Closely Linked to Sen. Shelby

As he was enjoying widespread praise for his opposition to Roy Moore’s candidacy for the U.S. Senate from Alabama, Richard Shelby, the state’s senior senator, issued a statement earlier this week praising the appointment of William D. Duhnke III as chairman of the Public Company Accounting Oversi...

By David Katz • Dec. 14, 2017

Will Tech Preserve the Cheap Cost of Capital?

With each passing day, it seems, technology wields more influence over human activity. Nothing resembling a slowdown of that progression is in sight, and in fact it’s very likely to last indefinitely.Vincent Deluard Those sound like plain facts, don’t they? Yet a new report from Fortune 500 finan...

By David McCann • Dec. 14, 2017

Teva to Cut 14,000 Jobs in ‘Drastic’ Overhaul

Saying it had “no time to waste,” Teva Pharmaceutical on Thursday announced “drastic steps” to restore its financial stability that will result in the loss of 14,000 jobs.Investors reacted positively to news of Teva’s “comprehensive restructuring,” sending its shares up 10.1% to $17.30. As The As...

By Matthew Heller • Dec. 14, 2017

Investors on Rev Rec Changes: Who Cares?

Amid all the consternation plaguing companies about getting up to speed on the new revenue recognition rules, there’s one thing they don’t have to worry about: investor reaction to any resulting changes in their financials.Sure, there will be some accounting adjustments, especially around when to...

By David McCann • Dec. 13, 2017

Lululemon Beats Estimates, Comp Sales up 8%

Yoga-apparel specialist Lululemon Athletica delivered strong quarterly comparable sales growth and, on the heels of record Thanksgiving holiday sales, said it was on track to meet its 2020 revenue target.Despite the challenging environment facing retailers, Lululemon reported Wednesday that comp ...

By Matthew Heller • Dec. 7, 2017

CFOs Guarded on Benefits of Lower Tax Rate

While U.S. tax legislation speeds into Congress’s conference reconciliation process, finance chiefs are being very careful about touting any benefits that might accrue to their companies as a result of a corporate rate cut.In earnings calls and investor conferences the past two weeks, CFOs have l...

By Vincent Ryan • Dec. 7, 2017

Hudson’s Bay Shares Plunge as Q3 Loss Widens

Hudson’s Bay shares fell sharply on Wednesday after the retailer reported a much worse-than-expected quarterly loss, with both overall revenue and comparable store sales declining by more than 3%.The net loss for the third quarter came to C$243 million ($192 million), or C$1.33 per share — up fro...

By Matthew Heller • Dec. 6, 2017

SEC Accountants Voice Resource Constraints

Top officials of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s office of the chief accountant on Monday cited constraints on the OCA’s resources in the face of advancing technology and an abundance of new accounting rules.Wesley R. Bricker Wesley R. Bricker, Other Reporting RisksSpeaking at an America...

By David Katz • Dec. 5, 2017

Lands’ End Swings to Profit, Shares Climb 12%

Lands’ End shares jumped nearly 12% on Wednesday after the struggling apparel retailer posted its first quarterly profit in two years, reflecting a strong performance from its online and catalog unit.For the third quarter, Lands’ End swung to a net profit of $162,000, or 1 cent per share, from a ...

By Matthew Heller • Dec. 5, 2017

Top CFO Priorities for 2018: Taking Aim

Next year promises to be an exciting (and, possibly, very critical) year for many companies. Interest rates may finally head higher, workers may be tougher to find, valuations pricier, and consumer spending more robust. Or, as CFOs know all too well, none of that may happen. Unforeseeable events ...

By CFO Editorial Staff • Dec. 4, 2017

Judgment Calls Stalk Revenue Recognition

Finance and accounting executives hustling to bring their companies into line with the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s new revenue recognition standard by its December 31 deadline are grappling with unprecedented judgment calls, according to a top American Institute of Certified Public Acc...

By David Katz • Dec. 1, 2017

June Cyberattack Bites Into Nuance Revenues

Healthcare IT solutions provider Nuance Communications took a $53 million revenue hit from a global malware attack but the damage was less than initially anticipated.The June cyberattack known as “NotPetya” affected Nuance’s cloud-based dictation and transcription services for hospitals and healt...

By Matthew Heller • Dec. 1, 2017

VMware’s Cloud Offerings Drive Earnings Beat

Enterprise software firm VMware posted better-than-expected quarterly revenue and profit, with strength across its product portfolio including the legacy on-premises business.VMware’s revenue for the third quarter rose 11% to $1.98 billion while net income increased to $443 million, or $1.07 per ...

By Matthew Heller • Dec. 1, 2017

Sears Narrows Loss But Comp Sales Drop 15%

Sears Holdings on Thursday reported a narrower net loss as its cost-cutting drive continued but same-store sales declined for a 24th straight quarter.The retailer has slashed its operating costs by closing roughly 330 stores this year, with 100 more closures scheduled over the fourth quarter. It ...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 30, 2017

‘Zero-based Supply Chain’ Drives Down COGS

Make no mistake: companies are still enthusiastically implementing supply chain cost-reduction strategies. After all, at least half of many companies’ costs typically reside in the cost of goods sold (COGS). Yet most are seeing little sustainable impact on their bottom lines.Companies across indu...

By Andrew Corr • Nov. 30, 2017

Special Report: Supply Chain Reinvention

Supply chains are alive with innovation, and a majority of it is not first and foremost about containing costs.Considering the history of the function, that’s something of a profound statement — and one that might have drawn incredulous reactions just a few years ago. But it’s not imaginary. Ever...

By David McCann • Nov. 29, 2017

Shares Drop When Cos. File Late: Study

Investors pummel companies for tardiness in filing 10-Ks and 10-Qs, even when they affirm that they will meet deadline extensions, according to a new study.Companies’ share prices plummet when they file Form NT (“non-timely”), despite stated expectations to meet their deadlines, according to a pa...

By David Katz • Nov. 29, 2017

Tiffany Beats Estimates, Comp Sales Fall 1%

Tiffany’s third-quarter earnings beat estimates as same-store sales returned to positive territory in the Americas but showed weakness in Europe and the Asia-Pacific region.In the first full quarter under new CEO Alessandro Bogliolo, the upscale jeweler on Wednesday reported that worldwide net sa...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 29, 2017

How Revenue Recognition Impacts Pricing Strategy

In today’s customer-centric subscription economy, pricing and packaging can provide a winning edge. Companies using the subscription business model are using this key customer-touching aspect to differentiate their offerings. The more successful ones tend to offer plenty of flexible pricing and p...

By Monika Saha • Nov. 27, 2017

Small-Business Owners Allege Tax Plan Bias

Fifty-one percent of small-business owners “oppose the tax plan that has been proposed in Congress,” while 31% support it, according to a poll released today.Without specifying whether it was asking about the Senate or House Plans, or both, the newly formed Businesses for Responsible Tax Reform a...

By David Katz • Nov. 27, 2017

Deere Posts 5th Best Year for Sales, Earnings

Deere & Co. shares rose more than 4% on Wednesday after the company’s quarterly earnings easily beat estimates and it forecast continued growth in demand for farm equipment next year.For the fourth quarter, the world’s largest farm-equipment manufacturer on Friday reported worldwide net sales...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 24, 2017

Lowe’s Gets $200M Sales Boost From Hurricanes

Lowe’s Companies delivered better-than-expected quarterly results across the board as sales, like those of rival Home Depot, benefited from strong demand for hurricane-related supplies.For the third quarter, Lowe’s same-store sales, a key retail metric, rose 5.7%, easily beating analysts’ estimat...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 22, 2017

Pull an Uber and Disclose your Data Breach, Now

Uber has finally disclosed that it experienced a cyber breach in 2016 in which the personal details of both drivers and customers were hacked by cyber criminals. The company reportedly had kept the breach secret for a year and paid a $100,000  ransom to have the data destroyed.Here we go again. A...

By Joseph Carson • Nov. 22, 2017