Cisco to Break 2-Year Streak of Declining Sales

Cisco Systems shares rose nearly 6% on Wednesday after the network equipment maker reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings as it continues its shift from hardware to high-margin businesses.For the first quarter, Cisco’s revenues fell 2% year on year to $12.136 billion. But that beat anal...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 15, 2017

How Tax Departments Can Take On Evildoers

Liam Neeson pretty much set the standard for swagger in dealing with terrorist finance in the movie “Taken“ when he unleashed his famous monologue:“I don’t know who you are. I don’t know what you want. If you are looking for ransom, I can tell you I don’t have money, but what I do have are a very...

By Brian Peccarelli • Nov. 14, 2017

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

Hurricanes Add $282M to Home Depot Sales

While the recent hurricanes battered many retailers, Home Depot told a different story on Tuesday, reporting strong same-store sales growth and earnings that beat estimates.Hurricanes Harvey and Irma sent consumers to Home Depot stores in the southern states for generators, flashlights and rebuil...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 14, 2017

GE Makes First Dividend Cut Since Depression

Three weeks after General Electric new chief executive said it needed to make “some major changes with urgency,” the engineering conglomerate has done just that.GE said Monday it will cut its quarterly dividend to 12 cents from the prior 24 cent payout due to weaker-than-expected cash flows in it...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 13, 2017

Low Feed Costs Boost Tyson Foods Q4 Results

Tyson Foods on Monday reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, reflecting lower livestock feed costs after four straight years of bumper harvests.Tyson’s feed costs fell $65 million and $80 million for the fourth quarter and fiscal 2017, respectively, and it is expecting the trend to con...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 13, 2017

Macy’s Comp Sales Drop 3.6%, Earnings Beat

Macy’s reported an 11th straight quarterly decline in same-store sales but its stock rose 11% as the retailer’s tight control of inventory drove a beat on earnings.For the third quarter, Macy’s comparable store sales fell 3.6% following a 2.8% drop in the prior reporting period. Total net sales d...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 10, 2017

Metric of the Month: Annual Budget Cycle Times

It’s budget season again. How long will your budgeting process take this year, compared to last? If you don’t know the answer, there may be room for improvement in the cycle time to complete your organization’s annual budget.Let’s be honest: When you ask most CFOs and business unit managers about...

By Marisa Brown • Nov. 10, 2017

Sizing Up the New Hedge Accounting Rules

It’s just over a year until the scheduled effective date for Accounting Standards Update 2017-12, the long-awaited update to the Financial Accounting Standards Board’s derivatives and hedge accounting standard.Chandu Chilakapati The goal of the update, issued in August of this year, is to align f...

By Chandu Chilakapati • Nov. 10, 2017

Sales Rebound Drives JC Penney Stock up 14%

J.C. Penney’s third-quarter results gave a surprising boosts to hopes of a turnaround at the retailer, with same-store sales showing their first gain in a year.The 1.7% increase in comparable store sales topped analysts’ estimates of a 0.7% upswing and followed a 1.3% decline in the second quarte...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 10, 2017

Hertz Returns to Profit But Shares Drop 2%

Hertz reported its first quarterly profit in a year but investors appeared unsure about the progress of its turnaround plan as its shares fell more than 2% in trading Friday.The car rental company said Thursday its third-quarter net income rose to $93 million, or $1.12 per share, from $42 million...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 10, 2017

Square Revenue Jumps 33% to $585 Million

Payments company Square reported strong top-line growth for the third quarter, driven by gross payment volume gains among both larger and midmarket users.Square’s total net revenue increased 33% year-over-year to $585 million while adjusted revenue rose 45% to $257 million. The company posted a l...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 9, 2017

Storms Dent Wendy’s Same-Store Sales in Q3

The recent hurricanes may have caused Wendy’s to miss quarterly same-store sales estimates as the burger chain also faced increasing competition from rivals McDonald’s and Burger King.Wendy’s reported Wednesday that same-restaurant sales in North America rose 2.% in the third quarter, missing ana...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 8, 2017

The Impact of the House Tax Cut Bill on CFOs

The House Ways and Means Committee recently released a series of talking points that serve as an outline of the major features of the House tax bill, which is tentatively titled “the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.” The House bill, which appears to be  a synthesis of President Trump’s campaign tax plan an...

By Matthew A. Morris • Nov. 7, 2017

FP&A Technology Explained

For those involved in financial planning and analysis, the bad news is that the work can be boring much of the time. The good news: It’s quickly getting more interesting.As with many corporate processes, technology is driving fundamental changes in FP&A. Thanks to a new generation of tools, t...

By Keith Button • Nov. 7, 2017

Royal Caribbean Cruises to Record Q3 Earnings

Royal Caribbean Cruises reported record third-quarter earnings on Tuesday even though the recent hurricanes cost it more than $55 million, or $0.26 per share.The cruise operator’s net income rose 8.6% to $752.8 million or $3.49 per share, including a $0.20 negative impact from the hurricanes, whi...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 7, 2017

CVS Beats Estimates But Same-Store Sales Fall

CVS Health on Monday reported quarterly earnings that beat analysts’ expectations on strong growth in pharmacy services but its retail drugstore business continued to lag.For the third quarter, CVS’ net revenue increased 3.5%, or $1.6 billion, to approximately $46.2 billion while net income fell ...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 6, 2017

Location Lures

There seems to be no limit these days to what U.S. states and cities will do to lure businesses to their communities. Incentives recently dangled in front of companies include the $3 billion in tax breaks — amounting to $15,000 to $19,000 per job annually — that Wisconsin’s governor has offered F...

By Bob Violino • Nov. 6, 2017

Tax Reform, As It Was

In discussions of the likelihood that federal tax reform will be enacted this year or in 2018, it’s often pointed out that it has been 31 years since the last reform effort became law. While the Tax Reform Act of 1986 is viewed by some as a starting point for this year’s effort, the times have ch...

By CFO Editorial Staff • Nov. 6, 2017

CFO Pushes Pharma Startup to Market

For the CFO of a pharmaceutical company whose only products are in trials, the future is uncertain and the end is always near.Josh Blacher Well, almost always. Josh Blacher, finance chief at Therapix Biosciences, is waxing optimistic about prospects for the company’s synthetic cannabinoids that a...

By David McCann • Nov. 3, 2017

Osiris Executives Accused of Accounting Fraud

Biotech firm Osiris Therapeutics has agreed to pay $1.5 million to settle charges that four former top executives, including two finance chiefs, used “illegal accounting gimmicks” to artificially inflate revenue.The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said the alleged fraud reflected a cultur...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 3, 2017

Starbucks Misses Estimates With 2% Sales Rise

Starbucks reported another quarter of disappointing sales and lowered its profit forecast, missing analysts’ same-store sales target amid competition at both the high and low ends of the coffee market.For the fourth quarter, the coffee giant’s net income attributable to the company fell 1.6% to $...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 3, 2017

DowDuPont’s First Earnings Beat Estimates

Newly-merged chemicals giant DowDuPont on Thursday reported a better-than-expected profit in its first quarterly earnings report and detailed its plan to save $3 billion in costs, including job cuts and plant consolidations.For the third quarter, DowDuPont posted $232 million, or 55 cents of per ...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 2, 2017

SEC Audit Committee Rule Is Worthless: Study

With the perennial issue of regulatory reform gaining renewed impetus from the Trump administration, some new research suggests a potential target: the Securities and Exchange Commission’s mandate spelling out the basic composition of audit committees.Arthur Levitt The regulation has its roots in...

By David McCann • Nov. 1, 2017

Under Armour Shares Dive as U.S. Sales Slump

Under Armour shares dropped sharply after the sneaker company reported lower-than-expected quarterly sales and trimmed its outlook amid lower demand in the key U.S. market.For the third quarter, Under Armour’s total revenue fell 4.5% to $1.41 billion while net profit declined to $54.2 million, or...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 1, 2017

Mastercard Profit Jumps 21% to Record $1.43B

Mastercard posted a record quarterly profit as the payments company maintained the momentum of the first half of the year amid particularly strong growth overseas.For the third quarter, Mastercard’s revenue jumped 18% to $3.4 billion while net income rose 21% to $1.43 billion, or $1.34 per share....

By Matthew Heller • Oct. 31, 2017