Basic accounting terms

Profit

Profit is defined as the financial benefit realized when the revenue generated by a business activity exceeds the expenses, costs, and taxes associated with the activity in question. Profits are returned to business owners, who can choose to pocket the

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Operating Profit

The operating profit of a company is the total earnings from its core business functions for a given period, excluding interest and taxes. It also excludes profits from ancillary investments, such as earnings from other businesses in which a company

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Net Profit

Net profit excludes the costs of interest and taxes paid by the company. It is sometimes referred to as the firm’s “bottom line” because it is at the bottom of the income statement. Net profit is calculated by deducting interest

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Gross Profit

A company’s gross profit is its financial gain after deducting the costs of manufacturing and distributing its goods or services. These expenses are called the cost of goods sold. The amount of money actually earned is referred to as the

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Variable Cost

Variable costs are the expenses incurred by a business in proportion to its output or revenue. The broad definition of variable costs includes any costs that vary depending on how much product a company produces or revenue it generates in

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Revenue

The basic definition of revenue is the total amount of money brought in by a company’s operations over a specified time period. The revenue of a company is its gross income before deducting any expenses. Revenue is defined by profits

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Liability

Liabilities are monetary obligations that a company may have that are payable to a third party. Employee wages and benefits, taxes, insurance, accounts payable, and any expenses incurred during normal operation are all examples of liabilities. To define liabilities, a

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Fiscal Year

A fiscal year is a company’s accounting period. The company determines the start and end dates of its fiscal year; some coincide with the calendar year, while others vary based on when accountants can prepare financial statements. The tax laws

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Fixed Cost

Fixed costs are costs that a company incurs on a consistent basis regardless of production quantity or revenue. Any costs that are consistent with a company’s normal operations are included in the general fixed cost definition. These include any regularly

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Expenses

Expenses are any purchases or money spent in order to generate revenue. Expenses are also known as “the cost of doing business.” Although some expenses fall into more than one category, there are four main types of expenses. Fixed expenses

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