Jean-Baptiste Say (1767-1832) was a French classical, liberal economist and scholar. Say was born in Lyon in 1767, and had a distinguished career. He served on a government finance committee under Napoleon, taught political economy in France at the Athénée, the Conservatoire National des Arts et Metiers, and later at the College de France, where he was named as its chair of political economy.
A non-cash charge is a write-down or accounting expense that does not involve a cash payment. They can represent meaningful changes to a company’s financial standing, weighing on earnings without affecting short-term capital in any way. Depreciation, amortization, depletion, stock-based compensation, and asset impairments are common non-cash charges that reduce earnings but not cash flows.
Net foreign assets (NFA) determines whether a country is a creditor or debtor nation by measuring the difference in its external assets and liabilities. Net foreign assets (NFA) refer to the value of overseas assets owned by a nation, minus the value of its domestic assets that are owned by foreigners, adjusted for changes in valuation and exchange rates.
The Halloween strategy, Halloween effect, or Halloween indicator, is a market-timing strategy based on the theory that stocks perform better between Oct. 31 (Halloween) and May 1 than they do between the beginning of May through the end of October. The theory posits that it is prudent to buy stocks in November, hold them through the winter months, then sell in April, while investing in other asset classes from May through October. Some who subscribe to this tactic say not to invest at all during the summer months.
A financial system is a set of institutions, such as banks, insurance companies, and stock exchanges, that permit the exchange of funds. Financial systems exist on firm, regional, and global levels. Borrowers, lenders, and investors exchange current funds to finance projects, either for consumption or productive investments, and to pursue a return on their financial assets. The financial system also includes sets of rules and practices that borrowers and lenders use to decide which projects get financed, who finances projects, and terms of financial deals.
A portfolio is a grouping of financial assets such as stocks, bonds, commodities, currencies and cash equivalents, as well as their fund counterparts, including mutual, exchange-traded and closed funds. A portfolio can also consist of non-publicly tradable securities, like real estate, art, and private investments. Money market accounts make full use of this concept to function properly.
Modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) is an important number. First of all, it determines whether you can contribute to a Roth IRA and if you can deduct IRA contributions.1 2 It also factors into your eligibility for certain education tax benefits and income tax credits. 3 Furthermore, it establishes your eligibility for income-based Medicaid and subsidized health insurance plans on the Health Insurance Marketplace. 4
Per stirpes is a legal term stipulating that should a beneficiary predecease the testator—the person who has made out the will—the beneficiary’s share of the inheritance goes to his heirs. While the term per stirpes is commonly used to refer to an individual’s assets under a will, it is sometimes used in beneficiary designations for individual retirement accounts (IRAs). While per stirpes and per capita are similar, there are differences. Per capita means that any surviving descendants of the same generation distribute property equally.
A net charge-off (NCO) is the dollar amount representing the difference between gross charge-offs and any subsequent recoveries of delinquent debt. Net charge-offs refer to the debt owed to a company that is unlikely to be recovered by that company. This bad debt often written off and classified as gross charge-offs. If, at a later date, some money is recovered on the debt, the amount is subtracted from the gross charge-offs to compute the net charge-off value.
Internal audits evaluate a company’s internal controls, including its corporate governance and accounting processes. They ensure compliance with laws and regulations and help to maintain accurate and timely financial reporting and data collection. Internal audits also provide management with the tools necessary to attain operational efficiency by identifying problems and correcting lapses before they are discovered in an external audit.