15.515: Financial Accounting
Fall 2012
Problem Set 2
Question 1. Understanding Walmart’s financial statements In this homework we will ask you a series of questions related to revenue recognition based on Wal-Mart 2012’s Annual Report (posted on Stellar ~/Materials/Financial statements used / discussed in class). The goal is to become familiar with real financial statements.
1. How much net sales did Walmart generate for the fiscal period ending on January 31, 2012?
$443,854M
2. What was the balance of Walmart’s accounting receivables as of January 31, 2012?
$5,937M
3. What was the balance of Walmart’s allowance for doubtful accounts (ADA) as of January 31, 2012?
$323M
4. Assume that Walmart wrote-off
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Throughout this question, ignore all of Groupon’s costs other than the $150 paid to the merchant. The offer is announced on August 1st and it requires 100 customers to purchase the deal so that the deal goes through. For all of the questions below, if no transaction should be recorded, please explain why.
1. On August 2nd, there are 50 customers that agreed to purchase the deal. Based on Groupon’s revenue recognition policy described above, use the balance sheet equation (BSE) to record the transaction that Groupon would record on that date.
No transaction, because the “>100 customer” criteria hasn’t been met.
2. On August 5th, Groupon has sold 200 Rock Climbing packages for cash. Based on Groupon’s revenue recognition policy described above, use the balance sheet equation (BSE) to record the transaction that Groupon would record on that date. In recording this transaction, assume that Groupon does not pay the merchant until a later date.
Asset Liability Equity
Cash A/P R/E
+60k +30k +30k
Below is an excerpt from Groupon’s 2011 Annual Report posted on Stellar ~/Materials/Financial statements used / discussed in class)) about its merchant payment policy.
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Merchant Payments
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Under the redemption payment model, which we utilize in most of our international operations in conformity with local market practice, merchants
Estimate the company's net operating income for January, assuming that the fixed monthly expenses do not change. Show your
After discovering errors in its accounting and the failure to set aside enough reseveres for customer refunds, Groupon. Inc announced revision of its first financial results posted as a public company in April 2012, which resulted in a cut to its 2011 fourth-quarter revenue of $14.3 million. In addition, this revision has reduced its fourth quarter operating income by $30 million, net income by $22.6 million, and earnings per share by $0.04, due to an increase of operating expenses after compliance with GAAP.
customers every day by providing a broad assortment of quality merchandise and services at every day low prices (“EDLP”), while fostering
In 2016, Groupon Inc. works with the following mission statement: “To connect local commerce, increasing consumer buying power while driving more business to local merchants through price and discovery.”
This unique company was founded in November of 2008 by Andrew Mason, Eric Lefkofsky, and Brad Keywell. Groupon, which is a combination of the words group and coupon, is a global force in the e-commerce marketplace. It offers discounts on activities, travel, goods, and services in over twenty-eight countries today. Starting in Chicago and expanding worldwide in a very short period of time, Groupon was the “first of its kind and changed the way consumers spend, shop, and think about discounts”. (Wheelan, page 11-1) Eric Lefkofsky provided the one-million-dollar seed money to start the company and by April of 2010 the company was valued at 1.35 billion dollars. Over the years there have been FCC challenges and restating of figures
Groupon’s vision is that they are an online website where any costumer, seemingly anywhere around the world, can purchase coupons at highly discounted rates, for items or services that they would originally pay full price for. Its mission is mainly based off of two things; its values and their promise (to the costumer). When it comes to their values, it all starts with the customer. Groupon is always striving to the best they can be, “Always imagining new ways to exceed the expectations of all our customers—both consumers looking for great experiences at a great value and merchants seeking solutions to attract more customers and run their businesses ' better.” (Groupon) Groupon also believes that great people make great companies. They believe that they’re “A home for creative, problem-solvers, and innovators alike—those with the passion and know-how to transform
The five-stage purchase decision process for a typical Groupon user would consist of Problem Recognition: This would be prompted by a Groupon
Despite the small sizes of merchants, Groupon maintained a high-touch relationship to fulfill its customer-service philosophy. The growth in Groupon sales force reflected international operations. This resulted in a high revenue increase of Groupon Company by 380% in 2011. This rise in revenue was attributed to an increase in marketing expenditure and enhanced company’s sales force. Despite the significant growth in income, the company’s operating income remained flat.
Groupon offers consumers a unique way into purchasing products they may have never sought out before. From adventurous buys like rock climbing or sky diving to the everyday dining out at a local restaurant, it has grown to encompass just about everything. Groupon’s business model is very creative on how it works with merchants to promote deals on a daily basis. A merchant will create a discounted package but it is predicated on how many people will buy into the deal before it goes live. This method guarantees a minimum amount of revenue that will be generated and comes at virtually no cost to the merchant. Once the threshold is met, the deals have been unlocked and the consumer can enjoy their purchase while Groupon and the store owner
After analyzing Wal-Mart’s annual report for 2010, attention has been brought to several items that require closer examination. A common “red flag” to questionable accounting has been found within Wal-Mart’s statement of cash flows and income statement. There is an increasing gap between the company’s reported income and the cash flow from operating activities. In the year 2008 reported income and cash flow from operating activities differed by $484 million. However the difference increased a considerable $2,249 and $4,183 billion in the years 2009 and 2010 respectively. This increasing gap is a significant warning sign that the company may be changing accrual estimates.
Groupon is a deal-of-the-day website that is localized to major geographic markets worldwide. Launched in November 2008, the first market for Groupon was Chicago, followed soon thereafter by Boston, New York City, and Toronto. Groupon has over 50 million subscribers across 300 cities in more than 40 countries. The idea for Groupon was created by Andrew Mason who is currently the company’s CEO. [update]Groupon serves more than 150 markets in North America and 100 markets in Europe, Asia and South America and has amassed 60 million registered users. The growth in the future is likely to be at a slower pace, primarily because the company is already one of the largest in the local deals space.
This report is intended analyze and compare the operating profitability of Sears, Roebuck and Co. (SRC), and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WM) for the accounting periods of 1996 and 1997.
Making the offers timesensitive triggers a feeling in consumers that they might miss out on a chance that will not repeat itself if they don´t act now. Many even bought vouchers that they never redeemed, just not to miss out on an opportunity. In this sense Groupon is speaking to the risk-aversion of the majority of people. The thrill of seeing how much time is left on a coupon and how many others are acting as well, appeals to a person´s addictive behavior. We want to repeat the thrill of the bargain hunt. Groupon then made many moves to foster and expand its initial success. It expanded rapidly into more cities and later on even more countries. It fostered its connection with social media and the online world by setting up an affiliate marketing program that allowed bloggers and websites to earn commissions. This online referral was also expanded by giving consumers a direct incentive to refer Groupon by offering them a 10$ reward towards a future purchase. Groupon also heavily invested in paid search engine advertising and even created an ad that was shown during half time of the super bowl. So, to sum up, Groupon made sure that its existence spread as fast and as much as possible.
With the internet technology, everyone can stay at home for online shopping. What’s more, if you can enjoy daily discounts with all the information, home delivery and 24-hours daily operation, that’s all can be found by buying Groupon. Groupon, the company has successfully captured millions of online consumers throughout the world. The marketing strategy of Groupon captures the consumer behavior. Consumer buying behavior, defined as... “The buying behavior of final consumers, individual and households who buy goods and services for personal”.Groupon consumers mainly responses to: