printer friendly pageACCT 210: Financial Accounting
Financial accounting is the measurement of economic activity for decision-making. Financial statements are a key product of this measurement process and an important component of firms' financial reporting activities. The objective of this course is not to train you to become an accountant but rather to help you develop into an informed user of financial statement information. While financial statement users face a wide variety of decisions, they are often interested in understanding the implications of financial statement information for the future cash flows and earnings potential of a firm. We will focus on understanding the mapping between underlying economic events and financial statements, and on understanding how this mapping affects inferences about future profitability and liquidity. The following learning objectives will be emphasized: (1) familiarity with the transactions businesses engage in, (2) fluency in accounting terminology, (3) understanding the structure that maps transactions into accounting numbers, (4) understanding the rationale for various accounting methods, and (5) awareness of the judgment involved and the discretion allowed in choosing accounting methods, making estimates, and disclosing information in financial statements.
Terms: Aut
| Units: 4
Instructors:
Beyer, A. (PI)
ACCT 212: Managerial Accounting: Base
Managerial accounting refers to the preparation and use of information for internal planning, control, coordination, and performance evaluation purposes. This orientation contrasts with financial accounting where the focus is on accounting disclosures to parties external to the firm.nnnThe first part of the course covers the vocabulary and mechanics of cost accounting, issues involved in the design of an internal cost accounting system, and the role of accounting information in decision making. Included in this are discussions of capacity costs, inter-departmental allocations, and activity-based management in manufacturing and service environments. We will pay particular attention to the trade-offs embedded in the choice of internal accounting systems. nnnThe second part of the course will examine the role of internal accounting systems in evaluating the performance of individual business segments and divisions of the firm. Included in this part are topics related to the choice of internal pricing methods for transferring goods and services across divisions of the firm and the use of financial metrics for assessing the profitability of these divisions.
Terms: Spr
| Units: 3
Instructors:
Reichelstein, S. (PI)
;
Rajan, M. (SI)
ACCT 213: Financial Accounting - Accelerated
This course develops students' ability to read, understand, and use corporate financial statements. The course is oriented toward the user of financial accounting data (rather than the preparer) and emphasizes the reconstruction and interpretation of economic events from published accounting reports. The course is geared toward students with some familiarity in dealing with financial statement information and allows for deeper coverage and discussion in class.
Terms: Aut
| Units: 4
Instructors:
Kasznik, R. (PI)
ACCT 215: Managerial Accounting: Accelerated
This course provides a comprehensive introduction to the concepts and tools of managerial accounting. The first part of the course demonstrates how management can rely on internal accounting information to measure and manage the profitability of individual products and customers. As part of that analysis, we examine alternative costing methods and illustrate how the resulting cost information can be used for decision making. The second part of the course focuses on the role of the internal accounting system in evaluating managerial performance and in coordinating the activities among business units within the firm. Our focus here will be on performance metrics that enable effective decentralization by aligning the objectives of individual business units with the overall corporate goals.
Terms: Spr
| Units: 3
Instructors:
Marinovic, I. (PI)
ACCT 219: MSx: Accounting
A characteristic of business is the extensive use of accounting data. The financial accounting course has the general objective of developing students' understanding of the nature, scope, and limitations of accounting information. To achieve this objective the course attempts to: (1) develop students' understanding of the conceptual accounting framework, including the objectives of financial reporting, and (2) develop students' ability to understand and critically evaluate the financial disclosures made by corporations. An issue of particular interest will be the managerial incentive aspects of accounting information and disclosures.
Terms: Aut, Sum
| Units: 4
Instructors:
deHaan, E. (PI)
ACCT 311: Global Financial Reporting
This course is designed to enhance students' understanding of current financial reporting issues through a detailed analysis and comparison of U.S. and International Financial Reporting Standards. The course will cover the development of accounting standards, implementation of these standards, and how to interpret output from these standards. The course highlights intermediate and advanced financial reporting topics including fair value accounting, asset securitization, consolidation including special purpose entities, foreign currency translation, derivatives and hedging, leases, revenue recognition, pensions, and equity compensation. The course also focuses on evaluating emerging financial reporting issues such as proposed financial reporting standards put forth by U.S. or international standard setting bodies. This course should help students better understand the environment governing global financial reporting and how firms develop financial statement information within this environment.
Terms: Aut, Sum
| Units: 4
Instructors:
Blankespoor, E. (PI)
ACCT 313: Accounting-Based Valuation
This course is structured to develop students' ability to interpret and use financial accounting information in equity valuation contexts. The perspective taken is that of an outsider relying on publicly available financial information for investment purposes, and builds heavily on the residual income framework for equity valuation. The first half of the course covers financial statement analysis-based tools for assessing a firm's current financial performance and economic condition, including traditional ratio analysis. The second half of the course introduces the accounting-based valuation framework, and develops the link between financial statement analysis, forecasting and valuation. This portion of the course focuses on techniques for forecasting specific income statement and balance sheet items, the creation of pro-forma financial statements, and the implementation of several accounting-based valuation models. The capstone to the course is the completion of a comprehensive equity valuation project. In addition to learning basic financial statement analysis tools and accounting-based valuation theory, students benefits from applying these tools and theories in the context of weekly cases and the final project. The course is structured for students to gain a deeper understanding of the economic pressures behind the analysis and valuation process by drawing upon and synthesizing concepts from microeconomics, corporate finance, corporate strategy, statistics and accounting. The course will be of value to those students who, as either senior managers or outsiders, anticipate making investment or credit decisions at least partially based on financial statement information.
Terms: Aut
| Units: 4
Instructors:
Piotroski, J. (PI)
ACCT 317: Managerial Accounting: Performance Measurement, Compensation, and Governance
The course will examine the academic and professional controversies surrounding corporate governance and executive compensation. A basic framework will be developed to integrate the many important dimensions of corporate governance in the U.S. and international settings. The institutional features of corporate governance and executive compensation will be documented using the professional business and legal literatures. In addition, the scientific research in accounting, economics, finance, and organizational behavior will be used to provide insights into the measurement and consequences of observed corporate governance and executive compensation choices. After successfully finishing the course, a student should be able to (i) understand the debates about appropriate choices for corporate governance and executive compensation and (ii) critically evaluate the implications of academic and professional research studies on these controversial issues.
Terms: Spr
| Units: 3
Instructors:
Larcker, D. (PI)
ACCT 340: Alphanomics: Informational Arbitrage in Equity Markets
This is an advanced elective course on the economics of active investing in equity markets. The course is designed as a "start-up kit for an equity hedge fund." We will cover some of the foundational skills needed to select and trade stocks, as well as build and manage a portfolio of public equity. nnnSpecifically, the course material is designed to improve student skills in: (1) assessing the relative attractiveness of individual companies, (2) building stock screens to filter and rank firms based on user-specified parameters, (3) trading individual equity positions, and (4) monitoring and managing portfolio risk. nnnThis is a hands-on course with an emphasis on experiential learning. Students will make extensive use of the analytical tools in the new "Real-time Analytics and Investment Lab" (R.A.I.L.) facility in the Bass Center. There is no final exam. However, there will be a number of individual cases and a final group project. 25% of the grade will be based on class participation, and 75% will be based on cases and projects. nnnBecause it is an advanced elective, students taking this class are expected to be well versed in core economic, accounting, and finance skills. Material covered in a second Financial Modeling course, as well as in Accounting 312 (Evaluating Financial Statement Information) and Accounting 313 (Accounting-based Valuation) will come in handy. However, none of these courses are required.
Terms: Win
| Units: 4
Instructors:
Lee, C. (PI)
ACCT 354: Analysis and Valuation for Event-Driven Investing
This Bass seminar is designed to develop students' ability to interpret and use financial accounting information in credit and equity valuation contexts. The course will focus on valuing the securities of companies undergoing significant changes as a result of litigation, restructuring, regulatory changes, mergers, spin-offs or significant industry shifts. Throughout the course, students will (1) enrich their understanding of how alternative economic, legal, political and regulatory outcomes affect the value of various components of a company's capital structure and (2) develop their ability to apply financial statement analysis to assess the likelihood and valuation implications of the events of interest. nnnEvent-driven investing follows the life cycle of companies as they revamp their corporate structures in response to economic and regulatory environments. For example, in rising economic periods companies may undertake acquisitions or spin off divisions to enhance shareholder value. During adverse environments, bankruptcy and reorganizations often reshape the capital structure by offering opportunities to create value through the restructuring process. During economic transitions, debt and equity investors may make significantly different assessments of the quality of a company's earnings, its assets, and its likelihood to meet its debt obligations. To assess the probability of corporate events, investors must make judgments about the quality of a company's earnings and assets and understand how accounting policies may influence management's representations. Investors must also interpret how accounting policies function at various points in a firm's life cycle, influencing the quality of earnings for firms differently in different economic environments. nnnIn the first half of the course, we will develop the course framework, and apply it to illustrative cases. Companies featured in the cases include Tyco, AIG, CIT, Fannie Mae, Tesla and Pharmasset and Gilead. Students will interpret information from companies' public financial disclosures to assess the likelihood of different events or outcomes. The course will also feature readings on current accounting standards, articles from the popular press, publicly available financial statement information, and guest speakers with in-depth knowledge of investing strategies vis a vis the case companies. nnnThe latter part of the course will be devoted to project work, with students working in teams to develop an event-driven investing strategy. The aim is to allow students to conduct independent research on a company, industry, economic context, or financial reporting environment of particular interest. Students will develop their investment idea, articulate their sense of the possible outcomes for the components of the firm's capital structure, and explain how they have assessed the likelihood and valuation consequences of those outcomes. At the conclusion of the course, students will present their strategies to the class and a panel of expert judges.
Terms: Spr
| Units: 3
Instructors:
McNichols, M. (PI)
;
Casscells, R. (SI)
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