One of the most pressing questions for individuals and businesses is whether to hire a certified public accountant (CPA) or an accounting firm. The most important difference is that CPAs are allowed to sign tax returns for clients and represent them during a tax audit. Accountants don’t have the same standing with the IRS. All CPAs are accountants, but not all accountants are CPAs. A CPA has an advanced level of rigorous training, expertise and certification.

The success of any business relies on its financial health and individuals need to choose the right professional for their needs. The terms CPA and accountant are often used interchangeably, but there are distinct differences.

Accountant

An accountant provides basic bookkeeping tasks and can verify the work of an in-house bookkeeper.  They create reports and analyze those documents to generate long-term business plans. The professionals file tax returns and provide tax planning advice. An accountant can perform cash flow management and provide projections, along with bookkeeping services.

Accountants record, maintain and interpret financial records. They ensure the accuracy of financial documents, evaluate operations and can recommend best practices for clients. Accountants can create forecasts, perform risk analysis, and provide guidance on reducing costs and enhancing revenues.

CPA

A CPA provides all the services of an accountant and more, especially forensic accounting. They’re able to detect irregularities ranging from embezzlement to tax evasion. In addition to passing the stringent CPA certification exam, to keep their license, CPAs must also complete yearly educational requirements.

CPAs can legally represent clients before the IRS in the event of an audit. A CPA can file taxes and they utilize the most advanced financial software on the market that’s not available to the average individual. They’re experts in financial planning, provide clients with profit and loss statements, and can assist with profit-sharing and employee benefit packages. CPAs provide the data that business owners need to make sound decisions for the future of their company.

At Peavy and Associates PC our mission is to assist you with all your tax preparations, payroll and accounting needs.  We provide our clients with professional, personalized accounting services and guidance in a wide range of financial and business needs. Give us a call today and discover why our clients return to Peavy and Associates, PC year after year!

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Its obvious financial statements have a lot of numbers in them and at first glance, it can seem unwieldy to read and understand. One way to interpret a financial report is to compute ratios, which means, divide a particular number in the financial report by another. Financial statement ratios are also useful because they enable the reader to compare a business’s current performance with its past performance or with another business’s performance, regardless of whether sales revenue or net income was bigger or smaller for the other years or the other business. In order words, using ratios can cancel out differences in company sizes.

There aren’t many ratios in financial reports. Publicly owned businesses are required to report just one ratio (earnings per share, or EPS) and privately-owned businesses generally don’t report any ratios. Generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) don’t require that any ratios be reported, except EPS for publicly owned companies.

Ratios don’t provide definitive answers, however. They’re useful indicators but aren’t the only factor in gauging the profitability and effectiveness of a company.

One ratio that’s a useful indicator of a company’s profitability is the gross margin ratio. This is the gross margin divided by the sales revenue. Businesses don’t disclose margin information in their external financial reports. This information is considered to be proprietary in nature and is kept confidential to shield it from competitors.

The profit ratio is very important in analyzing the bottom-line of a company. It indicates how much net income was earned on each $100 of sales revenue. A profit ratio of 5 to 10 percent is common in most industries, although some highly price-competitive industries, such as retailers or grocery stores will show profit ratios of only 1 to 2 percent.

At Peavy and Associates PC our mission is to assist you with all your tax preparations, payroll and accounting needs.  We provide our clients with professional, personalized accounting services and guidance in a wide range of financial and business needs. Give us a call today and discover why our clients return to Peavy and Associates, PC year after year!

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Forensic accounting is the practice of utilizing accounting, auditing, and investigative skills to assist in legal matters.  It encompasses 2 main areas – litigation support, investigation, and dispute resolution.

Litigation support represents the factual presentation of economic issues related to existing or pending litigation.  In this capacity, the forensic accounting professional quantifies damages sustained by parties involved in legal disputes and can assist in resolving disputes, even before they reach the courtroom.  If a dispute reaches the courtroom, the forensic accountant may testify as an expert witness.

Investigation is the act of determining whether criminal matters such as employee theft, securities fraud (including falsification of financial statements), identity theft, and insurance fraud have occurred.  As part of the forensic accountant’s work, he or she may recommend actions that can be taken to minimize future risk of loss.  Investigation may also occur in civil matters.  For example, the forensic accountant may search for hidden assets in divorce cases.

Forensic accounting involves looking beyond the numbers and grasping the substance of situations.  It’s more than accounting…more than detective work…it’s a combination that will be in demand for as long as human nature exists.  Who wouldn’t want a career that offers such stability, excitement, and financial rewards?

In short, forensic accounting requires the most important quality a person can possess: the ability to think.  Far from being an ability that is specific to success in any particular field, developing the ability to think enhances a person’s chances of success in life, thus increasing a person’s worth in today’s society.   Why not consider becoming a forensic accountant?

At Peavy and Associates PC our mission is to assist you with all your tax preparations, payroll and accounting needs.  We provide our clients with professional, personalized accounting services and guidance in a wide range of financial and business needs. Give us a call today and discover why our clients return to Peavy and Associates, PC year after year!

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There are many reasons that accounting is being outsourced more and more by various companies. Some may think that utilizing outsourced accounting services is a bad concept because of less control and more expenses, however that is a myth that has actually been proven wrong countless times again and again. In reality, there are way greater benefits from outsourcing your accounting services, then by arranging your own accounting department or doing your accounting yourself. We will discuss the advantages of outsourced accounting and permit you to see why it is a popular action that lots of businesses and organizations are taking.

Using outsourced accounting services can, in fact, save you a lot of money in the end. By outsourcing your accounting needs you there’s no need to hire staff members to establish an in house accounting department. This conserves not only cash but also time. It costs money and time to find certified employees to run your accounting department. With outsourced accounting services,  there’s no need to stress over incomes, employee compensation, insurance coverage, or a number of the other expenses that having staff members entails. Another major benefit is that you do not have to fret about losing an employee and having to discover another in house accountant to change the one you lost. There are also lots of accounting firms that can incorporate their services with your own accounting software so that it provides a simple accounting integration.

By removing the need to focus on your accounting you preserve better relationships with your clients…

Another benefit that comes from outsourcing your accounting, is that you can focus more on the accounting information. This removes needing to focus on entering your accounting details and allows you to look at your present circumstance and make preparations for future enhancements and developments with the information provided. By outsourcing, you can focus entirely on payments, billings, and profit and losses. It free’s up your time so you will be able to spend it more productively by building and preserving much better relationships with your providers and clients.

By using outsourced accounting services, you have a lower threat of error and problems with your accounting. It is much better to trust your accounting requirements with a certified professional rather than attempting to do your accounting yourself. Unless you are a certified accounting professional, you have an there will always be the threat of making an error with your accounting. This possibility of error is nearly null and void when you utilize an outsourced accounting company that their sole focus is on the field of accounting. Any errors can have a very negative impact not just on your records of what is owed and needs to be paid but also on your present costs and forecasts associated with your profits and losses. By not correctly and properly preserving accounting records, you run a high risk of failure as far as your personal or business accounting is concerned.

Clearly outsourcing your accounting has shown to offer many benefits. These advantages will not only save you money and time but will equally provide the solutions to help you grow and expand your organization. Accounting can be an extremely exhausting job that requires a lot of attention to information along with understanding to have it done properly. Because accounting can be contracted out quickly and can be done at a lower rate contracted than in house, outsourced accounting has actually shown over time again and again to be the best solutions for businesses and personal accounting solutions alike.

At Peavy and Associates PC our mission is to assist you with all your tax preparations, payroll and accounting needs.  We provide our clients with professional, personalized accounting services and guidance in a wide range of financial and business needs. Give us a call today and discover why our clients return to Peavy and Associates, PC year after year!

 

Contact Us Today