Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
In finance, leverage, also known as gearing, is any technique involving borrowing funds to buy an investment.. Financial leverage is named after a lever in physics, which amplifies a small input force into a greater output force, because successful leverage amplifies the smaller amounts of money needed for borrowing into large amounts of profit.
It is a problematic measure of leverage, because an increase in non-financial liabilities reduces this ratio. [3] Nevertheless, it is in common use. In the financial industry (particularly banking), a similar concept is equity to total assets (or equity to risk-weighted assets), otherwise known as capital adequacy.
The ratio measures a company's capital structure, financial solvency, and degree of leverage, at a particular point in time. [1] The data to calculate the ratio are found on the balance sheet. Practitioners use different definitions of debt: Any interest-bearing liability to qualify. All liabilities, including accounts payable and deferred income.
Operating leverage can also be measured in terms of change in operating income for a given change in sales (revenue).. The Degree of Operating Leverage (DOL) can be computed in a number of equivalent ways; one way it is defined as the ratio of the percentage change in Operating Income for a given percentage change in Sales (Brigham 1995, p. 426):
Contribution margin analysis is a measure of operating leverage; it measures how growth in sales translates to growth in profits. The contribution margin is computed by using a contribution income statement, a management accounting version of the income statement that has been reformatted to group together a business's fixed and variable costs.
The ability to borrow money is one of the hallmarks of a successful financial system. But when too many people take advantage of the leverage available from borrowing, it can set the stage for ...
Financial ratios quantify many aspects of a business and are an integral part of the financial statement analysis. Financial ratios are categorized according to the financial aspect of the business which the ratio measures. Profitability ratios measure the firm's use of its assets and control of its expenses to generate an acceptable rate of ...
Get AOL Mail for FREE! Manage your email like never before with travel, photo & document views. Personalize your inbox with themes & tabs. You've Got Mail!