Curious Cat Investing Dictionary: Personal Loans

by John Hunter

Balance Sheet - an accounting of the assets and liabilities of an organization as of a specific date.

Related terms

  • Current Liabilities - such as bonds and savings accounts.
  • Tangible Assets - physical assets such as the cars manufactured by Toyota or the factories they manufacture good in.
  • Intangible Assets - assets that are not physical in form, such as accounts receivable, patent and brand name (a form of good will).
  • Inventory - tangible assets held by the company to sell to customers. In analyzing balance sheets a rise in inventory can be seen as a dangerous sign - the company is having trouble selling what it is producing. However, each situation must be judged and it may be that inventories are increasing because they we abnormally low previously or due to a planned stocking of a product launch that is expected to sell quickly.
  • Book Value - Net asset value of a company. Total assets minus intangible assets and liabilities. It usually is not a very accurate measure of the worth of a company because the values assets are carried on the books can often be quite different than actual worth.
  • income statement

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