Advanced Accounting Interview Questions for Finance

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A bottoms-up expense model typically starts at the departmental level, with detailed estimates for personnel costs:

• Headcount is broken down by function, with assumptions for average salaries, bonuses, and benefits
• The number of employees often scales with revenue, and compensation components are projected using appropriate growth rates

Cost of Goods Sold (COGS) is usually tied directly to revenue, with each unit sold incurring a variable cost.

Other expenses, such as rent, capital expenditures, and miscellaneous costs, are commonly linked either to the company’s internal expansion plans or, in simpler models, scaled in proportion to revenue.

For a company with high operating leverage, the majority of its costs are fixed rather than variable. This means that expenses such as rent, salaries, and infrastructure do not increase proportionally with revenue. As a result, small changes in revenue can have a significant impact on profitability.

In the model:

• Fixed costs (e.g. rent, salaried employees, equipment depreciation) would be held relatively stable across different revenue scenarios.
• Variable costs (e.g. materials, sales commissions, customer support) would still scale with revenue but may represent a smaller portion of total costs.
• Margins are expected to expand meaningfully as revenue grows, since fixed costs are spread over a larger base.

The model would also likely include scenario analysis to illustrate how different revenue levels affect operating margin, EBITDA, and net income.

Stock-based compensation (SBC) is included as a non-cash operating expense, typically within personnel-related line items such as salaries or SG&A. In forecasting, it can be modeled based on headcount, seniority levels, or as a percentage of total compensation.

While SBC reduces GAAP net income, it does not affect cash flow directly. On the cash flow statement, it is added back in the reconciliation from net income to cash flow from operations, reflecting its non-cash nature.

Stock-based compensation affects valuation in two important ways:

1. It creates a gap between GAAP and non-GAAP metrics. Companies often exclude SBC when reporting adjusted EBITDA or net income, which can make them appear more profitable.
2. Despite being non-cash, SBC leads to equity dilution, which reduces existing shareholders’ ownership. As a result, analysts may either:
   • Include SBC as an expense in EBITDA or EBIT when calculating valuation multiples, or
   • Adjust the share count for dilution when computing per-share metrics and equity value.

Ignoring SBC entirely can lead to overvaluation, so it’s important to reflect it appropriately depending on the context.

Net Operating Losses reduce taxable income, which lowers cash taxes paid and improves cash flow. There are two main ways to reflect this in a model:

• A simplified approach reduces taxable income by the portion of NOLs used each year, applies the tax rate, and subtracts the resulting tax from pretax income.
• A more accurate method creates a book vs. cash tax schedule, where taxes are calculated both with and without the NOLs.

The difference between the two is recorded as an increase in the Deferred Tax Liability (DTL) on the balance sheet, reflecting a temporary timing difference.

This treatment keeps book taxes consistent on the income statement while showing the cash tax savings on the cash flow statement.

When Net Operating Losses (NOLs) are fully used up, the Deferred Tax Liability (DTL) created during the period of tax savings begins to reverse.

• As the company pays full cash taxes again, the difference between book and cash taxes disappears.
• The DTL is gradually reduced on the balance sheet, and this reversal results in higher cash taxes paid, reflected on the cash flow statement.

This process aligns the company’s book taxes with its cash taxes over time, eliminating the timing difference.

A change in Deferred Tax Assets (DTAs) affects both the balance sheet and the income statement.

• An increase in DTAs is recorded as a tax benefit on the income statement and appears as a non-cash asset on the balance sheet.
• A decrease in DTAs (excluding write-downs) results in higher book taxes, reducing net income and lowering the DTA balance accordingly.

The change is also reflected on the cash flow statement through the tax reconciliation section, as it adjusts net income for non-cash tax effects.

Goodwill impairment is recognized when the carrying value of a reporting unit exceeds its fair value. It is typically identified through annual impairment testing or when a triggering event occurs (e.g. significant decline in performance or market value).

• The impairment loss is recorded as a non-cash expense on the income statement, reducing net income.
• On the balance sheet, the goodwill asset is written down by the amount of the impairment.
• There is no impact on the cash flow statement directly, but the non-cash charge is added back in the operating section under the indirect method.

This process ensures that goodwill does not overstate the value of acquired assets in light of changing business conditions.

Changes in net working capital directly impact free cash flow (FCF). An increase in working capital (e.g. higher accounts receivable or inventory) represents a use of cash, reducing FCF. A decrease (e.g. lower inventory or higher accounts payable) is a source of cash, increasing FCF.

On the cash flow statement, changes in current operating assets and liabilities are adjusted in the operating section to arrive at cash flow from operations, which flows into the FCF calculation.

Working capital may diverge from revenue growth due to several factors:

• Business model differences: Subscription or SaaS models often have negative working capital, while manufacturing businesses carry higher inventory.
• Seasonality: Retailers may build inventory ahead of peak seasons, causing working capital to spike even if revenue hasn’t yet increased.
• Payment terms: Extended customer payment terms (AR) or tightened supplier terms (AP) can distort the typical revenue–working capital relationship.
• One-off events: Delays in collections, supplier disruptions, or inventory write-downs can all create temporary mismatches.