226. Read the information about Fellsmere Corporation.
Required:
(A) Explain the change in Fellsmere’s working capital from 2016 to 2017. Why do users believe the current ratio provides
more information than the dollar amount of working capital? Explain.
(B) Fellsmere Corporation’s creditors need to know whether its working capital position improved during the year. How
would you evaluate this?
(A) Working Capital, 2016 = $1,540,777
($2,544,683 Current Assets – $1,003,906 Current Liabilities = $1,540,777)
Working Capital, 2017 = $798,512
($2,228,186 Current Assets – $1,429,674 Current Liabilities = $798,512)
Decrease in Working Capital = $742,265
($1,540,777 Working Capital, 2016 – $798,512 Working Capital, 2017 = $742,265)
Working capital represents the excess of current assets over current liabilities in total dollars.
The current ratio indicates the number of times that current assets exceed the current
liabilities. It is possible that $742,265 could pay the current debts of one company easily, but
pay for only a small portion of a larger company’s debts.
(B) The amount of working capital and the current ratio are the best indicators of a company’s
working capital position. While the amount of working capital provides the dollar amount of
current assets that exceed the company’s current debt, the current ratio provides a relative
indicator of how many times the dollar amount of current assets exceeds currently due debt.
In 2016, Fellsmere Corporation’s working capital was $1,540,777. However, this figure
declined in 2017 to $798,512. Less current assets are available to cover current liabilities.