Retained earnings are kept with the company for growth instead of distributing dividends to the shareholders. Therefore the cost of retained earnings refers to its opportunity cost which is the cost of foregoing dividends by the shareholders. Therefore the cost of retained earnings is similar to theRead more
Retained earnings are kept with the company for growth instead of distributing dividends to the shareholders. Therefore the cost of retained earnings refers to its opportunity cost which is the cost of foregoing dividends by the shareholders.
Therefore the cost of retained earnings is similar to the cost of equity without tax and flotation cost. Hence, it can be calculated as
Kr = Ke (1 – t) (1 – f),
Kr = Cost of retained earnings
Ke = Cost of equity
t = tax rate
f = flotation cost
Here, flotation cost means the cost of issuing shares.
EXAMPLE
If cost of equity of a company was 10%, tax rate was 30% and flotation cost was 5%, then
cost of retained earnings = 10% x (1 – 0.30)(1 – 0.05) = 6.65%.
From the above example and formula, it is clear that the cost of retained earnings would always be less than or equal to the cost of equity since retained earnings do not involve flotation costs or tax.
A company usually acquires funds from various sources of finance rather than a single source. Therefore the cost of capital of the company will be the weighted average cost of capital (WACC) of each individual source of finance. The cost of retained earnings is thus an important factor in calculating the overall cost of capital.
Another important factor of WACC is the cost of equity. The cost of equity is sometimes interchanged with the cost of retained earnings. However, they are not the same.

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Journal Entry Prepaid Rent A/c Dr. To Cash A/C (Being rent paid in advance) "Prepaid Account" is treated as an asset and as per the modern rules debit the increase in the asset. "Cash Account" is an asset and as per the accounting rules credit the decrease in the asset. Adjustment entry: TheRead more
Journal Entry
Prepaid Rent A/c Dr.
To Cash A/C
(Being rent paid in advance)
“Prepaid Account” is treated as an asset and as per the modern rules debit the increase in the asset.
“Cash Account” is an asset and as per the accounting rules credit the decrease in the asset.
Adjustment entry: The prepaid rent entry has an adjustment entry when the rent expense account is due. The journal entry for that is
Rent Expense A/c
To Prepaid Rent A/c
(Being the rent expense due and adjusted from the prepaid expense)
Example: ABC.Ltd signs a one-year lease on an office floor for Rs 10,000 a month. The landlord requires that the Company pays the annual amount Rs 120,000 at the beginning of the year.
The journal entry for Company would be as follows:
At the beginning
Prepaid Rent A/c – 1,20,000
To Cash A/c – 1,20,000
(Being rent paid in advance for the year)
At the time rent was due (Month 1)
Rent Expense A/c – 10,000
To Prepaid Rent A/c – 10,000
(Being the rent expense due and adjusted from the prepaid expense)
The same entry done in month 1 will be repeated in the next 11 months.
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