The inconsistent and incomplete recognition of intangible assets in financial statements distorts performance metrics. Invested capital and profit are understated – to what extent depends on the business dynamics and nature and source of investment in intangibles. The combined effect is generally to overstate return on capital.
With the ever-increasing importance of intangible assets, few companies are unaffected by this accounting problem. We suggest adjustments to help your analysis, provide an interactive model to illustrate, and calculate an intangible asset adjusted return for Amazon.
Continue reading “Missing intangible assets distorts return on capital”