What Is a Big Bath? A big bath is an accounting term that is defined by a company’s management team knowingly manipulating its income statement to make poor results look even worse in order to make future results appear better. It is often implemented in a relatively bad year so that a company can enhance
What Is the Big Board? The “Big Board” is a nickname for the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), located at 11 Wall Street, New York City, New York. The New York Stock Exchange, or Big Board, is the oldest stock exchange in the United States. Key Takeaways The “Big Board” is a slang term used
What Is Big Data? Big data refers to the large, diverse sets of information that grow at ever-increasing rates. It encompasses the volume of information, the velocity or speed at which it is created and collected, and the variety or scope of the data points being covered (known as the “three v’s” of big data). Big
Big Figure: An Overview The term big figure refers to the stem, or whole dollar value, of a price quote. It is most often used in international currency markets, where it is often abbreviated as “big fig.” In the U.S., big figure is also referred to as the “handle.” The big figure is usually omitted
What Are the Big Four? The “Big Four” is the nickname for the four largest accounting firms in the United States, as measured by revenue. They are Deloitte, Ernst & Young (EY), PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), and Klynveld Peat Marwick Goerdeler (KPMG). Aside from auditing services, the Big Four offer tax, strategy and management consulting, valuation, market research
What Is a Beneficial Owner? A beneficial owner is a person who enjoys the benefits of ownership even though the title to some form of property is in another name. It also means any individual or group of individuals who, either directly or indirectly, has the power to vote or influence the transaction decisions regarding
What Is a Beneficiary? A beneficiary is a person (or entity) who is designated to receive the benefits of property owned by someone else. Beneficiaries often receive these benefits as part of an inheritance. A beneficiary can be designated in the documents relating to a life insurance policy, a retirement account, a brokerage account, a
What Is a Beneficiary Clause? A beneficiary clause is a provision in a life insurance policy or other investment vehicle such as an annuity or individual retirement account (e.g., an IRA), that permits the policy owner to name individuals as primary and secondary beneficiaries. Key Takeaways The beneficiary clause in a financial product or contract designates
What Is the Benefit Allocation Method? Some companies that offer retirement pensions to their employees choose to fund them through the benefit allocation method. In this system, employees contribute a portion of their salaries to the fund while the company makes a single annual payment. That payment may be a fixed dollar amount or a
What Is the Benefit-Expense Ratio? The insurance industry uses the benefit-expense ratio to describe the proportion of money taken in by a company compared to the amount paid out in claims. It is a crucial operating metric calculated by dividing a company’s costs associated with providing insurance coverage by the revenues from premiums charged for that coverage. It is
