More of this Feature • Part 1: Lesson 3 Main • Part 2: How to Get Statements • Part 3: What's a Balance Sheet • Part 4: Typical Balance Sheet • Part 5: Current Assets • Part 6: Receivables • Part 7: Receivable Turns • Part 8: Inventory • Part 9: Inventory Turns • Part 10: Inventory Example • Part 11: Prepaid Expenses • Part 12: Current Liabilities • Part 13: Working Capital • Part 14: WC Per Dollar of Sales • Part 15: Negative Work. Cap • Part 16: Current Ratio • Part 17: Quick Ratio • Part 18: Long Term Investment • Part 19: Property, Plant, Equip. • Part 20: Intangible Assets • Part 21: Goodwill • Part 22: Deferred Charges • Part 23: Debt, Debt to Equity • Part 24: Other Liabilities • Part 25: Minority Interest • Part 26: Shareholder Equity • Part 27: Book Value • Part 28: Com. & Pref. Shares • Part 29: Cap. Surplus, Reserve • Part 30: Treasury Stock • Part 31: Retained Earnings • Part 32: Formula & Calculations • Part 33: Putting it all Together • Part 34: Segment 2

Related Resources • Investing Lesson 1 • Investing Lesson 2 • Investing Lesson 3 • More Investing Lessons

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Other Assets

Other Assets are non-cash assets which are owed to the company for a period longer than one year.

Deferred Long Term Asset Charges

These are expenses which the company has paid for but not yet subtracted from the assets.  They are very similar to Prepaid Expenses (where rent would be counted as an asset until it came due each month, then would be subtracted from the balance sheet).  In fact, Prepaid Expenses are type of deferred charge.  The difference is, when companies prepay rent or some other expense, they have a legal right to collect the service.  Deferred Long Term Asset Charges have no legal rights attached to them.

For example, if a company prepaid rent on a storage building, and then spent $30,000 moving all of their equipment into it, they could set the $30,000 up on the balance sheet as a deferred charge.  This way, they wouldn't be forced to take a hit by reducing their earnings $30,000 the same month they paid for the relocation costs.  They could then write this amount down over time.

These charges are intangible and should be given very little weight when analyzing a balance sheet.

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