Lumber

In order to remain solvent, Clarkson Lumber must borrow money from the bank to decrease the cost of financing its purchases. Borrowing money from the bank to take advantage of the trade discount is just the first step Clarkson must take. Details of the other recommended steps are explained in the analysis of issue two.

ANALYSIS OF ISSUE 2:

On first blush, Clarkson Lumber should take the two percent discount from their suppliers, however, at this point, they cannot afford it. By taking the cash discount they will be required to borrow more money than the company can sufficiently pay back. Thus, they should not take the discount. Clarkson’s profitability, accounts receivable, days sales outstanding, inventory turnover and accounts payable all play an important role in making this decision and are as follows:

amount of $69,000 which reduces Clarkson’s expenses by a projected $40,000 (see Exhibit 5). In terms of profitability, it appears that Clarkson Lumber will be more profitable if they secure an additional loan from the bank and take the cash discount from their suppliers. This profitability overall would result in a Net Income increase of $23,000.

Summary:

Clarkson Lumber needs more credit than they have. In addition, they are limited to taking a loan of $750,000. If the company goes over this amount, “restrictions on additional borrowing would be imposed” (Page 59 of case). Based on Exhibit 6, whether the Pro Forma Balance Sheet is done based on averages from the previous years or whether it is done based on the trends in A/R and Accrued Expenses, the company will still need to borrow over $750,000 if they want to take the discount from their suppliers. Unfortunately, as seen in Exhibits 7 & 8, Clarkson’s Cash Flow will not support the loan amount they will need to take to meet their cash flow needs. As seen in Exhibit 3a, Clarkson’s Operating Cash Flow is negative in both scenarios, trending up or averaging which mirrors the Statement of Cash Flow. This indicates that Clarkson may not have the capacity to meet its obligations even though they are profitable. This also raises the question of their ability to generate cash flows in the future.