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  • 1.  Change in profit as a percentage

    Posted 22 days ago

    Hi,

    I'm wondering how to calculate the profit changes if it from negative to positive.

    For example, if the profit is $-7000 in year 2020 and $+700 in year 2021,the profit changes is  [700-(-7000)]/(-7000)*100%=110% ? or 210%?

    Are there some methodology to follow in this situation.

    Best Regard



    ------------------------------
    Xuan Zhao
    Analyst
    ------------------------------


  • 2.  RE: Change in profit as a percentage

    Posted 22 days ago

    https://images.app.goo.gl/2YJEFGVTSLxgytuQ6



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    Janina Staniszewski CMA, CPA
    Other
    Trirx Pharmaceutical Services
    Overland Park KS
    United States
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  • 3.  RE: Change in profit as a percentage

    Posted 20 days ago
    Profit % Change

    Base Yr 1 = -7,000
               Yr 2 =     700

    Let  X= Profit Change
    Yr 1 + X = Yr 2
                X = Yr 2 - Yr 1
                X = 700-(-7,000)
                X = 7,700

    %Change = Profit Change
                          -----------------------
                                   Base.  

                       = 7,700/7,000
                       = 1.1 X
                       = 110%

    However if the prior year profit was zero, the calculation would be infinity, and should be noted as NA 
     (Not Applicable).





  • 4.  RE: Change in profit as a percentage

    Posted 22 days ago
    110%!





  • 5.  RE: Change in profit as a percentage

    Posted 22 days ago

    Might be better to leave blank or NA (not applicable) and provide footnote as the usual changes will be misleading.   Could create IF statement to recognize when this is happening and insert the "NA" or similar as text.

     

    Sent from Mail for Windows

     






  • 6.  RE: Change in profit as a percentage

    Posted 21 days ago

    I agree with this approach, mainly because any  number like 110% or -110% would be a reasonable number if you had made profit last year.  Many presentations don't explicitly show the prior year results, but only show year-over-year results, and a definitive percentage could be mis-interpreted.  

    At my companies, we used both N/A (not applicable) or n/m (not meaningful) for such considerations where prior year information was negative. 



    ------------------------------
    Russ Porter
    Professor of Finance, Sacred Heart University
    Ridgefield, Connecticut, USA
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  • 7.  RE: Change in profit as a percentage

    Posted 21 days ago

    Thanks a lot for the response, it's really helpful.



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    Xuan Zhao
    Analyst
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  • 8.  RE: Change in profit as a percentage

    Posted 21 days ago

    Actually, there isn't a meaningful percentage change that can be computed going from a negative to a positive number (or vice-versa). The math just wouldn't make sense. In your example, the profit is going from -$7000 to $700 and you're wondering if the profit change is represented by either 110% ? or 210%. What if profit went from $70 to $700? That percentage change would accurately be computed as (700-70)/70 = 900%. Note this accurate 900% change is far more than the 110% or 210% that you're exploring based on a MUCH more significant change in profit. I know it seems like a percentage change in your example "should" work when the profit is increasing by $7700 on -$7000, but the math simply isn't possible.  



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    Monte Swain, PhD, CMA, CPA
    Academic
    Spanish Fork, UT
    United States
    ------------------------------



  • 9.  RE: Change in profit as a percentage

    Posted 21 days ago

    Yes, I know your point, I think I've got a better way to show the changes in this situation, thanks a lot for the explain.



    ------------------------------
    Xuan Zhao
    Analyst
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  • 10.  RE: Change in profit as a percentage

    Posted 14 days ago

    I think the correct answer is 110%. Because the profit has increased by 7,700 from -7,000 to +700 which represented 110% of -7,000 (an increase from -7,000 to zero is 100%, but from -7,000 to +700 is 110%) 


    Thanks, Elhadi