Glossary

A

Accounts receivable

Accounts receivable includes all claims against debtors arising from the sale of goods and services and any other miscellaneous claims with respect to non-trade transaction. It excludes loan receivables and some receivables from related parties.

Advertising and promotion

Advertising and promotion covers all advertising expenses, such as promotions, signs, window dressings, catalogues, etc.

All other revenues

All other revenue includes revenue from interest, dividends, commissions, rent, and other sources of revenue.

Amortization and depletion

Amortization and depletion includes allocation of the cost of revenue producing assets (which are assumed to be around for more than a year) among the life of the asset. The items that correspond to this amortization and depletion definition are: declaration allowance on capital property amount, capital cost allowance amount.

Averages

The Financial Performance Data report provides financial data (income statement and balance sheet items) based on industry averages by each quartile grouping. Example using the selection criteria distribution by total revenue and value in thousands of dollars: To compare your business to competitors of similar size - Start by finding your annual revenue in the revenue range section. Based on the example below, if your business had annual revenue of $1,000,000 then you would be part of the Upper Middle Quartile (revenue range $507,000 – $1,064,000). Under this column, view the revenue and expenses section to see average cost of sales of businesses with similar revenues. In this example, companies in this sales range had an average cost of sales of $20,500.

Provinces/Territory/Canada:

Canada

Incorporation Status:

All Businesses Note: further selections available based on status

Distribution by:

Total revenue

Value in:

Thousands of Dollars

Industry:

NAICS 111 - Crop Production

Report details: Thousands of Dollars

Export Report to Excel

Size of Firms: Annual Revenues $30,000 - $5,000,000 N/A = Data not available based on selected status

Financial Performance Data Report

	Whole Industry (Reliability)	Bottom Quartile (25%)	Lower Middle (25%)	Upper Middle (25%)	Top Quartile (25%)	Percentage of Businesses Reporting
Number of Businesses	24,118
Revenue Range:
Low Value ($000)	30	30	184	507	1064
High Value ($000)	5,000	184	507	1064	5000
Revenues and Expenses	(thousands of dollars - Averages)
Total revenue	791.5B	92.8	329.6	750.8	1992.6	100.0
Sales of goods and services	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
All other revenues	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Cost of sales (direct expenses)	32.5B	3.3	11.2	20.5	95.0	8.3
Wagesbenefits	5.2B	0.5	1.9	3.6	14.5	3.5
Purchases, materials and sub-contracts	28.0B	3.6	9.9	17.6	80.8	8.3
Opening Inventory	11.1B	3.4	5.6	8.9	26.6	5.3
Closing inventory	11.7B	4.3	6.1	9.6	26.9	5.7
Operating expenses (indirect expenses)	833.4A	95.0	333.4	792.8	2112.5	99.9
Labour and commissions	76.3A	12.0	33.1	62.5	197.6	75.4
Amortization and depletion	91.1A	13.5	41.1	96.7	212.9	92.8
Repairs and maintenance	37.8B	6.7	19.7	38.7	86.3	91.9
	45.6A	6.9	21.7	45.1	108.8	92.9
Rent	48.3A	4.2	17.9	45.4	125.8	80.6
Interest and bank charges	22.8A	4.7	11.1	20.7	54.6	93.5
Professional and business fees	9.3B	4.3	6.2	8.7	18.2	97.3
Advertising and promotion	3.2B	0.7	1.7	2.9	7.7	59.7
Delivery, shipping and warehouse expenses	8.1B	0.6	2.7	7.3	21.6	56.0
Insurance	13.1A	3.6	7.2	12.7	29.0	90.7
Other expenses	477.7A	37.8	171.1	452.0	1250.0	96.5
Total expenses	865.9A	98.3	344.6	813.3	2207.5	99.9

Example using the selection criteria distribution by total revenue and value in percentage: To compare your business to competitors of similar size - Start by finding your annual revenue in the revenue range section. Based on the example below, if your business had annual revenue of $3,000,000 then you would be part of the Top Quartile (revenue range $227,000 – $5,000,000). Under this column, view the revenue and expenses section to see average cost of sales of businesses with similar revenues. In this example, companies in this sales range spent on average 4.4% of sales on wages and benefit expenses.

Provinces/Territory/Canada:

Canada

Incorporation Status:

All Businesses Note: further selections available based on status

Distribution by:

Total revenue

Value in:

Percentage

Industry:

NAICS 4841 - General Freight Trucking

Report details: Percentage

Export Report to Excel

Size of Firms: Annual Revenues $30,000 - $5,000,000 N/A = Data not available based on selected status

Financial Performance Data Report

	Whole Industry (Reliability)	Bottom Quartile (25%)	Lower Middle (25%)	Upper Middle (25%)	Top Quartile (25%)	Percentage of Businesses Reporting
Number of Businesses	55817
Revenue Range:
Low Value ($000)	30	30	137	227
High Value ($000)	5000	69	137	227	5000
REVENUES AND EXPENSES	(percentage of total revenue - Averages)
Total revenue	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0
Sales of goods and services	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
All other revenues	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Cost of sales (direct expenses)	19.6B	4.1	6.3	7.9	25.4	24.6
Wages and benefits	3.3B	0.7	0.9	0.9	4.4	9.0
Purchases, materials and sub-contracts	16.3C	3.4	5.5	7.0	21.0	23.6
Opening Inventory	0.4C	0.4	0.6	0.3	0.4	4.2
Closing inventory	0.5C	0.4	0.7	0.3	0.5	4.5
Operating expenses (indirect expenses)	65.1B	70.8	72.9	76.0	60.9	97.2
Labour and commissions	13.8A	22.7	12.9	10.1	14.3	59.2
Amortization and depletion	4.8A	3.5	5.0	5.0	4.8	73.4
Repairs and maintenance	7.1A	3.9	7.8	8.7	6.9	62.1
Utilities and telephone/telecommunication	12.9A	7.3	14.2	20.1	11.3	90.6
Rent	2.8B	3.2	2.4	2.3	3.0	47.0
Interest and bank charges	0.8B	0.6	0.8	0.9	0.8	50.2
Professional and business fees	1.6C	2.7	1.9	1.7	1.5	85.2
Advertising and promotion	0.9B	3.2	1.4	1.1	0.6	47.7
Delivery, shipping and warehouse expenses	0.5C	0.1	0.2	0.2	0.6	7.9
Insurance	2.9A	2.2	3.4	3.3	2.8	67.7
Other expenses	16.9B	21.6	23.0	22.6	14.3	96.3
Total expenses	84.7B	74.9	79.2	83.8	86.3	97.2

C

Closing inventory

Closing inventory includes tangible assets held for sale in the ordinary course of business, or goods in the process of production for such sale, or materials to be consumed in the production of goods and services for sale. It excludes assets held for rental purposes.

Collection period for accounts receivable

Collection period for accounts receivable gives the estimate of the average number of days it takes to collect receivables from the day of the transaction. It is calculated as (accounts receivable) / (average daily revenue). Average daily revenue is calculated as (total revenue) / (365 days). This ratio measures liquidity by indicating the effectiveness of the credit-granting and collection activities of the business. Increases in the collection period indicate an increasing time lag between credit sales and cash realization. This ratio is not very relevant for financial, construction and real estate industries. Or it can be calculated as 365(days)/ Accounts receivable turnover. Accounts receivable turnover is calculated as sales revenue (on account) /average trade accounts receivable.

Cost of sales (direct expenses)

Cost of sales (direct expenses) represents direct costs incurred by businesses from the process of selling goods. This item is calculated as wages and benefits + purchases, materials and sub-contracts + opening inventory - closing inventory.

Current bank loans

Current bank loans include all current loans and notes payable to Canadian chartered banks and foreign bank subsidiaries, with the exception of loans from a foreign bank, loans secured by real estate mortgages, bankers acceptances, bank mortgages and the current portion of long term bank loans.

Current debt to equity

Current debt to equity is calculated as (current liabilities * 100) / (equity). This percentage is a measure of liquidity, which indicates a firm's relative ability to pay its short-term debts. The lower the positive ratio, the more liquid the business. The current debt to equity percentage also provides information on the capital structure of a business, the extent to which a firm's capital is financed through current debt. This ratio is relevant for all industries.

Current ratio

Current ratio is a liquidity ratio that indicates the firm's ability to pay liabilities with current assets. It is calculated as (total current assets) / (total current liabilities). The larger the ratio, the more liquid the business is. It isn't very relevant for financial, construction and real estate industries. This ratio is also known as the working capital ratio.

D

Debt ratio

Debt ratio is calculated as (total liabilities) / (total assets). This is a solvency ratio indicating a firm's ability to pay its long-term debts, the amount of debt outstanding in relation to the amount of capital. The lower the ratio, the more solvent the business is.

Debt to equity ratio

Debt to equity ratio is calculated as (total liabilities) / (total equity). This is a solvency ratio, which indicates a firm's ability to pay its long-term debts. The lower the positive ratio is, the more solvent the business. The debt to equity ratio also provides information on the capital structure of a business - the extent to which a firm's capital is financed through debt. This ratio is relevant for all industries.

Delivery, shipping and warehouse expenses

Delivery, shipping and warehouse expenses include expenses for delivery, shipping, courier and distribution services used by businesses, except for those in the transportation industry, which are contained in purchases and materials.

E

Efficiency ratios

Efficiency ratios measure the efficiency with which businesses utilize their assets.

Employment data

Employment represents the average number of paid employees for each business. This figure is derived from the data file for the Longitudinal Employment Analysis Program (LEAP), which is maintained by the Business and Labour Market Analysis Division of Statistics Canada. The number of employees is derived by dividing total labour costs from the Small Business Profiles 2000 by the average annual earnings (AAE). The AAE is derived by dividing the total payroll for each industry by the average number of employees (ALU or average labour unit) by province. Based on a concordance table derived from the Unified Enterprise Survey (UES) frame each record in the sample is associated with an AAE. Therefore all records within a specific province and NAICS 4 have the same AAE.

G

Gross margin

Gross margin is calculated as (Sales of Goods and Services - Costs of sales * 100 / Sales of Goods and Services) . This percentage provides a relative measure of profitability or profit margin.

I

Insurance

Insurance includes all types of insurance such as bonding, car insurance, fire and liability insurance, premium expenses, etc.

Interest and bank charges

Interest and bank charges include all interest expense and discounts paid by the business, such as real estate mortgages, chattel mortgages, mortgage bonds, advances and demand loans, bank interest, etc.

Interest coverage ratio

Interest coverage ratio is calculated as (net profit + interest and bank charges) / (interest and bank charges). This ratio calculates the average number of times that interest owing is earned and, therefore, indicates the debt risk of a business. The larger the ratio, the more able a firm is to cover its interest obligations on debt. This ratio is not very relevant for financial industries. This ratio is also known as "times interest earned".

L

Labour and commissions

Labour and commissions include remuneration paid to the employees of the business not shown in the cost of sales and includes: salaries and wages.

Liquidity ratios

Liquidity ratios deal with a firm's ability to meet its current financial obligations and to withstand adverse economic conditions. Liquidity refers to liquid assets, which are assets easily converted to cash and that will be converted to cash in the near future, and is an indication of short term financial strength.

Long term assets

Long term assets include all other assets not elsewhere recorded, such as long term bonds.

Long term liabilities

Long term liabilities are obligations that are not reasonably expected to be liquidated within the normal operating cycle of the business but, instead, are payable at some date beyond that time. It includes obligations such as long term bank loans and notes payable to Canadian chartered banks and foreign subsidiaries, with the exception of loans secured by real estate mortgages, loans from foreign banks and bank mortgages and other long term liabilities.

N

NAICS

North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) - Statistics Canada's standardized coding system for grouping businesses engaged in similar types of activity into non-overlapping industry categories. The first two digits designates the sector, the third digit designates the subsector, the fourth digit designates the industry group and the fifth digit designates industries.

Net fixed assets to equity

Net fixed assets to equity is calculated as (net fixed assets * 100) / (equity). Net fixed assets represent long term investment, so this percentage indicates relative capital investment structure.

Net profit/loss

Net profit/loss is the profit or loss resulting from normal business operations, recorded before income taxes, extraordinary items and other income not related to normal operations. For unincorporated firms, the owners' or partners' salaries and withdrawals are included.

Net profit to equity

Net profit to equity is calculated as (net profit * 100) / (equity). This percentage indicates the profitability of a business, relating the business income to the amount of investment committed to earning that income. This percentage is also known as "return on investment" or "return on equity." The higher the percentage, the relatively better the profitability is.

Net tangible and intangible assets

Net tangible and intangible assets represents tangible or intangible property held by businesses for use in the production or supply of goods and services or for rental to others in the regular operations of the business. It excludes those assets intended for sale. Examples of such items are plant, equipment, patents, goodwill etc. Valuation of net fixed assets is recorded net of accumulated depreciation, amortization and depletion.

Non-profitable Businesses

Non-profitable businesses are those for which expenses exceed revenue.

O

Opening inventory

Opening inventory includes tangible assets held for sale in the ordinary course of business, or goods in the process of production for such sale, or materials to be consumed in the production of goods and services for sale. It excludes assets held for rental purposes.

Operating expenses (indirect expenses)

Operating expenses are all expenses incurred in the course of running the business or in the operation of the business. It includes labour and commissions + amortization and depletion + repairs and maintenance + utilities and telephone/telecommunication + rent + interest and bank charges + professional and business fees + advertising and promotion + delivery, shipping and warehouse expenses + insurance + other indirect expenses.

Other current assets

Other current assets include all current assets not accounted for in accounts receivable and closing inventory.

Other current liabilities

Other current liabilities include short-term loans other than bank loans, accounts payable, the current portion of long term debt, advances and prepayments due to affiliates, and other current liabilities.

Other indirect expenses

Other indirect expenses includes all other expenses such as bad debts, laundry and cleaning expenses, some taxes (such as beverage licences, business charges and taxes, interest on taxes, and fines and penalties), business taxes, licenses, membership expenses, crew share expenses, fishing gear expenses, insurance expenses, meal and entertainment expenses, net and trap expenses, office expenses, office stationery and supply expenses, other expenses, property taxes expenses, salt bait ice expenses, travel expenses, vehicle expenses, etc.

P

Percentage of businesses reporting

The percentage of businesses in the sample that reported each expense item on their tax return.

Professional and business fees

Professional and business fees include all expenditures on external professional advice or services, such as accounting fees, legal fees, management fees and incorporation fees.

Profitability ratios

Profitability ratios measure the overall success of a firm. Profitability is a necessary condition for the long-term survival of a business. Profitability ratios attempt to measure the adequacy of operating revenue.

Profitable businesses

Profitable businesses are those for which revenue is equal to or exceeds expenses during the reference period.

Purchases, materials and sub-contracts

Purchases, materials and sub-contracts includes purchases used to produce revenue for product sales, land costs or land purchased for resale and other recorded direct costs including costs incurred by businesses that hire outside firms to perform special trade tasks.

Q

Quality indicators

Quality Indicators are available to provide data users with information on the accuracy of the published estimates. Although, as a census, estimates are not subject to sampling error, the quality of displayed values are still subject to other factors, including imputation. Imputation is a process whereby records with missing data are assigned values based on the data of records with more complete data. This is performed in two cases, when a data point reported by a business is judged to fall outside the limits of statistically coherent values or when a business fails to itemize all or part of the required information. Imputation methods used by Statistics Canada include, but are not limited to, historical imputation, donor imputation, and generic-to-detail allocation. The quality indicators below are a measure of the amount of imputation contributing towards a given value. A Excellent B Very good C Good D Acceptable E Use with caution

Quartiles

The quartiles divide all of the small and medium sized businesses that operate within the selected industry into four groups (quartiles) of the same size based on levels of revenue or profit margin generated. Each profile contains groupings within the whole revenue or profit margin range. To define the quartiles, the businesses are first ranked from lowest to highest operating revenue or profit margin. Then, the sample is divided into four parts, a bottom quartile, a lower middle, a upper middle and a top quartile. The Bottom quartile consists of the 25% of businesses with the lowest reported operating revenue or profit margin. The Lower middle consists of the 25% of businesses with reported operating revenue above the cut-off for the Bottom quartile and below the median revenue or profit margin level. The Upper middle consists of the 25% of businesses with reported operating revenue or profit margin above the median revenue level and below the cut-off for the Top quartile. The Top quartile consists of the 25% of businesses with the highest reported operating revenue or profit margin.

R

Rent

Rent includes all rental expenditures paid to other companies or agencies for the use of land, offices, building, machinery and equipment, but excludes capital leases.

Repairs and maintenance

Repairs and maintenance includes costs related to new or replacement parts, or the restoration of plant and machinery to keep properties in efficient working condition.

Return on total assets

Return on total assets is calculated as (net profit + interest and bank charges) * 100 / (total assets). This percentage, also known as "return on total investment", is a relative measure of profitability and represents the rate of return earned on the investment of total assets by a business. It reflects the combined effect of both the operating and the financing/investing activities of a business. The higher the percentage, the better is profitability.

Revenue to closing inventory ratio

Revenue to closing inventory ratio is calculated as (total revenue) / (closing Inventory). This is an efficiency ratio, which indicates the average liquidity of the inventory or whether a business has over or under stocked inventory. This ratio is also known as "inventory turnover" and is often calculated using "cost of sales" rather than "total revenue." This ratio is not very relevant for financial, construction and real estate industries.

Revenue to equity ratio

Revenue to equity ratio is calculated as (total revenue) / (equity). It indicates the profitability of a business, relating the total business revenue to the amount of investment committed to earning that income. This ratio provides an indication of the economic productivity of capital.

S

Sales of goods and services

Sales of goods and services include revenue from the sales of goods and services.

Solvency ratios

Solvency ratios deal with a firm's ability to meet its long-term financial obligations and to withstand adverse economic conditions. Solvency is the ability to pay all legal debts. This relates to the financial strength of a firm and its risk of failing. Stronger or more solvent firms have a higher probability of surviving adverse economic conditions.

T

Total assets

Total assets are all resources controlled by an enterprise as a result of past transactions or events from which future economic benefits may be obtained.

Total current assets

Total current assets are the total of cash and other resources that are expected to be realized in cash, or sold or consumed within one year, or within the normal operating cycle of the business, whichever is longer.

Total current liabilities

Total current liabilities include obligation that is expected to be paid within one year, or within the normal operating cycle, whichever is longer. Current liabilities are generally paid out of current assets or through creation of other current liabilities. Examples of such liabilities include accounts payable, advance from customers' etc.

Total equity

Total equity is the net worth of businesses and includes such elements as the value of common and preferred shares, and earned, contributed and other surpluses.

Total expenses

Total expenses include all expenses incurred by firms in order to generate revenues in the normal operation of the business. This item comes directly from tax forms as: total expenses.

Total liabilities

Total liabilities are obligations of an enterprise arising from past transactions or events, the settlements of which may result in the transfer of assets, provisions of services or other yielding of economic benefits in the future.

Total revenue

Total revenue includes revenue from the sale of goods and services, interest, dividends, commissions, rent and other sources of revenue. It excludes capital gains or losses, extraordinary gains or losses and equity in net income of related parties. The variable is: total revenue (8299).

U

Utilities and telephone/telecommunication

Utilities includes expenses for heat, light, water and telephone/telecommunication expenses for the location in which the business operates, as well as the electricity or fuel used to power its factory or plant.

W

Wages and benefits

Wages and benefits includes wages and benefits paid to employees that are shown in the cost of sales.