Dictionary
Financial Glossary
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> "Assets" Definition |
 Assets
A firms productive resources.
another word for the investments which a unit trusts holds within its portfolio.
The main sense in which the term asset is used is to describe anything owned by an individual or business which has a monetary value. Some assets are relatively easy to measure - debtors, cash, stock and so on. Others are more difficult - goodwill, intellectual property, and brand values. In the context of a company"s balance sheet, an asset is also a deferred cost. Equipment valued at £1m in a balance sheet represents £1m which the company spent and which is being depreciated as the equipment exhausts its usable life. The question of whether that equipment is actually an asset or a liability is really whether that asset generates more in after-tax revenues than it costs. If not, it is hardly something accruing to the benefit of the company and its shareholders.More generally, "asset" is used to describe a class of investment product. So, shares, property, and bonds are all asset classes. Hence the phrase used in portfolio management - "asset allocation".
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Glossary 
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Assets - A firms productive resources.
another word for the investments which a unit trusts holds within its portfolio.
The main sense in which the term asset is used is to describe anything owned by an individual or business which has a monetary value. Some assets are relatively easy to measure - debtors, cash, stock and so on. Others are more difficult - goodwill, intellectual property, and brand values. In the context of a company"s balance sheet, an asset is also a deferred cost. Equipment valued at £1m in a balance sheet represents £1m which the company spent and which is being depreciated as the equipment exhausts its usable life. The question of whether that equipment is actually an asset or a liability is really whether that asset generates more in after-tax revenues than it costs. If not, it is hardly something accruing to the benefit of the company and its shareholders.More generally, "asset" is used to describe a class of investment product. So, shares, property, and bonds are all asset classes. Hence the phrase used in portfolio management - "asset allocation".
Assets : a firms productive resources.
another word for the investments which a unit trusts holds within its portfolio.
the main sense in which the term asset is used is to describe anything owned by an individual or business which has a monetary value. some assets are relatively easy to measure - debtors, cash, stock and so on. others are more difficult - goodwill, intellectual property, and brand values. in the context of a company"s balance sheet, an asset is also a deferred cost. equipment valued at £1m in a balance sheet represents £1m which the company spent and which is being depreciated as the equipment exhausts its usable life. the question of whether that equipment is actually an asset or a liability is really whether that asset generates more in after-tax revenues than it costs. if not, it is hardly something accruing to the benefit of the company and its shareholders.more generally, "asset" is used to describe a class of investment product. so, shares, property, and bonds are all asset classes. hence the phrase used in portfolio management - "asset allocation".
