Average Collection Period
- Average Collection Period
- The approximate amount of time that it takes for a business to receive payments owed, in terms of receivables, from its customers and clients.
Calculated as:
Where:
Days = Total amount of days in period
AR = Average amount of accounts receivables
Credit Sales = Total amount of net credit sales during period
For example, suppose that a widget making company, XYZ Corp, has total credit sales of $100,000 during a year (assume 365 days) and has an average amount of accounts receivables is $50,000. Its average collection period is 182.5 days.
Due to the size of transactions, most businesses allow customers to purchase goods or services via credit, but one of the problems with extending credit is not knowing when the customer will make cash payments. Therefore, possessing a lower average collection period is seen as optimal, because this means that it does not take a company very long to turn its receivables into cash. Ultimately, every business needs cash to pay off its own expenses (such as operating and administrative expenses).
Investment dictionary.
Academic.
2012.
Look at other dictionaries:
average collection period — See: debtor collection period … Accounting dictionary
Average collection period, or days' receivables — The ratio of accounts receivables to sales, or the total amount of credit extended per dollar of daily sales (average AR/sales * 365). The New York Times Financial Glossary … Financial and business terms
average collection period, or days' receivables — The ratio of accounts receivable to sales, or the total amount of credit extended per dollar of daily sales ( average AR/sales 365). Bloomberg Financial Dictionary … Financial and business terms
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debtor collection period — average collection period The period, on average, that a business takes to collect the money owed to it by its trade debtors. If a company gives one month s credit then, on average, it should collect its debts within 45 days. The debtor… … Big dictionary of business and management
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Days in receivables — Average collection period. The New York Times Financial Glossary … Financial and business terms
