Accounting Rate of Return

Management Accounting and Cost Control · 3:25

Listen on 93

Lyrics

[Verse 1]
When you need to measure how your project pays
ARR will show you in accounting ways
Take your average profit year by year
Divide by investment, make it crystal clear

[Chorus]
Average profit over average investment
That's the ARR measurement
Simple percentage, easy to see
But limitations you must believe
ARR ignores the time value flow
Cash timing it will never show

[Verse 2]
Calculate with income statement gains
Not the cash flows running through your veins
Depreciation methods change your score
Book profits aren't cash at your door

[Chorus]
Average profit over average investment
That's the ARR measurement
Simple percentage, easy to see
But limitations you must believe
ARR ignores the time value flow
Cash timing it will never show

[Verse 3]
Compare it to your hurdle rate
If ARR's higher, don't hesitate
But remember NPV tells you more
With discounted cash flows at the core

[Bridge]
IRR considers timing's power
Payback shows recovery hour
ARR is simple but incomplete
For full analysis, use the complete suite

[Chorus]
Average profit over average investment
That's the ARR measurement
Simple percentage, easy to see
But limitations you must believe
ARR ignores the time value flow
Cash timing it will never show

[Outro]
Use ARR for quick comparison
But never make it your only companion
Capital budgeting needs more than one
To make decisions when day is done

← Payback Period and Profitability Index | Sensitivity Analysis and Scenario Planning →