What Financial Liquidity Is, Asset Classes, Pros & Cons, Examples

Liquidity is the measurement of short-term financial health, while solvency is the measurement of long-term financial health. Some things you own such as your nicest shirt or food in your refrigerator might be able to sold quickly. Others such as a rare collectible coin or custom painting of your family may be a bit more difficult. The relative ease in which things can be bought or sold is referred to as liquidity. This lesson will introduce the balance sheet, a representation of a firm’s financial position at a single point in time. You will be able to identify assets, liability, and shareholder’s equity, and learn how to compute the balance sheet equation.

Inventory might take a month or two to be converted through turnover and sales. In some cases, inventory may be resold quickly, so its place in the order of liquidity may vary by company. While liquid assets can be easily sold for cash and have a stable market price, non-liquid assets cannot be quickly sold for cash and prices can be much more volatile. A liquid asset is a reference to cash on hand or an asset that can be readily converted to cash.

What Is a Liquid Asset?

To measure how well a company will meet its short-term debt obligations, a company should be mindful of its liquid assets. Liquid assets are items that can be quickly converted to cash, and companies earning tremendous profit may still face liquidity problems if they don’t have the short-term resources bookkeeping 101 to pay bills. The stock market is an example of a liquid market because of its large number of buyers and sellers which results in easy conversion to cash. Because stocks can be sold using electronic markets for full market prices on demand, publicly listed equity securities are liquid assets.

An asset that can readily be converted into cash is similar to cash itself because the asset can be sold with little impact on its value. Think about what assets you have within easy access that, if needed, could pay for something within a relatively short amount of time. Some examples of these liquid assets are cash, checking accounts, savings accounts and some investment funds. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) stipulates the level of unencumbered liquid assets lending institutions must have on hand. These factors can be important for individuals and investors when allocating for liquid vs. non-liquid assets and making investment decisions. Liquidity for companies typically refers to a company’s ability to use its current assets to meet its current or short-term liabilities.

The least liquid assets

Before investing in any asset, it’s important to keep in mind the asset’s liquidity levels since it could be difficult or take time to convert back into cash. Of course, other than selling an asset, cash can be obtained by borrowing against an asset. For example, banks lend money to companies, taking the companies’ assets as collateral to protect the bank from default. The company receives cash but must pay back the original loan amount plus interest to the bank.

Companies may also have obligations due from customers they’ve issued a credit to. Cash is the most liquid asset, followed by cash equivalents, which are things like money market accounts, certificates of deposit (CDs), or time deposits. Marketable securities, such as stocks and bonds listed on exchanges, are often very liquid and can be sold quickly via a broker.

Marketable Securities

The ratio is calculated by dividing the operating cash flow by the current liabilities. A higher number is better since it means a company can cover its current liabilities more times. An increasing operating cash flow ratio https://online-accounting.net/ is a sign of financial health, while those companies with declining ratios may have liquidity issues in the short-term. A critical part in understanding the liquidity of marketable securities is their holding duration.

• Fixed assets, such as equipment, require a market for selling, and so usually rank lower on a balance sheet, and goodwill is only realized upon sale of the business.
• For example, if an investor was to sell to another collector, they might get full value if they wait for the right buyer.
• Completely liquid assets, like cash, may even fall victim to inflation, the gradual decrease in purchasing power over time.
• In addition, they are also used to protect a personal investment position against unanticipated adverse events.
• Some shares trade more actively than others on stock exchanges, meaning that there is more of a market for them.

Generally speaking, only taxable investment accounts are considered truly liquid. That’s in contrast to tax-advantaged retirement accounts, which vary in liquidity but generally limit your ability to liquidate your assets. IRA plans cannot be considered liquid if you haven’t reached the qualifying retirement age, because you’d still be obliged to pay the IRS early withdrawal penalties. But you can claim a hardship withdrawal if your situation warrants a waiver of the 10% penalty for an early withdrawal. While investment accounts are liquid, you shouldn’t rely on them in the same way that you rely on your cash accounts.

Examples of Liquid Assets

Company stocks traded on the major exchanges are typically considered liquid. Market liquidity refers to a market’s ability to allow assets to be bought and sold easily and quickly, such as a country’s financial markets or real estate market. Financial liquidity impacts individuals, companies, and financial markets. As each group attempts to buy and sell things, it’s crucial to understand what financial liquidity is, how to measure it, and why it is important. Cash in a bank account or credit union account can be accessed quickly and easily, via a bank transfer or an ATM withdrawal. Liquidity is one of the key factors that determine success in the world of business.

For illiquid stocks, the spread can be much wider, amounting to a few percentage points of the trading price. Liquidity is important because owning liquid assets allows you to pay for basic living expenses and handle emergencies when they arise. But it’s important to recognize that liquidity and holding liquid assets comes at a cost. Financial analysts look at a firm’s ability to use liquid assets to cover its short-term obligations. Generally, when using these formulas, a ratio greater than one is desirable.

The current ratio is used to provide a company’s ability to pay back its liabilities (debt and accounts payable) with its assets (cash, marketable securities, inventory, and accounts receivable). Of course, industry standards vary, but a company should ideally have a ratio greater than 1, meaning they have more current assets to current liabilities. However, it’s important to compare ratios to similar companies within the same industry for an accurate comparison.

• Making sure you have plenty in cash and other liquid assets is crucial – not just to cover everyday expenses, but also to allow you to handle an emergency or big life change.
• Building your liquid assets essentially means that you’re giving yourself a financial insurance plan.
• Under GAAP, current assets are listed first, while a sheet prepared under IFRS begins with non-current assets.
• However, should business slow in a recession or any event above occurs, inventory may not be as liquid.
• The two main sets of accounting standards followed by businesses are GAAP and IFRS.

It could be argued that Disney’s financial performance in 2021 was better than in 2020. Katrina Ávila Munichiello is an experienced editor, writer, fact-checker, and proofreader with more than fourteen years of experience working with print and online publications. For more information about finance and accounting view more of our articles.