The straight line

Founder of Gardiner Thomsen CPAs, Dan Gardiner, was inducted into the Iowa Institute for Cooperatives Hall of Fame on November 26th, 2013. Presenting the award for Dan was long-time client, Jim Carlson, General Manager of First Coop Association of Cherokee, Iowa. His sons, Daniel “Mark” Gardiner and Dennis Gardiner, accepted the award on his behalf and really appreciate all of the kind words their colleagues and friends wrote about Dan to help make him a nominee for this award.

Gardiner Thomsen understands how important security is to you, which is why we have recently put into place a new method of exchanging important documents and secure data with our clients. We recently released an article explaining how this works but we want to make sure you know where to access the login to ensure that this is user friendly for everyone.

• Sales mainly lower, some steady with increased average prices. • Significant reduction in grain volumes: up to 45% decrease compared to 2012. • Lower revenues, primarily grain related. • Overall, most clients were more profitable in 2013 compared to 2012. Local savings were down, offset by significant increases in regional earnings.

More mergers of cooperatives due to retiring managers, smaller struggling cooperatives, and smart combinations to gain critical mass. Increased consideration in returning more earnings to the patron-owners than what has been done in the past few years – revisiting the question: “How much retained savings is enough?” Continued capital investments in grain, agronomy and feed facilities; particularly with the strength of many of the cooperative’s balance sheets.

Debt capital is your borrowed funds. The amount of debt on your company’s balance sheet is a critical number. Typically a sign of success is when a balance sheet shows the amount of long term debt decreasing for one or more years. Too much debt can be a strain on earnings, and a sign of a struggling company. That said, debt used to fund profitable growth can drive greater earnings for your company.

We at Gardiner Thomsen CPAs take great pleasure in announcing the promotion of Seth Gilson to the role of Partner in our firm, joining our 7 other partners. Seth has been a valuable asset to the firm over the past 15 years and demonstrates outstanding dedication to our clients.