23. For example, if it were assumed that the cash would be spent on operations, the company would have to project the impact of such an investment on revenues and expenses. This would require assumptions regarding such things as the price elasticity of the company’s products and services and whether the present physical plant could accommodate the presumed expanded activities.
24. The APB also required the treasury stock approach. As a safeguard against the potential impact that a large repurchase of treasury shares might have on the market price of common shares, the number of treasury shares was limited to 20 percent of the outstanding shares at the end of the period. Excess cash was presumed to have been spent to reduce debt or purchase U.S. government securities. FASB ASC 260-10 imposes no limit on the number of treasury shares assumed repurchased. This is an example of one of the objectives of the original pronouncement, to minimize the computational complexity and arbitrary assumptions of its predecessor, APB Opinion No.15.