restructuring charge

Restructuring Charge

A cost that a company incurs when it reorganizes its operations. Restructuring charges include costs with opening or closing a factory, hiring new employees or paying the severances for lay-offs, and so forth. Restructuring charges are included in the calculation of a company's net income, but because they are unusual, a high restructuring charge is less likely to result in a steep decline in the company's share price.

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restructuring charge

The expense of reorganizing a company's operations. A restructuring charge is an infrequent expense that generally results from asset writedowns or facility closings. It is not considered an extraordinary item and must be considered when calculating a firm's income from continuing operations.

Case Study In August 2001 Procter & Gamble Co. reported the first quarterly loss in nearly a decade. The $320 million quarterly loss resulted from a $1.16 billion restructuring charge to account for corporate streamlining and altering the firm's portfolio of brands. Procter & Gamble was in the process of divesting most of its food and drink business, mostly by entering into a joint venture with Coca-Cola, a plan that was later abandoned. The company reported it planned to continue taking restructuring charges through mid-2004. At the same time P&G reported the net loss, it announced that operating income increased 12% to 60¢ per share. Restructuring charges are often given little weight by investors and analysts who evaluate a company's financial performance, because these charges are considered one-time expenses. The market price of Procter & Gamble's common stock experienced no significant price change on the day the loss was announced.

Wall Street Words: An A to Z Guide to Investment Terms for Today's Investor by David L. Scott. Copyright © 2003 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved. All rights reserved.