CSLB Law & Business ExamBusiness FinancesMedium

A contractor is preparing a cash flow forecast for the next quarter. Which of the following would be classified as a cash outflow from investing activities?

  1. APurchase of a new company vehicle.
  2. BPayment of interest on a line of credit.
  3. CPayment of employee wages.
  4. DRepayment of a bank loan principal.
Show answer & explanation

Correct answer: A. Purchase of a new company vehicle.

Cash flows from investing activities relate to the purchase or sale of long-term assets (property, plant, and equipment) or investments in other companies. The purchase of a new company vehicle is acquiring a long-term asset, making it an investing outflow.

Why the other options are wrong

  • B. This is typically an operating cash outflow (interest is an expense of operations).
  • C. This is an operating cash outflow (related to normal business operations).
  • D. This is a financing cash outflow (related to debt repayment).

Cash Flow from Investing Activities

Cash inflows and outflows related to the purchase and sale of long-term assets, such as property, plant, equipment, and investments in other businesses.

  • Inflows: Sale of property, plant, equipment; sale of investments.
  • Outflows: Purchase of property, plant, equipment; purchase of investments.
  • Reflects management's decisions on capital expenditures.

Memory trick: OIF: Operations, Investing, Financing – where's the cash flowing?

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