Meaning of Operating Lease

It simply means a mechanism through which the owner of an asset or equipment ( officially termed as Lessor ) allows the user (officially termed as Lessee) to use an asset for a particular duration, which is shorter than the average economic life of the underlying asset. The LesseeThe LesseeA Lessee, also called a Tenant, is an individual (or entity) who rents the land or property (generally immovable) from a lessor (property owner) under a legal lease agreement. read more is obliged to pay regular lease paymentsLease PaymentsLease payments are the payments where the lessee under the lease agreement has to pay monthly fixed rental for using the asset to the lessor. The ownership of such an asset is generally taken back by the owner after the lease term expiration.read more or installments in return for a right to use an asset for an agreed period failing which the Lessor can take back the asset and the contract stand void. An essential point of consideration is that there will be no transfer of ownership. Such a contract is beneficial for both parties and provides them with unique opportunities to utilize their assets in the best possible way.

For LessorFor LessorA lessor is an individual or entity that leases out an asset such as land, house or machinery to another person or organization for a certain period.read more, it provides a mechanism to earn a fixed interest on an asset, which is otherwise not only giving any return but is also depreciating day by day. For Lessee, it provides a mechanism to utilize an asset or equipment without actually buying it. Operating a lease through a fixed installment is less than purchasing the equipment from the market.

Example of an Operating Lease Contract

Let’s consider a firm ABC which operates in manufacturing auto parts, which are eventually supplied to the global automakers. To expand its business, our manufacturing firm needs more press machines. Let’s say the market price of each machine is $ 5,000,000, and the firm needs at least 2 such machines for its two production plants. The management does not want to invest significant capital until they are sure of the demand. In such a scenario, they can decide to lease the press machine for $ 5,000 a month. Hence the effective expense would be $ 10,000 per month for the firm ( taking both machines into account).

Such a mechanism will help the firm in fulfilling its strategic initiatives of expanding the manufacturing capacity at a much less amount without taking any business riskBusiness RiskBusiness risk is associated with running a business. The risk can be higher or lower from time to time. But it will be there as long as you run a business or want to operate and expand.read more.

What it has lost out to is the ownership rights, which at this moment of time is not the biggest issue that management is concerned about. Once the firm has tested waters and is confident of the available demand, they can go ahead and purchase the machines from the market.

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Advantages

Disadvantages

  • Finance Cost – This lease has a financing costFinancing CostFinancing costs refer to interest payments and other expenses incurred by the company for the operations and working management. An enterprise often borrows money from different financing sources to run their operations in return for interest payments and capital gains.read more associated with it. There is a rate of interest embedded in the contract which the firm must accept even though it might look a bit above the prevailing market rate. Such a mechanism puts the firm at an interest rate riskInterest Rate RiskThe risk of an asset’s value changing due to interest rate volatility is known as interest rate risk. It either makes the security non-competitive or makes it more valuable. read more and might question the management strategy aimed at leasing rather than going for purchasing the equipment.Reduced return for equity holders – In the leasing contract, the firm does not own the equipment. Had it been owned, it would have been an asset, but in operating lease terms, it is realized as a liability on the financial statementsFinancial StatementsFinancial statements are written reports prepared by a company’s management to present the company’s financial affairs over a given period (quarter, six monthly or yearly). These statements, which include the Balance Sheet, Income Statement, Cash Flows, and Shareholders Equity Statement, must be prepared in accordance with prescribed and standardized accounting standards to ensure uniformity in reporting at all levels.read more. It leads to a reduced return on equityReturn On EquityReturn on Equity (ROE) represents financial performance of a company. It is calculated as the net income divided by the shareholders equity. ROE signifies the efficiency in which the company is using assets to make profit.read more for shareholders.

Important Points to Note

  • Operating lease is recorded as off-balance sheet items, which effectively means that the underlying asset and any liabilities related to it like rent payments or any installments in the future are not recorded on the Lessee’s balance sheet statement. It allows firms to keep debt to equity ratio low and in permissible limits avoiding any red flags from both equity holders and debt holders.Historically effective utilization of such a lease has helped global firms to hold billions of dollars of assets and liabilities without recording them on the balance sheetsThem On The Balance SheetsA balance sheet is one of the financial statements of a company that presents the shareholders’ equity, liabilities, and assets of the company at a specific point in time. It is based on the accounting equation that states that the sum of the total liabilities and the owner’s capital equals the total assets of the company.read more. . However, as per the new rule, all operating leases more than 12 months should be recorded in the balance sheet appropriately by the public companies.For an operating lease to be effectively framed and avoid any wrath from regulators, it is necessary that it is well-differentiated from a capital leaseCapital LeaseA capital lease is a legal agreement of any business equipment or property equivalent or sale of an asset by one party (lesser) to another (lessee). The lesser agrees to transfer the ownership rights to the lessee once the lease period is completed, and it is generally non-cancellable and long-term in nature.read more. It effectively means that there should not be an ownership transfer at the end of the agreed time period, and the lease contract duration should not be more than 75% of the economic life of the underlying assetUnderlying AssetUnderlying assets are the actual financial assets on which the financial derivatives rely. Thus, any change in the value of a derivative reflects the price fluctuation of its underlying asset. Such assets comprise stocks, commodities, market indices, bonds, currencies and interest rates.read more.Some lease contracts also make sure that the present value of the installment payments should not exceed 90% of the equipment’s current market value, and the contract should be free from any bargain purchaseBargain PurchaseBargain purchase happens when a company acquires another company at a price less than the fair market value of its assets.read more option.Typically, all types of assetsTypes Of AssetsAssets are the resources owned by individuals, companies, or governments expected to generate future cash flows over a long period. There are broadly three types of asset distribution: 1. Based on convertibility (current and non-current assets), 2. Physical existence (tangible and intangible assets), 3. Usage (operating and non-operating assets)read more and equipment can be rented as an operating lease. E.g., of aircraft, machinery, land or real estate, or some business-specific equipment.

Conclusion

Operating lease provides benefits to business, especially emerging firms that are cash strapped and do not have the luxury of available capital at demand. It provides a mechanism through which they can continue their business operationsBusiness OperationsBusiness operations refer to all those activities that the employees undertake within an organizational setup daily to produce goods and services for accomplishing the company’s goals like profit generation.read more through the services of the equipment or machinery without actually owning the underlying asset.

This article has been a guide to Operating Lease definition and its meaning. Here we discuss how operating lease works along with examples, advantages, and disadvantages. You can learn more about the financing from the following articles –

  • Calculate Monthly Lease PaymentFinancial Lease vs. Operating LeaseCapital Lease vs. Operating Lease | Top DifferencesLease Rate