Definition of Year to Date (YTD)

The duration between the start of the calendar year and the current date is known as year-to-date. Firms use year-to-date to calculate the company’s current date income as well as for comparing the incomes of different periods to assess the financial standing. It is beneficial in finding a firm’s performance against goals and targets.

Comparing year-to-date information among firms with different fiscal-year start dates can distort an analysis: the time included may vary, and seasonal factors may become skewed. It is also important to remember that the extra day in leap years may distort year-to-date comparisons.

Explanation of Year to Date (YTD)

A firm ABC has &1,000,000 at the beginning of fiscal year i.e. January. By March, the firm’s revenue has increased by $1,000,000 as shown in the table below.

Year-to-date revenue of ABC can simply be calculated by adding the firm’s revenue from the start of the fiscal year till the current day.

Year-to-date = $1,000,000 + $1,500,000 +$2,000,000

Year-to-date = $4,500,000