Berman Inc. has 6,000 shares of 8%, $50 par value, cumulative preferred stock and 50,000 shares of $1 par value common stock outstanding at December 31, 2013, and December 31, 2014. The board of directors declared and paid an $18,000 dividend in 2013. In 2014, $72,000 of dividends are declared and paid. What are the dividends received by the common stockholders in 2014?a. $42,000.b. $36,000.c. $30,000.d. $24,000.

To determine the dividends received by the common stockholders in 2014, we need to follow these steps:

Step 1: Calculate the total preferred dividends. Berman Inc. has 6,000 shares of 8% cumulative preferred stock with a $50 par value. The annual dividend per preferred share is 8% of $50 = $4. Total annual preferred dividends are 6,000 shares * $4 = $24,000.

Since the preferred stock is cumulative, any unpaid dividends from previous years must be paid out before common shareholders can receive dividends.

Step 2: Check if preferred dividends were paid in the previous year (2013). The total dividends paid in 2013 were $18,000. Preferred shareholders should have received $24,000, but they only received $18,000, meaning they were short $6,000.

Step 3: Calculate the dividends paid to preferred shareholders in 2014 including any arrears from 2013. First, pay the arrearage from 2013 which is $6,000. Then pay the current year (2014) preferred dividends which are another $24,000. Total preferred dividends in 2014 are $6,000 + $24,000 = $30,000.

Step 4: Calculate the remaining dividends for common shareholders. The total declared dividends in 2014 are $72,000. We subtract the total preferred dividends of $30,000 to find out what's left for common shareholders. Dividends for common shareholders are $72,000 - $30,000 = $42,000.

Therefore, the dividends received by the common stockholders in 2014 are $42,000, which corresponds to option (a) $42,000.