Extraordinary items

Extraordinary items are gains or losses from events that are both unusual and not expected to happen again, such as damage from a natural disaster or a one time legal settlement. Data providers often show net income both including and excluding them.

US accounting rules no longer allow companies to label items as extraordinary on the income statement, but the idea lives on. Companies still report unusual or infrequent items, and data providers still separate them so investors can see earnings from the ongoing business.

The useful question is whether an item will recur. Net income excluding these items usually gives a better picture of normal earning power, but a company that reports "one time" charges year after year is telling you they are part of how it does business.