Final answer:
After closing entries, the Dividends account will not have a balance because it is a temporary account that is closed to Retained Earnings, unlike the permanent accounts: Deferred Revenue, Supplies, and Prepaid Rent. Option D is the correct answer.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question pertains to which account would NOT have a balance after closing entries are made in the accounting cycle.
Closing entries are used to transfer the balances of temporary accounts (revenues, expenses, and dividends) to permanent accounts (Retained Earnings or Capital), effectively resetting the temporary accounts to zero for the start of the new accounting period.
Let's review the accounts listed to determine which one wouldn't have a balance after closing entries:
- Deferred Revenue: This is a liability account, which is a permanent or real account. It represents the obligation to provide goods or services in the future and would not be closed out at the end of an accounting period. Hence, it will have a balance.
- Supplies: This is an asset account, and also a permanent account, which would not be closed. It would have a balance that carries over to the next period.
- Prepaid Rent: As an asset account, Prepaid Rent is a permanent account as well and retains its balance after closing entries.
- Dividends: Dividends are considered a temporary account that would be closed to Retained Earnings at the end of an accounting period. After the closing entries, the Dividends account would not have a balance.
Therefore, the correct answer is D. Dividends. This is the account that will not have a balance after closing entries because it is a temporary account that is closed to Retained Earnings at the end of the accounting period.