Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)

9 Months Ended

Jan. 31, 2018

Use of Estimates, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Use of Estimates:

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP") requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect certain reported amounts and disclosures. Accordingly, actual results

may

differ from those estimates.

Consolidation, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Principles of Consolidation:

The Company follows the guidance in the Financial Accounting Standards Board's ("FASB") Topic

810

“Consolidation” to determine if it should consolidate its investment in a variable interest entity ("VIE"). A VIE is a legal entity in which either (i) equity investors do

not

have sufficient equity investment at risk to enable the entity to finance its activities independently or (ii) the equity holders at risk lack the obligation to absorb losses, the right to receive residual returns or the right to make decisions about the entity

’s activities that most significantly affect the entity's economic performance. A holder of a variable interest in a VIE is required to consolidate the entity if it is determined that it has a controlling financial interest in the VIE and is therefore the primary beneficiary. The determination of a controlling financial interest in a VIE is based on a qualitative assessment to identify the variable interest holder, if any, that has (i) the power to direct the activities of the VIE that most significantly impact the VIE’s economic performance, and (ii) either the obligation to absorb losses of the entity or the right to receive benefits from the entity that could potentially be significant to the VIE. The accounting guidance requires the Company to perform an ongoing assessment of whether the Company is the primary beneficiary of a VIE and the Company has determined it is

not

the primary beneficiary of a VIE (see Note

In accordance with FASB's Topic

810,

the assets, liabilities, and results of operations of subsidiaries in which the Company has a controlling interest have been consolidated. All significant intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. On

December 23, 2010,

the Company completed the Restructuring Transaction and deconsolidated the related affiliates in accordance with FASB's Topic

810.

As part of the Restructuring Transaction, the Company received a significant non-voting revenues interest (excluding distribution revenues) and a significant non-voting profits interest in the new entity, EULAV Asset Management, a Delaware statutory trust (“EAM” or “EAM Trust”). The Company relied on the guidance in FASB's ASC Topics

323

and

810

in its determination

not

to consolidate its investment in EAM and to account for such investment under the equity method of accounting. The Company reports the amount it receives for its non-voting revenues and non-voting profits interests as a separate line item below operating income in the Consolidated Condensed Statements of Income.

Revenue Recognition, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Revenue Recognition:

Depending upon the product, subscription fulfillment for Value Line periodicals and related publications is available in print or digitally, via internet access. The length of a subscription varies by product and offer received by the subscriber. Generally, subscriptions are offered as annual subscriptions. Subscription revenues, net of discounts, are recognized ratably on a straight line basis when the product is served to the client over the life of the subscription. Accordingly, the amount of subscription fees to be earned by fulfilling subscriptions after the date of the balance sheets are shown as unearned revenue within current and long-term liabilities.

Copyright data revenues are derived from providing certain Value Line trademarks and Value Line Proprietary Ranking System information to

third

parties under written agreements for use in selecting securities for

third

party marketed products, including unit investment trusts, annuities and exchange traded funds ("ETFs"). The Company earns asset-based copyright data fees as specified in the individual agreements. Revenue is recognized monthly over the term of the agreement and, because it is asset-based, will fluctuate as the market value of the underlying portfolio increases or decreases in value.

Equity Method Investments [Policy Text Block]

Investment in Unconsolidated Entities:

The Company accounts for its investment in its unconsolidated entity, EAM, using the equity method of accounting in accordance with FASB

’s ASC

323.

The equity method is an appropriate means of recognizing increases or decreases measured by GAAP in the economic resources underlying the investments. Under the equity method, an investor recognizes its share of the earnings or losses of an investee in the periods for which they are reported by the investee in its financial statements rather than in the period in which an investee declares a dividend or distribution. An investor adjusts the carrying amount of an investment for its share of the earnings or losses recognized by the investee.

The Company

’s “interests” in EAM, the investment adviser to and the sole member of the distributor of the Value Line Funds, consist of a "non-voting revenues interest" and a "non-voting profits interest" in EAM as defined in the EAM Trust Agreement. The non-voting revenues interest entitles the Company to receive a range of

41%

55%,

based on the amount of EAM’s adjusted gross revenues, excluding EULAV Securities' distribution revenues (“Revenues Interest”). The non-voting profits interest entitles the Company to receive

50%

of EAM's profits, subject to certain limited adjustments as defined in the EAM Trust Agreement (“Profits Interest”). The Revenues Interest and at least

90%

of the Profits Interest are to be distributed each quarter to all interest holders of EAM, including Value Line. Subsequent to the Restructuring Date, the Company's Revenues Interest in EAM excludes participation in the service and distribution fees of EAM's subsidiary EULAV Securities. The Company reflects its non-voting revenues and non-voting profits interests in EAM as non-operating income under the equity method of accounting subsequent to the Restructuring Transaction. Although the Company does

not

have control over the operating and financial policies of EAM, pursuant to the EAM Trust Agreement, the Company has a contractual right to receive its share of EAM's revenues and profits.

New Accounting Pronouncements, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Recent Accounting Pronouncements:

November 2015,

the FASB issued ASU

2015

17,

Income taxes (Topic

740

): Balance Sheet Classification of Deferred Taxes. Under existing standards, deferred taxes for each tax-paying jurisdiction are presented as a net current asset or liability and net long-term asset or liability. To simplify presentation, the new guidance requires that all deferred tax assets and liabilities, along with related valuation allowances, be classified as long-term on the balance sheet. As a result, each tax-paying jurisdiction will now only have

one

net long-term asset or liability. The new guidance does

not

change the existing requirement that prohibits offsetting deferred tax liabilities from

one

jurisdiction against deferred tax assets of another jurisdiction. ASU

2015

is effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those years, beginning after

December 15, 2016,

which is our fiscal year

2018

beginning

May 1, 2017.

The Company implemented ASU

2015

in the

first

quarter of fiscal

2018

retroactively to include the results as of

April 30, 2017

for comparative purposes. The adoption of ASU

2015

does

not

have a material impact on our consolidated condensed financial statements and related disclosures.

February 2016,

the FASB issued ASU

2016

02,

Leases (Topic

842

) (“ASU

2016

02"

). The core principle of Topic

842

requires that a lessee should recognize the assets and liabilities on the balance sheet and disclose key information about leasing arrangements. The amendments in ASU

2016

are effective for fiscal years beginning after

December 15, 2018,

including interim periods within those fiscal years. The guidance is required to be adopted at the earliest period presented using a modified retrospective approach. The adoption of ASU

2016

will

not

have a material impact on our consolidated condensed financial statements and related disclosures.

August 2016,

the FASB issued Accounting Standards Update

No.

2016

15,

Classification of Certain Cash Receipts and Cash Payments (a consensus of the Emerging Issues Task Force) (“ASU

2016

15”

). The amendments in ASU

2016

address

eight

specific cash flow issues and apply to all entities that are required to present a statement of cash flows under ASC Topic

230,

Statement of Cash Flows. The amendments in ASU

2016

are effective for public business entities for fiscal years beginning after

December 15, 2017,

and interim periods within those fiscal years. Early adoption is permitted, including adoption during an interim period. The adoption of ASU

2016

will

not

have a material impact on our consolidated condensed financial statements and related disclosures. Cash flow change will

not

be significant.

May 2014,

the FASB issued ASU

No.

2014

09,

“Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic

606

)”, which requires an entity to recognize revenue to depict the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which it expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. In addition, ASU

No.

2014

requires disclosures of the nature, amount, timing and uncertainty of revenue and cash flows arising from contracts with customers. ASU

No.

2014

supersedes most existing U.S. GAAP revenue recognition principles, and it permits the use of either the retrospective or cumulative effect transition method. ASU

No.

2014

is effective for annual reporting periods beginning after

December 15, 2017,

including interim periods within those annual periods. The Company is evaluating the effect that ASU

No.

2014

will have on its consolidated condensed financial statements and related disclosures, as well as the expected method of adoption. The Company plans to adopt ASU

No.

2014

in the

first

quarter of fiscal

2019,

and does

not

believe it will have a material impact on its consolidated condensed financial statements and related disclosures.

Fair Value Measurement, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Valuation of Securities:

The Company's securities classified as cash equivalents and available-for-sale consist of shares of money market funds that invest primarily in short-term U.S. Government securities and investments in equities including ETFs and are valued in accordance with the requirements of the Fair Value Measurements Topic of the FASB's ASC

820.

The securities classified as available-for-sale reflected in the Consolidated Condensed Balance Sheets are valued at market and unrealized gains and losses, net of applicable taxes, are reported as a separate component of shareholders' equity. Realized gains and losses on sales of the securities classified as available-for-sale are recorded in earnings as of the trade date and are determined on the identified cost method.

Market valuations of securities listed on a securities exchange and ETF shares are based on the closing sales prices on the last business day of each month. The market value of the Company's fixed maturity U.S. Government debt securities is determined utilizing publicly quoted market prices. Cash equivalents consist of investments in money market funds that invest primarily in U.S. Government securities valued in accordance with rule 2a - 7 under the 1940 Act.

The Fair Value Measurements Topic of FASB's ASC defines fair value as the price that the Company would receive upon selling an investment in a timely transaction to an independent buyer in the principal or most advantageous market for the investment. The Fair Value Measurements Topic established a three -tier hierarchy to maximize the use of observable market data and minimize the use of unobservable inputs and to establish classification of fair value measurements for disclosure purposes. Inputs refer broadly to the information that market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability, including assumptions about risk. Examples of risks include those inherent in a particular valuation technique used to measure fair value such as the risk inherent in the inputs to the valuation technique. Inputs are classified as observable or unobservable. Observable inputs are inputs that reflect the assumptions market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability developed based on market data obtained from sources independent of the reporting entity. Unobservable inputs are inputs that reflect the reporting entity ’s own assumptions about the factors market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability developed based on the best information available in the circumstances.

The three -tier hierarchy of inputs is summarized in the three broad levels listed below.
Level 1 – quoted prices in active markets for identical investments
Level 2 – other significant observable inputs (including quoted prices for similar investments, interest rates, prepayment speeds, credit risk, etc.)
Level 3 – significant unobservable inputs (including the Company’s own assumptions in determining the fair value of investments)

The following summarizes the levels of fair value measurements of the Company ’s investments:

	As of January 31, 2018
($ in thousands)	Level 1		Level 2		Level 3		Total
Cash equivalents	$	3,716	$	-	$	-	$	3,716
Securities available-for-sale		18,404		-		-		18,404
	$	22,120	$	-	$	-	$	22,120

	As of April 30, 2017
($ in thousands)	Level 1		Level 2		Level 3		Total
Cash equivalents	$	6,066	$	-	$	-	$	6,066
Securities available-for-sale		16,576		-		-		16,576
	$	22,642	$	-	$	-	$	22,642

The Company had

other financial instruments such as futures, forwards and swap contracts. For the periods ended

January 31, 2018

and

April 30, 2017,

there were

Level

nor Level

investments. The Company does

not

have any liabilities subject to fair value measurement.

Advertising Costs, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Advertising expenses:

The Company expenses advertising costs as incurred.

Income Tax, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Income Taxes:

The Company computes its income tax provision in accordance with the Income Tax Topic of the FASB's ASC. Deferred tax liabilities and assets are recognized for the expected future tax consequences of events that have been reflected in the Consolidated Condensed Financial Statements. Deferred tax liabilities and assets are determined based on the differences between the book values and the tax bases of particular assets and liabilities, using tax rates currently in effect for the years in which the differences are expected to reverse. The Company adopted the provisions of ASU

2015

17,

Income taxes (Topic

740

) during the

first

quarter of fiscal

2018

and now classifies all deferred taxes as long-term liabilities on the Consolidated Condensed Balance Sheets.

The Income Tax Topic of the FASB's ASC establishes for all entities, a minimum threshold for financial statement recognition of the benefit of positions taken in filing tax returns (including whether an entity is taxable in a particular jurisdiction), and requires certain expanded tax disclosures. As of

January 31, 2018,

management has reviewed the tax positions for the years still subject to tax audit under the statutes of limitations, evaluated the implications, and determined that there is

material impact to the Company's financial statements.

Earnings Per Share, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Earnings per share:

Earnings per share are based on the weighted average number of shares of common stock and common stock equivalents outstanding during each period. Any shares that are reacquired during the period are weighted for the portion of the period that they are outstanding. The Company does

not

have any potentially dilutive common shares from outstanding stock options, warrants, restricted stock, or restricted stock units.

Cash and Cash Equivalents, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Cash and Cash Equivalents:

For purposes of the Consolidated Condensed Statements of Cash Flows, the Company considers all cash held at banks and short term liquid investments with an original maturity of less than

three

months to be cash and cash equivalents. As of

January 31, 2018

and

April 30, 2017,

cash equivalents included

$3,716,000

and

$6,066,000,

respectively, for amounts invested in money market mutual funds that invest in short term U.S. government securities.