Analysis is undertaken to serve the following purposes (objectives): • to assess the current profitability and operational efficiency of the firm as a whole as well as its different departments so as to judge the financial health of the firm. • to ascertain the relative importance of different components of the financial position of the firm. • to identify the reasons for change in the profitability/financial position of the firm. • to judge the ability of the firm to repay its debt and assessing the short-term as well as the long-term liquidity position of the firm.
* Ratio Analysis: It describes the significant relationship which exists between various items of a balance sheet and a statement of profit and loss of a firm. As a technique of financial analysis, accounting ratios measure the comparative significance of the individual items of the income and position statements. It is possible to assess the profitability, solvency and efficiency of an enterprise through the technique of ratio analysis.
* Comparative Statements: These are the statements showing the profitability and financial position of a firm for different periods of time in a comparative form to give an idea about the position of two or more periods. It usually applies to the two important financial statements, namely, balance sheet and statement of profit and loss prepared in a comparative form. The financial data will be comparative only when same accounting principles are used in preparing these statements. If this is not the case, the deviation in the use of accounting principles should be mentioned as a footnote. Comparative figures indicate the trend and direction of financial position and operating results. This analysis is also known as ‘horizontal analysis’.
* Common Size Statements: These are the statements which indicate the relationship of different items of a financial statement with a common item by expressing each item as a percentage of that common item. The percentage thus calculated can be easily compared with the results of corresponding percentages of the previous year or of some other firms, as the numbers are brought to common base. Such statements also allow an analyst to compare the operating and financing characteristics of two companies of different sizes in the same industry. Thus, common size statements are useful, both, in intra-firm comparisons over different years and also in making inter-firm comparisons for the same year or for several years. This analysis is also known as ‘Vertical analysis’.
* Cash Flow Analysis: It refers to the analysis of actual movement of cash into and out of an organisation. The flow of cash into the business is called as cash inflow or positive cash flow and the flow of cash out of the firm is called as cash outflow or a negative cash flow. The difference between the inflow and outflow of cash is the net cash flow. Cash flow statement is prepared to project the manner in which the cash has been received and has been utilised during an accounting year as it shows the sources of cash receipts and also the purposes for which payments are made. Thus, it summarises the causes for the changes in cash position of a business enterprise between dates of two balance sheets. |
