FIN 320 Project One mod 3

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School

Southern New Hampshire University *

*We aren’t endorsed by this school

Course

320

Subject

Finance

Date

Apr 3, 2024

Type

docx

Pages

4

Uploaded by DrAlpaca4232

FIN 320 Project One: Financial Analyst Job Aid Financial Responsibilities Financial analysts will research business trends and economic trends for specific industries (CFA Insitute, 2024). Financial analysts will analyze and assess financial statements (CFA Insitute, 2024). Financial analysts will evaluate potential investment opportunities and make useful financial recommendations (CFA Insitute, 2024). Financial analysts will translate financial data into presentations that are easy to comprehend (CFA Insitute, 2024). Financial analysts will report to their higher-ups on their findings regarding financial statements and report any recommendations (CFA Insitute, 2024). Financial analysts will assess stocks, investments, and bonds regarding their overall trend for performance (CFA Insitute, 2024). Financial analysts are expected to stay up to date with market conditions and new technology and conduct business behavior with due diligence (CFA Insitute, 2024). Financial Management Decisions The responsibilities of financial analysis are essential for a company to utilize to help make important management decisions. Financial forecasting is an essential responsibility that a financial analyst contributes to a company. This establishes a business plan that utilizes current and future business and economic trends (GGOB, 2019) . Their responsibilities also include presenting detailed financial data from financial statements in a presentation that is easy to understand for everyone in the company (CFA Insitute, 2024). Especially those who are not in the billing or accounting department of a company, but the information is still useful. Without the information that financial analysis provides, management will have a hard time identifying potential investment opportunities, evaluating the company's performance, setting obtainable long-term company goals, contingency planning during a financial crisis, and identifying financial problems in certain areas of the company and what caused that problem (GGOB, 2019) . Accounting Principles Financial analysts make use of accounting principles by applying their knowledge of them while interpreting financial statements. They know when revenue is recorded in each accounting period (Alice, 2022) and understand that assets are commonly recorded at historical costs (Bossard, 2022). They also know that expenses and revenues must be recorded in the same accounting period (2 Minute Business, 2022). Without these principles, financial analysts or interested readers of financial statements will have no way of ensuring the accuracy of financial documents. They would also be incomparable with the company's financial statements or other companies' statements to evaluate the company's
performance. If revenue or expenses were to be recorded inaccurately this would create a rippling effect in the financial statements. It would create an understatement for one accounting period and an overstatement in the next accounting period. This is critical for a company because this presents data that is misleading to the readers. It makes the company's performance look better off or worse off than they are. Financial Statements For a financial analyst to efficiently perform their job duties, they would need access to the company's financial statements, which include the balance sheet, the income statement, the statement of cash flows, and the statement of shareholders’ equity (GGOB, 2019) . These statements provide key information that will aid in future financial decisions. The financial data will help make financial decisions regarding future budgeting in areas such as inventory and the company’s expenses. It aids in decisions regarding investments, whether the company is spending too much or too little on the company’s investments. It also aids in decisions regarding the performance of revenue earned for its operations. Financial Terminology [In this section, explain how a financial analyst uses key financial terms every day. Ensure your response is clear and easy to understand. Define each term listed below. Then, for each term, write one or two sentences showing how a financial analyst might use the term and how the concept is used to make important financial decisions.] Financial statement o Definition: Consists of the income statement, Balance sheet, Cash flow statement, and statement of shareholders equity (Pearson, 2024). o How this is used: Financial statements are examined by financial analysts to make recommendations for the company to improve performance, gain investments, and project future revenues or liabilities. Liquidity o Definition: “The speed with which an asset can be converted into cash without loss of value” (Pearson, 2024). o How this is used: Financial analysts will utilize this term to assess the company's assets. They will determine what assets are more liquid than others in the circumstance the company needs to quick cash. Working capital o Definition: “Working capital (also called net working capital) is represented by the excess of current assets over current liabilities and identifies the relatively liquid portion of total entity capital that constitutes a margin or buffer for meeting obligations within the ordinary operating cycle of the entity.” (FASB, 2024) .
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