True and Fair View

1. What is the purpose of financial statement analysis? The purpose of financial statement analysis is to provide information used by the business, potential creditors and investors.

Fraser, L. M., & Ormiston, A. (201). Understanding financial statements (9th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

The main purpose of the financial statements is to provide creditors and investors with a summary of a business financial activity. All statements are prepared at certain times throughout the year. The balance sheet reports liabilities, assets, and owner equity of the company. The income statement matches incurred expenses during a period of generated revenue. The statement of retained earnings reports retained earnings from net loss and net incomes from

investors, auditors, executives of the business, etc.) an overview of the financial results and condition of the company. The major financial statements that come out of the accounting cycle are income statements, balance sheets, Statement of cash flows and Statement of retained earnings. Income statements are considered the most important of all the financial statements since it presents the operating results of an entity , e.g. revenues, expenses, and profits/losses generated during the reporting period (Bragg, 2017). Balance sheets provide reports of assets, liabilities, and equity of the entity as of the reporting date and can be considered the second most important statement because it provides information/figures about the liquidity, as well as the capitalization of a company (Bragg, 2017). Statement of cash flows exhibits the cash inflows and outflows that occur during a reporting period, which provides a useful comparison to the income statement, particularly when the amount of profit or loss reported does not reflect cash flows encountered by the businesses (Bragg, 2017). Statement of retained earnings is the least used financial statement that provides information regarding changes in equity during the reporting period and can include information such as: sale or repurchase of stock, dividend payments, and changes caused by reported profits or losses. Statements of retained earnings are often

When you’re looking at the income statement, you can get information about profitability for a particular period. This is also called the profit and loss statement. The income statement is composed of both income and expenses. This statement can be used to deduct expenses from income and report either a net profit or net loss for that period. This statement will deduct all expenses from income and then report your net profit or net loss for that period. This will allow the business owner to determine if the business is bringing in a good amount of revenue to make a profit. The cash flow statement shows the movement in cash and balance over period. The cash flow can vary depending on the operating activities, investing and financing activities. This statement provides one business owner with insight to the company’s liquidity which is vital to the growth of the business. Reinvesting in business is very important, looking at the statement of retained earnings will tell a business owner how much were reinvested in the company. After profitable period, every big business has to give some of its profits to stockholders, and keep the rest amount as retained earnings. Out of all statements, retaining statement is important to companies that sells stocks to the public. This statement can also provide you with assets and liabilities information. These informations can be used to assess the financial health of your business. The results of a balance sheet will help the business owners to show the risk of liquidity and credit. Looking at these information you can measure trends and relationships to show where in the areas you can improve. These can also be compared to similar companies to show how the business measures up to leading competitors (Ali, 2010). In summary, the financial statements can provide a business owner

The purpose of this paper is to define accounting, and identify the four basic financial statements. The paper also explains how the different financial statements are interrelated to each other and why they are useful to managers, investors, creditors, and employees.

The information found in financial statements outlines the financial activities of that company, and can help managers, creditors, and investors make many important decisions.

As the business environment grows and companies find new ways to expand into their respective - or even new – markets, it is important that reporting standards stay up to date with changes and continue to assist companies in providing their users with useful accounting information. Information is labelled as being useful when it meets the

Financial statements of the company are significant for the investors who would like to venture into the business operation. It gives them the insight whether the business is making profits or it is doomed to fail;

Financial statement measures the financial performance, liquidity and strength of the firm, it is important

2Auditors may not be able to act independently, and may not use the best professional judgment when performing the external audit.

3. What potential implications arise for the accounting firm if they issue an unqualified report without the going-concern explanatory paragraph?

Financial statements are a very useful tool for individuals interested in the organization. Investors use the information to determine if it a wise decision to put their money into the organization. Investors need to determine if the organization has been successful and profitable and will continue to be successful and profitable. Creditors use the financial statements to determine the amount of credit that should be advanced to the organization. Employees generally do not look at the financial statements, but if a new executive was thinking of joining the organization, he or she may want to see the potential of the organization to make sure the investors are becoming a part of a successful organization. Management uses the financial statements on a monthly basis to determine which areas of the organization are profitable and which areas of the organization that needs to be discontinued or restructure to become more profitable.

have explained that the Financial statements provide asummarized view of the financial position and operations of a firm. Therefore, much can belearnt about a firm from a careful examination of its financial statements as invaluabledocuments / performance reports. The analysis of financial statements is, thus, an important aidto financial analysis.

“How do you explain to an intelligent public that it is possible for two companies in the same industry to follow entirely different accounting principles and both get a true and fair audit report?” - M. Lafferty