EBK FINANCIAL REPORTING, FINANCIAL STAT
8th Edition
ISBN: 9781337003193
Author: WAHLEN
Publisher: CENGAGE LEARNING - CONSIGNMENT
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Textbook Question
Chapter 4, Problem 1QE
Common-Size Analysis. Common-size analysis is a simple way to make financial statements of different firms comparable. What are possible shortcomings of comparing two different firms using common-size analysis?
Expert Solution & Answer
To determine
Discuss the shortcomings in comparison of two different firms using common-size analysis.
Explanation of Solution
Common-size analysis computes the items of income statement as a percentage of sales and amount of balance sheet as percentage of total assets. The shortcoming of this analysis is that different firms have different policies and methods of production. The categorization of expenses is done on the basis of business activity of the business activities. Thus, it becomes difficult to compare two different firms.
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Students have asked these similar questions
Which of the following statements regarding the current ratio is true?
a.The current ratio is more useful than working capital in making comparisons across companies.
b.The current ratio is not useful in making comparisons with industry averages.
c.Working capital is more useful than the current ratio in making comparisons across companies.
d.All of these statements are true.
Please see the attached graph for questions below.
What is the difference between the two companies on this ratio? What is a plausible explanation as to why they would differ? Is one company clearly different than the other?
Are there economic or end-market influences that explain why the ratios differ? What might they be?
Over time, is each company’s overall financial performance improving, declining, or is something strange going on?
Do you think evaluating financial statements is a good idea? What do you regard as some of the shortcomings of financial ratio analysis?
Which of the following is a basic limitation associated with ratio analysis
The usefulness of a single ratio by itself.
The lack of comparability among firms in a given industry.
The use of fair value accounting costs.
The use of future-oriented data items in accounting.
Chapter 4 Solutions
EBK FINANCIAL REPORTING, FINANCIAL STAT
Ch. 4 - Common-Size Analysis. Common-size analysis is a...Ch. 4 - Earnings per Share. Firm A reports an increase in...Ch. 4 - Prob. 3QECh. 4 - Profit Margin for ROA versus ROCE. Describe the...Ch. 4 - Concept and Measurement of Financial Leverage....Ch. 4 - Advantages of Financial Leverage. A company...Ch. 4 - Prob. 7QECh. 4 - Nucor, a steel manufacturer, reported net income...Ch. 4 - Phillips-Van Heusen, an apparel manufacturer,...Ch. 4 - TJX, Inc., an apparel retailer, reported net...
Ch. 4 - Boston Scientific, a medical device manufacturer,...Ch. 4 - Valero Energy, a petroleum company, reported net...Ch. 4 - Exhibit 4.22 presents selected operating data for...Ch. 4 - Microsoft Corporation (Microsoft) and Oracle...Ch. 4 - Prob. 17PCCh. 4 - Prob. 18PCCh. 4 - Texas Instruments (TI) designs and manufactures...Ch. 4 - JCPenney operates a chain of retail department...Ch. 4 - Prob. 21PCCh. 4 - Selected data for General Mills for 2007, 2008,...Ch. 4 - Prob. 23PCCh. 4 - Hasbro is a leading firm in the toy, game, and...Ch. 4 - Fitch sells casual apparel and personal care...Ch. 4 - Prob. 26PCCh. 4 - Starwood Hotels (Starwood) owns and operates many...Ch. 4 - Select data for Avis and Hertz for 2012 follow....Ch. 4 - Integrative Case 1.1 introduced the industry...Ch. 4 - Prob. 1ABICCh. 4 - Prob. 1ACICCh. 4 - Prob. 1BAICCh. 4 - Prob. 1BBICCh. 4 - Walmart and Carrefour follow similar strategies....Ch. 4 - Walmart and Carrefour follow similar strategies....
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- Why is it sometimes misleading to compare a company’s financial ratios with those of other firms that operate in the same industry?arrow_forwardIn regards to benchmarking, which of the following statements is incorrect? A. Benchmarking is the practice of comparing a company with other leading companies. B. The two main types of benchmarks in financial statement analysis include benchmarking against the industry average and benchmarking against a key competitor. C.The industry average is not a useful benchmark for evaluating a company. D. Providing commonminus−size percentages in a graphical manner highlights differencesarrow_forwardExplain the Limitations of Financial Ratios in Business Decisions?arrow_forward
- When you are interpreting financial ratios, it is useful to compare a company's ratios to some form of standard. Group of answer choices True Falsearrow_forwardEach of the following is true of successful financial ratio analysis EXCEPT ____. a. ratios must be used in conjunction with other data to obtain meaningful information b. ratios are meaningful only when compared to a standard c. some industries use special ratios that are unique to the activities of firms in those industries d. a single ratio is all that is needed to indicate specific areas of weakness that must be addressedarrow_forwardWhat is the value of common-sizing analysis? Why would a company do such an analysis on another company’s financial statements?arrow_forward
- Comparative ratio analysis can be applied when analyzing performance of the company for one period against another period, performance of the company against another company and/or performance of the company against the industry (or a group of companies with the same business activities). Is it true or false?arrow_forwardWhen converting dollar amounts on our financial statements to percentages for vertical analysis, what is it that makes this an easier way to compare companies to each other? A It provides a way for outside stakeholders to understand the numbers better in an easier format B It forces us to look closer at our financial statements to ensure we don't have missing amounts C It allows us to compare things based on growth or decline easier than comparing dollar amounts that could be vastly different values D It allows the analysis of numbers too large to comprehend by most stakeholdersarrow_forwardFinancial analysis and forecasting are based on assumptions and estimates. Comparing the income of two companies may include different company assumptions in reporting their financial information. Therefore, their income may be different even though they have the same products in equal volume. Discuss the various financial/accounting assumptions that could explain the difference in income for two companies’ income with the same products and equal volume.arrow_forward
- Which of the following statements regarding financial ratios is most CORRECT? Group of answer choices: Industry average ratios are good benchmarks to compare performance for all firms in the same industry. Ratios are by themselves good indicators of a firm's strong or weak position. Electric utilities generally have low debt ratios because of their more stable revenue streams. Ratio analysis works better for conglomerate frms than for single-business firms. None of these statements are correct.arrow_forwardOne of the most important applications of ratio analysis is to compare a company’s performance with that of other players in the industry or to compare its own performance over a period of time. Such analyses are referred to as a comparative analysis and trend analysis, respectively. A common size analysis requires the representation of financial statement data in terms of a single financial statement item (or base account or value). What is the most commonly used base item for a common size income statement? Total assets Total liabilities Stockholders’ equity Net sales Suppose you are conducting an analysis of the financial performance of Cold Goose Metal Works Inc. over the past three years. The company did not issue new shares during these three years and has faced some operational difficulties. The company has thus pilot tested some new forecasting strategies for better operations management. You have collected the company’s relevant financial…arrow_forwardWhat are the limitations to using financial ratio analysis [such as profitability ratios, liquidity ratios, gearing ratios, and investment ratios] computed from the financial statements of a company. What other alternatives could have been used to decide on the performance and investment-worthiness of a company.arrow_forward
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