How to read a financial report : wringing cash flow and other vital signs out of the numbers

**How to Read a Financial Report Seventh Edition**Financial reports provide vital information to investors, lenders, and managers. Yet, the financial statements in a financial report seem to be written in a foreign language that only accountants can understand. This Seventh Edition of How to Read a Financial Report breaks through the language barrier, clears away the fog, and offers a plain-English user's guide to financial reports. The book helps you get a sure-handed grip on the profit, cash flow, and financial condition of any business.Here's what's new in the __Seventh Edition:__* Discussion of the transition to international accounting and financial reporting standards* A streamlined centerpiece exhibit used throughout the book to explain connections between the three financial statements* An integrated section on analyzing profit, cash flow, and solvency for investors, lenders, and managers (now Part Two in this edition)* Reflection on... "Intimidated by columns of figures? At a loss when it comes to distinguishing "cash" from "retained earnings"? Worse yet, can't tell if a company's in a slump or an upturn? If making sense of financial statements is the bane of your business life, then look no further." "How to Read a Financial Report has been teaching otherwise savvy professionals - managers, entrepreneurs, lenders, lawyers, and investors - just what all those numbers mean. Beginning with the fundamentals of financial reporting, the Fourth Edition brings all those numbers and jargon down to size, letting you in on the basic rules of accounting. You'll not only learn the key to understanding a financial report, but you'll discover how the three basic financial statements - the balance sheet, the income statement, and the cash flow statement - are all closely tied together and represent different pieces of a company's total financial well-being." "A realistic yet straightforward set of financial statements for a fictitious company is the touchstone throughout the book. This master exhibit shows the integrated finances for the company by linking each statement. A visual guide to the intricacies of financial accounting, this Fourth Edition enables you to trace the causes and effects of cash flow and helps you pick apart a financial statement line by line." "Fully revised to reflect the new financial realities of the '90s, the Fourth Edition contains a candid look at the impact of recent regulations on financial reporting as well as the Financial Accounting Standards Board statement affecting Other Postretirement Employee Benefits (OPEBs) and other issues of the day. You'll also learn what exactly went wrong in the '80s and how you can protect yourself from new forms of fraudulent financial reporting that may surface in the '90s." How to Read a Financial Report Seventh Edition Financial reports provide vital information to investors, lenders, and managers. Yet, the financial statements in a financial report seem to be written in a foreign language that only accountants can understand. This Seventh Edition of How to Read a Financial Report breaks through the language barrier, clears away the fog, and offers a plain-English user's guide to financial reports. The book helps you get a sure-handed grip on the profit, cash flow, and financial condition of any business. Here's what's new in the Seventh Edition: - Discussion of the transition to international accounting and financial reporting standards - A streamlined centerpiece exhibit used throughout the book to explain connections between the three financial statements - An integrated section on analyzing profit, cash flow, and solvency for investors, lenders, and managers (now Part Two in this edition) - Reflection on financial reporting and auditing in the post-Enron era "What distinguishes Tracy's efforts from other manuals is an innovative structure that visually ties together elements of the balance sheet and income statement by tracing where and how a line item in one affects an entry in another." 'Inc. "An excellent job of showing how to separate the wheat from the chaff without choking in the process." 'The Miami Herald "A wonderful book organized logically and written clearly. For a Fool to be an effective investor, she has to know her way around a financial statement. This book will help you develop that skill. It's the clearest presentation of many accounting concepts that this Fool has seen." 'Selena Maranjian, The Motley Fool If you're someone who works with financial reports or needs to understand them - but have neither the time nor the need for an indepth knowledge of accounting - this book will help you cut through the maze of accounting information to find out what those numbers really mean. It steers you quickly and painlessly through the basic accounting concepts and line-by-line explanations of the basic financial statement. Complete with a visual guide that leads you through the intricacies of financial reporting, How to Read a Financial Report shows you how the three essential parts of every financial report - the balance sheet, the income statement, and the cash flow statement - fit together and what it all means to you and your company.

This indispensable key to extracting useful information from financial reports allows non-CPAs to make sense of balance sheets, income statements, and cash flow statements, and shows what these mean in relation to each other. Also covers tax reform, depreciation methods, spotting fraudulent reporting, and recent FASB rulings.

Starting with Cash Flows Introducing the Balance Sheet and Income Statement Profit Isn't Everything Sales Revenue Accounts Receivable Cost of Goods Sold Expense Inventory Inventory Accounts Payable Operating Expenses Accounts Payable Operating Expenses Accrued Expenses (Payable) Operating Expenses Prepaid Expenses Property, Plant and Equipment Depreciation Accumulated Depreciation Interest Expense Accrued Expenses (Payable) Income Tax Expense Income Tax Payable Net Income (Profit) Retained Earnings Cash Flow Analysis of Profit Other Cash Flows Financing and Investing Activities Growth, Decline, and Cash Flow Footnotes The Fine Print in Financial Reports The Cost of Credibility Audits by CPAs Manipulating the Numbers (Or, Cooking the Books) Making and Changing the Rules The Cost of Goods Sold Conundrum Accelerated or Straight-Line Depreciation? Ratios for Creditors and Investors A Few Parting Comments Index. "In addition to the revisions contained in earlier editions, such as the Financial Accounting Standard on the cash flow statement and changes in the CPA auditor's report, the book retains its highly accessible format of easy-to-use spreadsheets and clear graphics." "Essential for the manager responsible for bottom-line business decisions such as setting sales prices and creating profit improvement strategies, or investors and lenders interested in assessing a firm's financial health, How to Read a Financial Report is the first line of defense against regrettable and costly financial blunders. For anyone who comes in contact with financial reports but doesn't have the time to find out exactly what those numbers mean, How to Read a Financial Report is a clear, line-by-line examination of every one of them."--Jacket Hidden somewhere among all the numbers in a financial report is vitally important information about where a company has been and where it is going. This is especially relevant in light of the current corporate scandals. The sixth edition of this bestselling book is designed to help anyone who works with financial reports--but has neither the time nor the need for an in-depth knowledge of accounting--cut through the maze of accounting information to find out what those numbers really mean. Business mangers, lenders, and investors, quite rightly, focus on cash flows.