Assignment Task:
You have been appointed to the financial team of a substantial company. You have been asked by the Board to prepare an analytical review of the financial position and reporting of a UK based or non-UK based company, listed on an internationally recognized Stock Exchange and using the recent published financial statements and other information available, either in the public domain or from within the company.
You MAY choose the standpoint from which this report is made ( competitor, investor, potential acquirer, supplier, customer, landlord or lessess) and, if you do so, should identify this in the introduction to the report. You should NOT choose a private company or, ordinarily, a subsidiary company or division of a larger group. You should also note that, while we do not forbid selection of banks, insurance companies or other financial service businesses, they are almost always subject to different, enhance, forms of regulation, which may often result in specialized forms reporting and disclosure and additional problems of analysis.
Content:
The report should address at least the following: (weightings indicated are for guidance only and need not be reflected precisely in the final word count).
• Critical appraisal of the accounting polices used by the company – are there any features which are unusual, judged against generally accepted practice or ‘industry specific’ usage. This should least consider ‘international’ usage, but may also address national standards if necessary. Any CHANGE in accounting policies should attract particular attention.
• Analysis of the financial strengths and weaknesses revealed by the financial statements, and using appropriate ration analysis as discussed in Units 4 and 5 and chapter 6 of the textbook.
• Review of the market perception of the company in terms of stock price performance and response from the analyst community.
The report should include:
• A key point or executive summary of conclusion ( preferably at the beginning of the report)
• Graphical illustration, where appropriate. ( graphs and tables count a nominal one word for word – count purpose).
• A bibliography of sources of information and theoretical material used. ( not included in the word count).
• Please not the appendices must not exceed 15 pages. If you have substantial financial documents that you wish to include, then refer your tutor to the appropriate website(s).
Please note that you are NOT being asked to produces a marketing or strategic analysis of the selected company- and you will not receive credit for doing so! Neither will credit be given for extensive sections of background material. The principal focus of the report should be weaknesses it reveals. Your work should focus on financial issues and be grounded in the published material report.