Accounting Flashcards
Income Statement
The purpose of this this statement is to show the company’s profitability, which is equal to its revenue net of its costs and expenses.
It starts with net sales at the top (AKA revenue) and goes all the way down to after-tax profits, or net income (to Common), at the bottom.
Cash Flow Statement
The cash flow statement reports the sources of a business’s cash inflows and outflows between two balance sheet dates.
It shows changes in a firm’s investments and financial structure.
It reconciles us from net income to actual change in cash.
Balance Sheet
The balance sheet reports the balance of a company’s assets, liabilities and equity at a precise moment in time. It’s taken as a measure of the financial condition of a business.
Income Statement: Revenue Recognition + Matching Principle
- Revenue recognition: Revenues recognized when goods are delivered or service is performed
- Matching principle: Expenses are matched to revenues
Income Statement Layout
Total revenues -COGS Gross profit -SG&A Operating income -Interest expense \+Interest income Pretax income -Income taxes Net income --> the earnings that accumulate on BS; grow equity (but not actual cash flow)
EBIT
EBIT is calculated by subtracting operating expenses (e.g. COGS, SG&A, R&D, etc.) from revenue.
EBIT is income before the effects of financing and taxes. So, we use EBIT to measure profitability independent of capital structure. Allows for operating comparability.
- note: there may be non-recurring items buried in COGS
Cash Flow Statement
- Reconciles change in cash for the period
- Adjustments to net income to reflect sources and uses of cash
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- Accounts for non-cash expenses
- Accounts for real-cash expenses not included on Income Statement (Dividends and PP&E)
Cash Flow Statement Layout
Start: Net Income
Cash Flow from Operating Activities
-> cash generated from core business activities (add back D&A, factor in change in working capital)
Cash Flow from Investing Activities
-> shows where cash was used for investments (e.g. CapEx)
Cash Flow from Financing Activities
-> reports sources and uses of financing for operating and investing activities
Net change in cash + beg cash balance =
End: Ending cash balance
EBITDA
EBITDA is calculated by adding D&A to EBIT.
EBITDA is a quick proxy for “operating” cash flow.
Weaknesses of EBITDA as a measure of cash flow: doesn’t include changes in working capital (operating), CapEx (operating), addtns to intangibles (investing), interest (financing), taxes (financing), dividends (financing), etc. …. most of these are outflows
Activity Ratios
- measure the company’s efficiency in turning over its assets (more activity, means faster turnover)
- it’s better to turn over assets quickly because that means you are converting them into cash more quickly and increasing cash flow
Liquidity Ratios
- liquidity measures the company’s ability to convert an asset into cash quickly
- assets a co can convert to cash quickly: A/R, inventory, investments / marketable securities
Asset
- something that will result in a future benefit for the company, such as additional cash flow, ability to grow business, or a higher valuation due to IP
Liability + Equity
- a liability (or equity) line item is something that will result in a future obligation for the company, such as a cash payment, delivery of product or service, or cash interest payments
- liability usually related to external parties, whereas equity is usually related to co’s internal operations
Free Cash Flow
Free Cash Flow = Cash Flow from Operations - Capital Expenditures
- everything in a company’s operating activities section is required for its business (earning net income, paying for inventory, collecting receivables, etc.)
- but almost every line item within Investing and Financing Activities is “optional,” except for Capital Expenditures
- FCF lets us quickly and easily assess a company’s ability to generate cash flow from its business, including the cost of servicing its Debt and other long-term funding
Change in Working Capital
- AKA changes in operating assets and liabilities
- Working Capital is a part of a company’s FCF
- we care most about the change. Not WC itself
- The change in WC tells you whether “Cash Flow” is likely to be greater than or less than the company’s Net Income, and how much of a difference there may be
- Working Capital = Current Operational Assets - Current Operational Liabilities (excludes Cash, Financial Investments, and Debt)
- Change in Working Capital = Old Working Capital - New Working Capital
- if change is negative, it reduces Cash Flow, reducing co’s valuation; if it’s positive, it increases Cash Flow, increasing co’s valuation
- the change in WC as a percentage of Revenue tells you how significant it is for the company’s “cash flow”
Four Primary Groups of Financial Metrics
1) “Cash Flow Proxy” Metrics - EBIT and EBITDA
2) Credit Metrics - Leverage Ratio (Total Debt / EBITDA) and the Coverage Ratio (EBITDA / Interest Expense) and their variations
3) Return-Based Metrics - Return on Equity (ROE), Return on Assets (ROA), and Return on Invested Capital (ROIC)
4) Cash Conversion Metrics - Days Sales Outstanding, Days Inventory Outstanding, Days Payable Outstanding, and the Cash Conversion Cycle
Cash Flow Proxy Metrics
EBIT
- Operating Income on the Income Statement, adjusted for any non-recurring or one-time charges (e.g. Impairments or Write-Downs if they’ve affected Operating Income)
- Proxy for Free Cash Flow because both metrics reflect some or all of the impact of Capital Expenditures
- Gives you a co’s core, recurring business profitability before the impact of capital structure and taxes
EBITDA
- start with EBIT, then add back D&A, taken directly from Cash Flow Statement (NOT Income Statement)
- ignores CapEx and its after-tax effects (Depreciation)
- Gives you co’s core, recurring business cash flow from operations before the impact of capital structure and taxes
Credit Metrics
Leverage Ratio (Total Debt / EBITDA)
- tells you how much Debt co has, relative to its ability to repay that Debt
- higher numbers riskier
Interest Coverage Ratio (EBITDA / Interest Expense)
- tells you how easily company could pay for its current interest expense on Debt
- higher is better bc indicates there’s more of a buffer in case business suffers and profits fall
Returns-Based Metrics
Return on Assets, Return on Equity, and Return on Invested Capital all measure how efficiently a company is using it’s “capital” (debt, debt + equity, etc.) or assets to generate income
ROE = Net Income (to Common) / Average (Common) Shareholders’ Equity
ROA = Net Income (to Common) / Average Total Assets
ROIC = NOPAT / Average Invested Capital
Cash Conversion Metrics
- measure how quickly it takes a company to collect receivables, sell inventory, or pay the amounts it owes to suppliers
Days Sales Outstanding = Accounts Receivable / Revenue * Days in Year
Days Inventory Outstanding = Inventory / COGS * Days in Year
Days Payable Outstanding = Accounts Payable / COGS * Days in Year
CCC = DIO + DSO - DPO
Approach Financial Statements in following order when answering accounting questions:
1) Explain how Income Statement changes, if at all
2) Explain how Cash Flow Statement changes, if at all (including changes in Deferred Taxes)
3) Explain how the Balance Sheet changes and why it still balances
Rule of thumb: Changes to Cash Items on the Income Statement
- Nothing on the Cash Flow Statement changes except for Net Income at the top and Cash at the bottom
Rule of thumb: Changes to Operational Items on the Balance Sheet
e.g. Inventory, AR, AP, Accrued Expenses, Prepaid Expenses, Deferred Revenue, known collectively as “Working Capital”
- changes to these items will affect something on Balance Sheet besides Cash and CSE
Ask: Has co delivered the product or service? Or, has someone else delivered something to the co that it used in this period?
If yes, something on Income Statement will change. If not, nothing will change.
Rule of thumb: Changes to Non-Cash Items on the Income Statement
e.g. Depreciation, Amortization, Stock-Based Compensation, Asset Write-Downs
Pre-Tax income and Net Income change, but you reverse the change on Cash Flow Statement since it’s non-cash
Cash and CSE change, and then something else on the Balance Sheet also changes
Rule of thumb: Changes to Leases on the Balance Sheet
For all leases under all accounting systems, when the lease is first signed, the Lease Asset and the Lease Liability both increase by the same amount on the Balance Sheet.
For Operating Leases under U.S. GAAP, companies record a simple Rental Expense on the Income Statement, but they still “calculate” Interest Expense, Depreciation, and Lease Principal Repayment. Interest Expense = Discount Rate * Lease Liability. Depreciation = Cash Lease Expense - Interest Expense. And Lease Principal Repayment = Straight-Line Rental Expense on IS - Interest Expense.
Rule of thumb: Changes to Non-Operational Balance Sheet or Cash Flow Statement Items
- no immediate Income Statement changes
- simple cash inflow or outflow on Cash Flow Statement, and both Cash and corresponding Balance Sheet line item change
How can you tell whether or not an item should appear on the Cash Flow Statement?
Include an item on CFS if:
1) It has already appeared on the Income Statement and affected Net Income, but it’s non-cash, so you need to adjust to determine the company’s real cash flow
2) It has NOT appeared on the Income Statement, and it DOES affect the company’s cash balance
Deferred Tax Assets, Deferred Tax Liabilities
Both DTAs and DTLs relate to temporary differences between the book basis and the tax basis of assets and liabilities. Deferred Tax Assets represent potential future cash-tax savings for the company, while Deferred Tax Liabilities represent additional cash-tax payments in the future. DTLs often arise because of different Depreciation methods, such as when companies accelerate Depreciation for tax purposes, reducing their tax burden in the near term but increasing it in the future. They may also be created in acquisitions. DTAs may arise when the company loses money (i.e., negative Pre-Tax Income) in the current
period and, therefore, accumulates a Net Operating Loss (NOL). They are also created when the
company deducts an expense for Book-Tax purposes but cannot deduct it at the same time for Cash-Tax purposes (e.g., Stock-Based Compensation).
Items that always appear on Income Statement
- Revenue
- COGS
- Operating Expenses
- Depreciation, Amortization
- Stock-Based Compensation
- Interest, Gains / Losses
- Write-Downs
- Other Income-Expenses
EPS
EPS = Net Income / Weighted Average Shares Outstanding
EPS is an extremely important metric of a company’s value: it represents the profit generated by the company for each shareholder. It will be used extensively when working through valuation techniques such as Comparable Company Analysis and Precedent Transactions.
Operating Assets, Operating Liabilities
Assets and Liabilities generated by the company as part of the functioning of its business operations.
Key Asset Items
- Cash
- Short-Term Investments
- Accounts Receivable
- Prepaid Expense
- Inventory
- PP&E
- Other Intangible Assets
- Long-Term Investments
- Goodwill
Accounts Receivable
Company has recorded revenue on Income Statement but hasn’t received cash yet.
Prepaid Expense
Company has paid expenses in cash but hasn’t recorded as expenses on the Income Statement yet. (Record on IS when they go down.)
Key Liability Items
- Revolver
- Accounts Payable
- Accrued Expenses
- Deferred Revenue
- Deferred Tax Liability
- Long Term Debt
Goodwill
The premium the company pays over other company’s Shareholders’ Equity when acquiring it