Preview

Explain The Four Basic Financial Statements

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
297 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Explain The Four Basic Financial Statements
There are four basic financial statements that companies use. They begin with income statement, statement of owner’s equity, balance sheet, and the statement of cash flows. Company’s use income statements to report how much money they have made and how much they have spent over a specified period of time. The statement of owner’s equity is used to report any changes in equity from a company’s net income or net loss, as well as report changes in the owner’s investments and withdrawals over a specified period of time. The balance sheet is used to report a company’s financial position at any point in time. This statement includes information such as what types of assets and their amounts, liabilities, and equity. The statement of cash flows is

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    A Financial Statement can be defined as, “Summary report that shows how a firm has used the funds entrusted to it by its stockholders (shareholders) and lenders, and what is its current financial position” (Business Dictionary, 2011). The Financial information is required for various users to make an informed Decision. “The purpose of financial information is to provide inputs for decision making” (Kimmel, Weygandt, Kieso, 2009, Para 1, p. 6). There are four different parts covered in a Financial Statement; those are Balance Sheet, Income Statement, Retained Earnings Statement, and Statement of Cash flow. The assignment will elaborate the purpose of each statement and differentiate its utility for different…

    • 749 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    These statements are the income statement, the balance sheet, cash flow statement, and statement of owner’s equity.…

    • 814 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    xacc week 1

    • 376 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The four simple financial statements provide a rundown of the monetary activities of a business or corporation. They can be prepared at any point in time and can apply to any time span. All four statements are needed to determine the company growth and profitably. Investor and creditors will use all four statements to determine if the company is a sound investment.…

    • 376 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    There are four significant elements of financial management, “There are four basic financial statements. You can think of them as a set. They include the balance sheet, the statement of revenue and expense, the statement of fund balance or net worth, and the statement of cash flows.” (Baker & Baker, Chapter 4, 2011). Financial manager need to have a balance sheet to review or perform an audit so they can see the debt to income ratio for the organization they are financially responsible for. The statement of revenue and expense provide a clear financial outlook of the organizations financial situation during certain time periods. The significance of the statement of fund balance or net worth is to identify cash and property assets of the organization within a year or other period of time. Last but not least the statement of cash flow is proof of all of the profit by the organization during a certain period of time.…

    • 738 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    * A balance sheet is summary of a company's financial condition at a specific point in time, including assets, liabilities and net worth. It allows the company to know what they have been paying for or what they owe out to people. An income statement is a report that tracks a company’s revenues, gross profits, operating income, and net worth. All businesses need to have revenue in order to establish a good foundation to have their business up and running. A retained earnings statement is the portion of net income not paid out to investors in the business as dividends. If the company earns a profit they have to decide whether or not to invest it or keep it as theirs and distribute it evenly throughout the others in the company. Statement of cash flows provides information about an entity's cash receipts and cash payments during a period. Cash flow statements classify cash receipts and payments according to whether they stem from operating, investing, or financing activities. Assets are any item or items of economic value owned by an individual or corporation, especially that which could be converted to cash. A liability is an obligation that legally binds an individual or company to settle a debt. Comparative statements are financial statements for different periods that allow the comparison of figures to illustrate trends in a company’s performance. Stockholder’s equity is the part of the balance sheet that represents the capital received from investors in exchange for stock donated capital and retained…

    • 264 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    ACC 290 wk 1

    • 551 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The four basic financial statements used in accounting are, the income statement, statement of retained earnings, balance sheet, and statement of cash flows. The income statement “reports the success or failure of the company’s operations for a period “(Kimmel, Weygandt, & Kieso, 2011, p. 11). The company’s revenues accompanied with its expenses are listed on the income statement. Statement of retained earnings “shows the amounts and causes of changes in retained earnings during the period. The period is the same as that covered by the income statement” (Kimmel, Weygandt, & Kieso, 2011, p. 13).…

    • 551 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    The first financial statement is the balance sheet. The balance sheet provides a portrait of the company’s assets and liabilities. The balance sheet is the statement of financial position at a given point (Quick MBA, 2010). The second financial statement, the income statement, reports the revenues, and expenses during the same timeframe as the balance sheet. Revenue is the monies the company is gaining after expenses. The third statement is called the retained earnings statement, which explains changed in retained earnings. The retained earnings are changed by the company’s income and dividends. The retained earnings statement uses information form the income statement, which changes the financial information on the balance sheet. The final financial statement is the statement of cash flows. The statement of cash flows shows where the business obtained cash during a period of time and how that cash was used (Kimmel, Accounting, 3/e).…

    • 910 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    ACC 561 Week 1 paper

    • 1112 Words
    • 5 Pages

    There are four major financial statements that investors, creditors, accountants, CEO’s, and the like study when looking at the financial health of a business. They are income statements, retained earnings statements, balance sheets, and statement of cash flow. Each financial statement has a unique use and purpose in business, which will be explained throughout the following assignment.…

    • 1112 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Acc 306

    • 907 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Financial Statements – Balance Sheet, Income Statement, Statement of Cash flows, and statement of changes in stockholders’ equity.…

    • 907 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    The purpose of balance sheets is to provide users with the current financial position of a business based on what it owns and owes (Kimmel, Weygandt, & Kieso, 2010). For instance, creditors analyze balance sheets to determine the likelihood a debt will be repaid (Kimmel, Weygandt, & Kieso, 2010). Income statements provide a summary of gains, losses, revenues, expenses, net income, and net loss of a business for a specific period (Hillstrom & Hillstrom, 2002). The purpose of income statements is for users such as investors to predict future profitability of a business to determine whether to buy or sell stock invested in a specific business (Kimmel, Weygandt, & Kieso, 2010). Retained earnings statements show the amounts and causes of change in net income retained in a business during a period of time (Kimmel, Weygandt, & Kieso, 2010). The purpose of retained earnings statements is to determine how much of a company’s profit is lost in paying dividends to shareholders (Kimmel, Weygandt, & Kieso, 2010). Users can determine whether to invest or not invest in a company that pays high dividends. Cash flow statements summarize a business 's cash payments and receipts relating to its operating, financing, and investing activities during a particular period (Hillstrom & Hillstrom, 2002). The purpose of cash flow statements is to provide users with information about cash payments and receipts to determine how a company is obtaining and using its most important resource, money (Kimmel, Weygandt, & Kieso, 2010). These financial statements are key components for internal and external users to make economic…

    • 1002 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    The financial statements most frequently provided are (1) the balance sheet, (2) the income statement, (3) the statement of cash flows, and (4) the statement of owners' or stockholders' equity. Note disclosures are an integral part of each financial statement.…

    • 340 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    You have explained the four financial statements in a way readers could easily understand. I agree with you that all four statements are important to a business because it shows company’s detailed financial performance and status. In addition, other investors and creditors use these statements to determine if a company earns good profit.…

    • 55 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The four basic financial statements are as follow balance sheet, income statement, statement of retained earnings, and statement of cash flows. These four financial statements are the basic statements normally prepared by profit-making organizations for use by investors, creditors, and other external decision makers. These are the main financial statements that all company’s use to follow how the business is doing threw out the year and each quarter of the facial year.…

    • 809 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Financial Statements

    • 320 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The third PhxKlips viewed was “Financial Statements.” There are four financial statements to work with; Balance Sheets, Income Statements, Retained Earnings Statements, and Statement of Cash Flows. Balance sheets let you have a quick review of what assets, liabilities, and equity were distributed within the accounting period. Income statements show the business whether they made a profit or not. Retained earnings statement shows what the company decides to retain for them, after everything else is paid. The statement of cash flows shows what the cash receipts and cash payments were in the accounting period, and shows how much cash is available.…

    • 320 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Publicly traded companies send out documentation of their financial circumstances to their shareholders so that the shareholders can get an idea of how well the company is doing. This documentation typically includes a cash flow statement, which breaks down the cash inflow and outflow and shows the net change in cash flow, which can be positive or negative. The cash flow statement typically includes operating, financing, and investing activities, each of which can be positive or negative.…

    • 402 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays