For This Assignment, Continue What You Had Done
For This Assignment You Are To Continue On What You Had Done In
For this assignment, you are to extend your previous analysis from the prior paper, focusing on specific financial ratios and insights related to Biscuits. Your continuation must include deeper evaluations of the company's ability to meet current liabilities, long-term survival prospects, dividend policies, and profitability ratios. Ensure your Turnitin similarity percentage remains below 20%. Your expanded analysis should incorporate the balance sheet and income statement data, providing comprehensive and thoroughly developed paragraphs (3-5 sentences each).
Specifically, for the section on current liabilities, analyze whether Biscuits can meet its short-term obligations by calculating and interpreting the current ratio and acid-test ratio, considering current assets and current liabilities (Easton & Sommers, 2018). Next, evaluate Biscuits’ long-term sustainability by examining debt ratios and debt-to-equity ratios derived from balance sheet and income statement data, assessing the company's ability to survive over extended periods (Easton & Sommers, 2018). Additionally, analyze dividend payment policies by determining the dividend yield and dividend payout ratio based on the company's financial statements.
Further, expand upon the profitability ratios discussed earlier, offering a comprehensive analysis and posing relevant questions to Curtis that would enhance understanding of the company's financial health. Your full paragraphs should thoroughly explain each ratio and its implications for Biscuits, supported by appropriate calculations and references.
Paper For Above instruction
In assessing the financial health of Biscuits, it is vital to understand whether the company can meet its short-term obligations. The analysis begins with calculating the current ratio, which compares current assets to current liabilities. A current ratio greater than 1 indicates that Biscuits has sufficient short-term assets to cover its obligations. For example, if the company's current assets are $300,000 and current liabilities are $150,000, the current ratio would be 2.0, suggesting favorable liquidity. Similarly, the acid-test (or quick) ratio excludes inventory from assets, providing a more conservative view of liquidity. If the acid-test ratio is above 1, it confirms Biscuits' ability to cover immediate liabilities without relying on inventory sales (Easton & Sommers, 2018). These ratios collectively suggest whether Biscuits can sustain its short-term financial commitments without liquidity crises.
Long-term viability pertains to Biscuits’ ability to survive economic downturns and maintain competitiveness over time. Analyzing leverage ratios such as the debt ratio and debt-to-equity ratio offers insights into the company's solvency and financial stability. The debt ratio, calculated as total debt divided by total assets, indicates the proportion of assets financed through debt. A high debt ratio might imply greater financial risk, but it could also suggest aggressive growth strategies. The debt-to-equity ratio compares total liabilities to shareholders' equity, assessing the leverage used by the company. For instance, a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.5 indicates that for every dollar of equity, Biscuits has 50 cents of debt, reflecting moderate leverage. Interpreting these ratios helps determine whether Biscuits can sustain operations amid economic fluctuations and meet its long-term obligations (Easton & Sommers, 2018).
Dividend policies are crucial for understanding how Biscuits rewards its shareholders and manages its retained earnings. To evaluate its dividend policy, calculating the dividend yield, which is annual dividends per share divided by market price per share, provides an idea of the return on investment. For example, if the company pays $2 in dividends per share and the stock price is $50, the dividend yield would be 4%. The dividend payout ratio, which is dividends paid divided by net income, shows the proportion of earnings distributed to shareholders. If Biscuits has net income of $1 million and pays out $200,000 as dividends, the payout ratio is 20%, indicating a conservative approach to dividend payments. Analyzing these ratios reveals how the company balances rewarding shareholders with funding growth or debt reduction (Easton & Sommers, 2018).
Regarding profitability ratios, further analysis involves examining measures such as return on assets (ROA) and return on equity (ROE). ROA indicates how efficiently Biscuits uses its assets to generate profit, calculated as net income divided by total assets. If net income is $500,000 and total assets are $5 million, the ROA would be 10%. ROE measures the return generated on shareholders’ investments, calculated as net income divided by shareholders' equity. For instance, if net income is $500,000 and equity is $2.5 million, the ROE would be 20%. These ratios help assess how effectively the company utilizes its resources to generate earnings and create value for shareholders. Questions that Curtis might consider include whether Biscuits has sufficient profit margins relative to industry standards or if it can improve operational efficiency to enhance profitability (Easton & Sommers, 2018).
In conclusion, a comprehensive financial analysis of Biscuits must encompass liquidity, solvency, dividend policies, and profitability. By thoroughly examining these ratios and providing insightful interpretations, stakeholders can make informed decisions about the company’s current standing and future prospects. Analyzing whether Biscuits can meet short-term liabilities, sustain operations long-term, and effectively reward shareholders offers a nuanced understanding of its financial health. Continuous review and comparison of these key financial metrics will help manage risks and capitalize on growth opportunities in a competitive market environment.
References
- Easton, P. & Sommers, G. (2018). Financial Accounting. Pearson.
- Brigham, E. F., & Houston, J. F. (2019). Fundamentals of Financial Management. Cengage Learning.
- Ross, S. A., Westerfield, R. W., & Jaffe, J. (2021). Corporate Finance. McGraw-Hill Education.
- Gibson, C. H. (2020). Financial Statement Analysis. Cengage Learning.
- Higgins, R. C. (2022). Analysis for Financial Management. McGraw-Hill Education.
- White, G. I., Sondhi, A. C., & Fried, D. (2018). The Analysis and Use of Financial Statements. Wiley.
- Ross, S. A., & Allen, R. (2020). Financial Management: Principles and Applications. South-Western College Pub.
- Hirt, G., & Block, S. (2019). Fundamentals of Investment Management. McGraw-Hill Education.
- Watson, D., & Head, A. (2021). Financial Accounting: an International Introduction. Pearson.
- Penman, S. H. (2019). Financial Statement Analysis and Security Valuation. McGraw-Hill Education.