Management’s Discussion and Analysis
Leonie Rhoden
Liberty University
Management’s Discussion and Analysis or as it’s more frequently referred to as the MD&A. The MD&A discusses the company’s year of operation and finances through the eyes of management. The MD&A also analyses and discusses the company’s future goals and actions. The main purpose of the MD&A is to offer stock holders and investors insight into the company’s finances and management performance. Because the MD&A is a section in the company’s annual report it helps to hold the company and management more accountable for their actions.
Even though the MD&A is a requirement from the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) it is important to remember that investors
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We saw rapid growth in kids merchandise and here’s why
Emphasis the main things first this would be considered Top-down analysis.
Answer the most important question: Why? Whether it’s the SEC, the directors or investors they will all want to know the reason Why? Sales were up 10% - why were sales up? The quarter was down based on foreign currencies – why did this affect our quarter?
Combine your charts/graphs. Don’t just have one chart showing this year’s Net Assets and a separate chart showing the previous, combine them for easier reading. On the SEC’s website under Financial Reporting Manual Topic 9 it goes into specific details as to how and what to include on the MD&A. The three main objectives are as follows
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to provide a narrative explanation of the company’s financial statement that enables the investors to see the company through the eyes of management
b. to enhance the overall financial disclosure and provide the context within which financial information should be analyzed.
c. to provide information about the quality of, and potential variability of, a company’s earnings and cash flow so that investors can ascertain the likelihood that past performance is indicative of future performance. From here the page breaks down more as to what is required in the MD&A. It states what is required and even in some instances how to word the information. It’s like a manual of how management is to prepare the MD&A and consistently reminds management that this information will also be for the investors.
The MD&A is report that you may also say helps to keep investors or to attract potential investors. Other than discussing the company’s previous year the MD&A also explains the future endeavors of the company. Management can explain how the company is positioned in the market with their goods or services and just how they plan to grow sales to get a greater market share whether it’s by increasing production or opening new facilities. While they still have to remember to answer the most pertinent question –
11. Investors and creditors are particularly interested in this financial statement because it tells them what is happening to the company’s most important resource?
The requirements of the applicable financial reporting framework relevant to accounting estimates, including related disclosures
To help to understand the changes in assets and asset sources which are not readily evident in the income statement or financial statement.
The financial statements are showing that the firm is fiscally sound. This helps executives to capitalize on new opportunities in order to increase the company's earnings. For example, three important areas which are showing how the firm is enhancing their profits margins are in the sales, net earnings and dividends per common shareholder from 2010 to 2012. ("Built to Deliver," 2012)
The financial information is a very important matter in a company success. Allow them to see if they have been successful in the past, in the present and help them to predict a future performance of you company.
The ______ provides a financial summary of the firm 's operating results during a specified period.
All information is conveyed in monetary terms. Management accounting is generally a detailed account of a specific view of the company using both monetary and non-monetary sources. It does not follow prescribed guidelines and utilises past information but is also forward-looking. Such reports are generated as needed.
The quality of earnings is the most important aspect for analyst when reviewing a business’s financial statements. This import also for managers, employees, and investors as the financial statements of a
The Memorandum and Articles of Association (“M&A”) of a company are the constitutional documents of a company. The M&A are important documents as they set out and regulate among other things the objects of the company and the manner in which the company to be managed.
This increased disclosure is a result of the efforts of the SEC and the FASB. The pronouncements issued by these organizations include many disclosure requirements that are designed to improve the financial reporting process. Numerous reasons can be cited for this increased emphasis on disclosure requirements. Some of the more significant reasons include (a) the complexity of the business environment, (b) the necessity for timely financial information, and (c) the use of accounting as a control and monitoring device. Notes to Financial Statements 3. (S.O. 2) Notes are an integral part of the financial statements of a business enterprise. Although they are normally drafted in somewhat technical language, notes are the accountant 's means of amplifying or explaining the items presented in the main body of the statements. Many of the note disclosures which are common in financial accounting are discussed and presented throughout the text. The more common note disclosures are as follows: a. Significant Accounting Policies. This information is designed to inform the statement reader of the accounting methods used in preparing the information included in the financial statements. Accounting policies of a given entity are the specific accounting principles and methods currently employed and considered most appropriate in the circumstances to present fairly the financial statements of the
Financial statements provide information of value to company officers and various external parties, such as investors and lenders of funds. Publicly owned companies are required to publish general-purpose financial statements that include a balance sheet, income statement, and statement of cash flows. Financial statements issued for external distribution are prepared according to generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP).
II- to determine and find out the extent to which the company’s financial information and transaction are prepared and reported, and
Helping people to make decisions is the objective of financial statement as set out in the Framework (Ruth, P., 2006). The Framework and SAC2 describe that the objective of financial statement is to give information about the financial position, performance and changes in the financial position of an entity that is helpful to improve a wider range of users in making decisions (Picker, R., 2006).
The three main types of financial statements¬—balance sheets, income statements, and statements of cash flows—provide essential information about a firm when tracking a company’s performance. These financial statements are provided and distributed by firms in the form of an annual report. As noted by Ciuhureanu, Baltes, & Gorski (2009), financial statements are essential to business management because “they are the fundamental information means of communication towards users” (p. 166). At a high level, company performance is best monitored through profit and loss values on each financial statement. Closer examination of these three types of financial statements reveals firm-specific details about company performance.
A financial statement is an amalgam of financial records of an entity that comprises of a balance sheet, cash flow statement, P&L, and an income statement. There are many accounts that are present on a financial statement such as cash, liabilities (money owed), investments (passive income), expenses (past, present, and accounting for the future), etc. Each account has the potential to effect another as the individual’s financial statement is dependent on the impact of each account. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was created for the purpose of standardizing financial information that companies would report within the United States. Accounting for both internal and external users are important for the overall long term health of a company and is necessary to self-evaluate and increase public trust into investing.