Using ratios to analyse companies
Introduction|
Course|
Q&As |
Recommended reading|
Quiz |
Introduction
Context
The workshop focuses on specific ratios and does not consider the interpretation of a set of accounts generally. We recommend that after this tutorial you also take the 'Interpreting Company Reports and Accounts' tutorial which looks at the 'soft' signals from a set of accounts.
Prior knowledge required
You need a reasonably enquiring mind and a positive approach to numbers. You might need to have a calculator to hand.
Contents
- Why bother with ratios?
- A word of warning
- The P&L and the balance sheet
- Grouping the ratios
- Profit margin
- Return on capital employed (ROCE)
- Sales as a multiple of capital employed
- Stockturn
- Debt collection
- Payment of trade creditors
- Cash-to-cash cycle
- Gearing
- Interest cover
- Current ratio
- Quick ratio (acid test)
- Earnings ratios
- Dividend ratios
- Other ratios
- Sources of information
- Conclusion