Question

The purpose of this assignment is to research and review the annual report for a selected company.

Throughout the course you will be applying what you learn about the principles and practices of financial accounting by completing an ongoing project based upon a Fortune 500 company traded on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) or National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (NASDAQ). The project will include six assignments, each focusing on the analysis of financial information from various parts of the company's financial statements.

Using the topic materials, select a Fortune 500 company as the focus for your project. The company you select must sell a product and carry inventory on its balance sheet.

Access a copy of the company's annual report, known as a Form 10-K. This information can typically be located on the company website under "Investor Relations," or on the SEC website EDGAR. Read through the Form 10-K to become familiar with the company.

Conduct additional research to locate a recent press release or article related to the company's current or future financial performance. Read the press release/article and be prepared to discuss it in your assignment deliverable.  

For this assignment, provide a 500-750 words count company overview that addresses the following information related to the company you have selected.

1. Describe the company, including business sector, product(s) sold, competitors, and the geographic area where business is conducted.
2. Discuss cyclicality associated with the company's product sales and any other information relevant to the particular business or its industry.
3. Discuss whether the company is using generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) or International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) as its standard for financial reporting, and explain how you can tell which method is being employed based upon your review of the Form 10-K.
4. Summarize the information from the press release/article and explain why this information is significant for the company. Focus on current and future financial implications and how the company's financial performance might be influenced.

Answer 1

A 10-K is a comprehensive report filed annually by a publicly-traded company about its financial performance and is required by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The report contains much more detail than a company's annual report, which is sent to its shareholders before an annual meeting to elect company directors.

Some of the information a company is required to document in the 10-K includes its history, organizational structure, financial statements, earnings per share, subsidiaries, executive compensation, and any other relevant data.

The SEC requires this report to keep investors aware of a company's financial condition and to allow them to have enough information before they buy or sell shares in the corporation, or before investing in the firm’s corporate bonds.

The 10-K includes five distinct sections:

• Business. This provides an overview of the company’s main operations, including its products and services (i.e., how it makes money).
• Risk factors. These outline any and all risks the company faces or may face in the future. The risks are typically listed in order of importance.
• Selected financial data. This section details specific financial information about the company over the last five years. This section presents more of a near-term view of the company’s recent performance.
• Management’s discussion and analysis of financial condition and results of operations. Also known as MD&A, this gives the company an opportunity to explain its business results from the previous fiscal year. This section is where the company can tell its story in its own words.
• Financial statements and supplementary data. This includes the company’s audited financial statements including the income statement, balance sheets, and statement of cash flows. A letter from the company’s independent auditor certifying the scope of their review is also included in this section.