Financial analysis of Community Health Systems and HCA, Inc Assignment

Financial analysis of Community Health Systems and HCA, Inc - Assignment Example There are many reasons for someone to explore a firm’s financial statements. Investors use it to explore potential returns on their capital investment, managers explore to assess performance, and the government reviews them for legal compliance. The final analysis for HCA & CHS will be presented from the prospective of the investor. In order for the investor to understand the return on an investment, he/she must examine the firm’s quality earnings. Quality earnings are different from profit. Profit could mean the firm is just breaking the even point that enables the firm from incurring losses. Maybe the profits are being absorbed by debt. Many firms hide debt in the financial statement notes. Consequently, investors willing to invest in a given organization should not evaluate the viability of the investment from the face value of the financial statements. Assessing a firm’s worth involves a deeper understanding of the firm and its industry. Ratio analyses are ve ry useful in that understanding. In the next few pages, you will find a vertical ratio and horizontal analysis for subject firms. HCA’s financial data was easy to comprehend due to the concise and clear presentation of the consolidated statements. In addition, the accompanying financial notes helped in understanding the origin of the figures in the financial statements. Most of its financial data are easily translated into terminology used in the Excel template. The financial data of HCA was presented in the millions while Community Health Services was listed in the thousands. To make the two firms’ financial statements more comparable, Community Health Services numbers were divided by 1000 to convert it to millions. Cost of goods sold for the firms is actually labeled â€Å"Revenues before the provision for doubtful†. The healthcare industry has a large provision for doubtful

Kellogg's Market analysis Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1000 words

Kellogg's Market analysis - Essay Example This has provided a good opportunity to companies like Kellogg’s. Similar emphasis is being placed on products which can provide good nutritional values and energy and are easily portable. Jaffer (2008) points out that with such considerations gaining ground Kellogg’s has repositioned its K-bar as an energy bar. This bar was traditionally positioned as an alternative to its breakfast cereal line, but now it focuses on the consumer’s demand for more natural energy. The company recorded revenues worth $11,776 million during the FY2007, an increase of 8% over FY2006. The key areas in which Kellogg’s operates has been primarily divided into four major segments like North America, Europe, Latin America, and Asia Pacific. This helps the company in devising segment specific strategies for these geographical regions. For example, in India Kellogg’s launched an SMS advertising campaign to tie in with its offline advertising for corn flake brands (Media Asia, 2004). With use of mobile phones increasing and the growing number of mobile users in the billion strong markets, mobile branding is one of the innovative techniques that are being used by this American MNC. Being a leader in the business, the company has been able to take advantage of its strategic placement and alliance in different markets to successfully experiment with new initiatives. One of the key focus areas for Kellogg’s is the ‘Children segment’. This prompted the company to enter into a multi-year global relationship with Disney in 2002. Some of the st rengths and weaknesses of Kellogg’s can be summarised as follows; Strong Brand Identity: Having a glorious past of more than 100 years Kellogg’s is a well known brand in many parts of the world. The portfolio of product brands offering corn flakes, Keebler, Chocos, Pop-Tarts, Eggo, Cheez-It, Nutri-Grain, Rice Krispies, Special K, Murray, Austin, Morningstar