Fabulous Reading Balance Sheets For Dummies
Reading a balance sheet will help someone know how much asset a business owns and how much it owes to outsiders.
Reading balance sheets for dummies. When you read through your businesss balance sheet like the balance sheet shown in this figure you may notice that it doesnt have a punch line like the income statement does. A balance sheet consists of three components. The balance sheet is separated with assets on one side and liabilities and owners equity on the other.
A sample balance sheet for the fictitious Springfield Psychological Services at December 31 2004 and 2003 is presented below as an example. Read the liabilities on the balance sheet. Understand Current Assets Current assets are items of value owned by your business that will be converted into cash within one year.
The two sides of the equation must always balance. Read the equity on the balance sheet. Assets liabilities shareholders fundsThe assets side of the balance sheet includes.
In essence the balance sheet tells investors what a business owns assets what it owes liabilities and how much investors have invested equity. Its assets also known as debits. What Does a Balance Sheet Tell You About a Business.
The balance sheet is an annual financial snapshot. Lets go over these one-by-one. It is also a condensed version of the account balances within a company.
A balance sheet depicts the businesss assets and liabilities along with their respective values as at the end of an accounting period. You cant look at just one item on the balance sheet murmur an appreciative ah-ha and rush home to. Reading and understanding the balance sheet of the company includes consideration of the accounting equation which states that the sum of the total liabilities and the owners capital is equal to the companys total assets knowing different types of assets shareholders equity and liabilities of the company and analyzing the balance sheet using ratios.