As a small business owner, maintaining organised financial information is paramount. To achieve this, you’ll rely on four fundamental types of financial statements in accounting. They are income statements, balance sheets, cash flow statements, and owner equity statements.
Simplify your company’s management by grasping the intricacies of these four joint business financial statements. Templates for these statements are readily available for download, facilitating a more straightforward process. Delve deeper into the details of financial statements in accounting and explore additional components of financial reporting to enhance your understanding of the requirements of your accounting team.
Let’s read the four types of financial statements;
1. Income Statement
The income statement provides a snapshot of net income or net loss among the four types of financial reports. This statement meticulously tracks both incoming and outgoing funds. Outgoing funds are termed expenses, while incoming funds are called revenue. If expenses surpass revenue, the income statement will reveal a net loss. The income statement is categorised into distinct sections, including:
- Sales
- Operating expenses
- Non-operating expenses
Operating expenses involve advertising and office space rent, while non-operating expenses can encompass one-time purchases and interest on borrowed funds. Sales cover the total cost of goods sold. Understanding these categories of financial statements in accounting is essential for a comprehensive interpretation of the income statement.
2. Balance Sheet
Think of the balance sheet as a financial snapshot of a company. It displays a company’s assets and liabilities, along with the remaining value for its owners. Imagine it like a balance, where everything on one side (assets) equals everything on the other side (liabilities + equity). It’s like looking at the company’s financial health in one picture.
Assets, such as cash, property, and inventory, are detailed on the left side of the balance sheet, while liabilities and equity are listed on the right. Liabilities encompass obligations like accounts payable and payments on long-term loans. Owners’ or shareholders’ equity is derived by subtracting liabilities from assets, and the balance sheet is aptly named because it adheres to the fundamental equation:
Assets=Liabilities+Shareholders’ Equity
Understanding the balance sheet is vital for a comprehensive grasp of a company’s financial health.
3. Statement of Cash Flow
The statement categorises activities for larger companies into operating, investing, financing, and supplemental information. In contrast, smaller companies simplify it into cash inflows and outflows. The fundamental principle of this statement is to meticulously trace the origins and destinations of cash, providing insights into whether a company is consistently spending more than it earns or vice versa. If cash consistently exceeds net income, the company’s earnings are of “high quality.” Understanding the cash flow of financial statements in accounting is critical to assessing a company’s financial viability.
The statement of cash flow, a crucial part of the four critical financial statements, has a specific job—revealing the path of your cash transactions. While understanding the details of this business financial statement might be tricky without extensive accounting knowledge, its core function is to track where your cash is coming from and where it’s going.
4. Statement of Owner’s Equity
The statement of owner’s equity, one of the significant business financial statements, encapsulates changes in owner’s equity across accounting periods. Comprising key components such as the beginning equity balance, additions and subtractions, and the ending balance, this statement delineates the alterations during a specific period.
Additions and subtractions include net income, dividend payments, and withdrawals. By presenting an overview of changes in owner’s equity, this statement provides stakeholders with valuable knowledge into the financial dynamics and performance of the company. Understanding the statement of owner’s equity is crucial for assessing the impact of various transactions on the owner’s equity over time.
By preparing these income statements, balance sheets, statements of cash flow, and statements of owner’s equity, you provide necessary information to investors and creditors. It gradually helps to gain knowledge of your business’s performance trends. These knowledge empower strategic decision-making and positioning for success.
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