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CH/Test-Bank-for-Financial-Statement-
Analysis-and-Valuation-3rd-Edition-by-Easton
Module 1
Framework for Analysis and
Valuation
True/False
Answer: True
Rationale: While both shareholders and bankers are interested in all the information companies
provide, shareholders care about more about a companys profitability and bankers care more about
solvency and creditworthiness.
Answer: False
Rationale: Companies provide electronic versions of quarterly financial statements to the SEC, which
posts them to the Internet for the public to access them.
Answer: False
Rationale: Demand for information extends to many users; the regulators such as the SEC and the
IRS are only one class of users.
Answer: False
Rationale: Quarterly reports do not need to be audited.
Answer: False
Rationale: The accounting equation requires total assets to equal total liabilities plus stockholders
equity. That does not imply, however, that liability and equity accounts relate directly to specific
assets.
Answer: False
Rationale: The statement is reversed: A balance sheet shows a companys position at a point in time,
whereas an income statement, statement of equity, and statement of cash flows show its position
over a period of time.
Answer: True
Rationale: The accounting equation is Assets = Liabilities + Equity. This relation must always hold.
Answer: False
Rationale: The statement contains two errors. First, net income does not include any dividends during
the period; these are a distribution of profits and not part of its calculation. Second, the income
statement is prepared on an accrual basis and thus includes expenses incurred (as opposed to paid).
Answer: False
Rationale: A statement of cash flows reports on cash flows for operating, investing, and financing
activities over a period of time.
Answer: True
Rationale: The statement of stockholders equity reports on changes in the accounts that make up
stockholders equity. This includes contributed capital, retained earnings, and treasury stock.
Answer: True
Rationale: Return on Assets is a profitability metric that measures how much profit the company
made for each dollar of assets the company holds on average during the year.
Answer: True
Rationale: Return on Assets = Net Income / Average Assets. This is the disaggregation of the ROA
into its components
Answer: False
Rationale: Asset turnover is an efficiency metric. The higher the turnover, the more efficient the
company is with its assets and thus, the more profitable. Algebraically, ROA = PM AT. Company A
above is less profitable: 15% 1.2 = 18% whereas Company Bs ROA is 15% 1.5 = 22.5%.
Answer: True
Rationale: By systematically considering these five business forces, we can gain better insights from
financial statements.
Answer: False
Rationale: The statement is reversed: A clean audit report asserts among other things that (a)
management has prepared all necessary financial statements and (b) the auditor has expressed its
opinion that they are prepared in conformity with GAAP.
Answer: E
Rationale: All of these parties would use the financial statements, albeit in different ways and for
different purposes.
Answer: B
Rationale: Reg FD reads as follows: Whenever an issuer discloses any material nonpublic
information regarding that issuer, the issuer shall make public disclosure of that information . . .
simultaneously, in the case of an intentional disclosure; and . . . promptly, in the case of a non-
intentional disclosure.
Answer: A
Rationale: A balance sheet lists amounts for assets, liabilities and equity at a point in time.
Answer: D and E
Rationale: The balance sheet reports assets (including property, plant and equipment), liabilities
(including nonowner financing) and equity. Sales and Cost of Goods Sold appear on the income
statement.
Answer: B
Rationale: Net income reflects the companys revenue minus expenses for the given period. Net
cash flow represents the amount of money received (spent) on operating, investing and financing
activities for the given period. These values are rarely the same.
Answer: A, C, and D
Rationale: Statement (b) is incorrect the statement of cash flows reports on financing activities that
are reflected on the balance sheet. Statement (e) is incorrect the balance sheet reports on a
companys assets and liabilities at a point in time
What did Goodyear report for Retained earnings at December 31, 2011?
A) $1,624 million
B) $1,209 million
C) $ 523 million
D) $2,833 million
E) There is not enough information to determine the answer.
Answer: E
Rationale: To determine the balance in retained earnings at the end of the year we must also know
the amount of dividends (if any) paid by the company during the year.
What was American Airlines Total liabilities and Stockholders Equity at December 31, 2011?
A) $23,589 million
B) $32,626 million
C) $37,081 million
D) $ 4,455 million
E) There is not enough information to determine the answer.
Answer: A
Rationale: Assets = Liabilities + Stockholders Equity. Assets = $23,589 so this is the total of liabilities
and equity combined.
Answer: C
Rationale: Assets = Liabilities + Stockholders Equity. $7,360.4 = Liabilities + $4,387.3.
Therefore, Liabilities = $2,973.1 on October 2, 2011.
Answer: D
Rationale: Assets = Liabilities + Stockholders Equity. Assets = $2,125.6 + $1,547.3.
Therefore, Assets= $3,672.9
Answer: B
Rationale: Nonowner financing for Kohls assets is provided from liabilities (the shareholders are the
owners). $7,586 / $14,094 = 54%.
Topic: Balance Sheet Numerical calculations required (more challenging requires calculation
of total assets before ratio can be calculated.)
LO: 2
12. In its 2011 annual report, Mattel Inc. reported the following (in millions):
Answer: A
Rationale: Nonowner financing for Mattells assets is provided from liabilities (the shareholders are
the owners). Assets = Liabilities + Equity. Assets = $3,061 + $2,611 = $5,672. $3,061 / $5,672 = 54%.
Sales $22,767
Cost of sales $18,821
Other expenses (excluding cost of sales) $ 3,529
What did Goodyear report for Net income for the year ending December 31, 2011?
A) $ 3,946 million
B) $ (417) million
C) $ 417 million
D) $19,238 million
E) There is not enough information to determine the answer.
Answer: C
Rationale: Sales Cost of sales Other expenses = Net income
$22,767 $18,821 $3,529 = $417.
What did Intel report for Cost of goods sold during 2007?
A) $25,406 million
B) $ 5,502 million
C) $18,430 million
D) $ 2,988 million
E) None of the above
Answer: C
Rationale: Sales Cost of goods sold = Gross profit. $38,334 Cost of goods sold = $19,904.
Therefore, Cost of goods sold = $18,430.
2011 2010
Total expenses $10,452.4 $9,759.1
Operating income 1,728.5 1,419.4
Net earnings 1,248.0 948.3
What amount of revenues did Starbucks report for the year ending October 2, 2011?
A) $10,452.4
B) $ 8,723.9
C) $11,700.4
D) $12,180.9
E) None of the above
Answer: C
Rationale: Revenues Total expenses = Net earnings. Revenues $10,452.4 = $1,248.0. Therefore,
Revenues were $11,700.4
2011 2010
Operating income $ 1,728.5 $1,419.4
Net earnings $ 1,248.0 $ 948.3
Answer: B
Rationale: During the year, Net earnings increased compared to the prior year. This increase is
calculated as ($1,248.0 $948.3) / $948.3 = 32%.
2010 2009
Sales $39,867 $29,540
Cost of goods sold 30,367 23,886
As a percentage of Sales, did Caterpillars Gross profit increase or decrease during 2011?
A) Gross profit increased from 19% to 24%
B) Gross profit decreased from 24% to 19%
C) Gross profit increased from 76% to 81%
D) Gross profit decreased from 81% to 76%
E) There is not enough information to answer the question.
Answer: A
Rationale: Sales Cost of goods sold = Gross profit. In 2009, gross profit to sales was 19%. This
ratio increased to 24% in 2010.
What did Goodyear report for Cash on its December 31, 2010 balance sheet?
A) $2,772 million
B) $3,539 million
C) $767 million
D) $2,005 million
E) None of the above
Answer: D
Rationale: Cash, beginning of year + Cash from operating activities + Cash from investing activities +
Cash from financing activities = Cash at end of year
Cash, beginning of year + $773 $902 + $896 = $2,772. Cash, beginning of year = $2,005
What did Procter & Gamble report for Cash from financing activities for the year ended June 30,
2011?
A) $(12,628) million
B) $ 15,396 million
C) $ (15,396) million
D) $ 9,860 million
E) $ (9,860) million
Answer: E
Rationale: Cash, beginning of year + Cash from operating activities + Cash from investing activities +
Cash from financing activities = Cash at end of year
$2,879 + $13,231 $3,482 + Cash from financing = $2,768. Cash from financing = $(9,860)
Answer: B and E
Rationale: ROA can be disaggregated into profit margin and asset turnover. Financial leverage and
sales growth are not components of this ratio. Asset growth affects the calculation via the
denominator, but cant be disaggregated directly.
Answer: C
Rationale: The ratio of net income to equity is called ROE, return on equity, and measures how
profitable the company was given the shareholders investment.
Answer: B
Rationale: Return on equity = Net income / Average Equity = $13,144 / $47,556 = 27.6%.
Answer: C
Rationale: ROA = Net Income /Average assets. Therefore ROA equals $8,186 / $52,445 = 15.6%.
Topic: Return on Assets Numerical calculations required (more challenging because net
income is not provided, must be calculated.)
LO: 3
24. Sales for the year = $277,022, Profit margin = 16%, and average Assets during the year = $259,108.
Return on Assets (ROA) for the year is:
A) 17.1%
B) 16.0%
C) 84.0%
D) There is not enough information to calculate ROA.
E) None of the above
Answer: A
Rationale: ROA = Net Income /Average assets. We are not given Net income, but we do know that
profit margin is 16%. Thus we can calculate Net income as Sales PM = $44,324. ROA = $44,324 /
$259,108 = 17.1%.
2010 2009
Total assets $9,431 $9,156
Total sales 4,859 4,782
Net income 147 (55)
Answer: A
Rationale: Return on assets = Net income / Average assets. A simple way to calculate average assets
is to take the average of the beginning and ending assets: ($9,431 + $9,156)/2 = $9,293.5. ROA =
$147 / $9,293.5 = 1.6%.
Answer: C and E
Rationale: The five forces of the competitive industry include: industry competitors, bargaining power
of buyers, bargaining power of suppliers, threat of substitution, and threat of entry.
Answer: E
Rationale: The components of business analysis are: life cycle, outputs, buyers, inputs, financing,
labor, governance, risk.
Answer: A and C
Rationale: The audit is not a certification (b is wrong) and the auditor does not provide any opinion
about how management handles transactions (d is wrong).
Answer: D
Rationale: The auditors report to the owners and the directors.
Topic: GAAP
LO: 5
30. Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) are created by: (select all that apply)
A) The Securities and Exchange Commission
B) The Generally Accepted Accounting Principles Task Force
C) The Sarbanes Oxley Act
D) The Financial Accounting Standards Board
E) The Emerging Issues Task Force
Answer: A, D, and E
Rationale: The Sarbanes Oxley Act did not create new accounting principles but rather, rules for
auditors and corporate governance mechanisms for companies. Answer b is fictional.
Answer:
A) 3 B) 1 C) 2 D) 5
Answer:
A) 2 B) 1 C) 4 D) 3
Whole Foods
Income Statement
For Year Ended September 26, 2010
Sales $9,005,794
Cost of goods sold and occupancy costs ?
Gross profit 3,135,401
Operating expenses ?
Operating income $ 437,975
Answer:
Whole Foods
Income Statement
For Year Ended September 26, 2010
Sales $9,005,794
Cost of goods sold and occupancy costs 5,870,393
Gross profit 3,135,401
Operating expenses 2,697,426
Operating income $ 437,975
Answer:
Procter & Gamble
Income Statement
For Year Ended June 30, 2011
Sales $ 82,559
Expenses 67,370
Earnings before income taxes 15,189
Income taxes 3,392
Net earnings $ 11,797
Whole Foods
Statement of Cash Flows
For Year Ended September 26, 2010
Net cash provided by operating activities $585,285
Net cash used in investing activities (715,406)
Net cash provided by financing activities (168,013)
Net change in cash ?
Cash at beginning of year ?
Cash at end of year $131,996
Answer:
Whole Foods
Statement of Cash Flows
For Year Ended September 26, 2010
Net cash provided by operating activities $ 585,285
Net cash used in investing activities (715,406)
Net cash provided by financing activities (168,013)
Net change in cash (298,134)
Cash at beginning of year 430,130
Cash at end of year $ 131,996
Whole Foods
Balance Sheet
September 26, 2010
Cash $ 131,996 Current liabilities $ 747,872
Non-cash assets ? Long-term liabilities ?
Stockholders equity 2,373,258
Total assets $3,986,540 Total liabilities and equity $ ?
Answer:
Whole Foods
Balance Sheet
September 26, 2010
Cash $ 131,996 Current liabilities $ 747,872
Non-cash assets 3,854,544 Long-term liabilities 865,410
Stockholders equity 2,373,258
Total assets $3,986,540 Total liabilities and equity $3,986,540
Answer:
Procter & Gamble
Balance Sheet
June 30, 2011
Cash $ 2,768 Current liabilities $ 27,293
Non-cash assets 135,586 Long-term liabilities 43,060
Shareholders equity 68,001
Total assets $ 138,354 Total liabilities and equity $138,354
Answer:
($ millions) 2010 2009 2008
Retained earnings beginning of year $358,215 $239,461 $208,949
Net income 245,833 148,804 114,524
Dividends 5,478 28,050 84,012
Retained earnings end of year $598,570 $358,215 $239,461
Answer:
($ millions) 2011 2010
Average assets $133,263 $131,503
Net earnings 11,797 12,729
Return on assets 8.85% 9.68%
($ thousands) 2010
Average assets $3,884,964
Sales 9,005,794
Net income 245,833
Return on assets ?
Profit margin ?
Asset turnover ?
Answer:
($ thousands) 2010
Average assets $3,884,964
Sales 9,005,794
Net income 245,833
Return on assets 6.33%
Profit margin 2.73%
Asset turnover 2.32%
Answer:
Any three from the list below
Management Discussion and Analysis (MD&A)
Managements report on internal controls
Annual corporate report
Auditors report and opinion
Notes to financial statements
Proxy statements
Various regulatory filings for SEC and IRS, etc.
($ millions) 2011
Cash flows from operations $ 1,612.4
Total revenues 11,700.4
Shareholders equity 4,387.3
Cash flows from financing (608.8)
Total liabilities 2,973.1
Cash, ending year 1,148.1
Expenses 10,452.4
Noncash assets 6,212.3
Cash flows from investing (1,019.5)
Net earnings 1,248.0
Cash, beginning year $ 1,164.0
b.
Starbucks Corporation
Income Statement
For Year Ended October 2, 2011
Total revenues $11,700.4
Expenses 10,452.4
Net earnings $ 1248.0
c.
Starbucks Corporation
Statement of Cash Flows
For Year Ended October 2, 2011
Cash flows from operations $ 1,612.4
Cash flows from investing (1,019.5)
Cash flows from financing (608.8)
Net change in cash (15.9)
Cash, beginning year 1,164.0
Cash at end of year $ 1148.1
($ thousands) 2011
Net cash flows from operating activities $ 664,693
Net sales 6,266,037
Stockholders equity 2,610,603
Net cash flows from financing activities (402,199)
Total assets 5,671,638
Cash, ending year 1,369,113
Expenses 5,497,529
Noncash assets 4,302,525
Net cash flows from investing activities (174,504)
Net income 768,508
Cash, beginning year $1,281,123
a. Prepare the balance sheet for Mattel, Inc. for December 31, 2011.
b. Prepare the income statement for Mattel, Inc. for the year ended December 31, 2011.
c. Prepare the statement of cash flows for Mattel, Inc. for the year ended December 31, 2011.
Answer:
a.
Mattel, Inc.
Balance Sheet
December 31, 2011
Cash $1,369,113 Total liabilities $3,061,035
Non-cash assets 4,302,525 Stockholders equity 2,610,603
Total assets $5,671,638 Total liabilities and equity $5,671,638
b.
Mattel, Inc.
Income Statement
For Year Ended December 31, 2011
Net sales $6,266,037
Expenses 5,497,529
Net income $ 768,508
c.
Mattel, Inc.
Statement of Cash Flows
For Year Ended December 31, 2011
Net cash flows from operating activities $ 664,693
Net cash flows from investing activities (174,504)
Net cash flows from financing activities (402,199)
Net change in cash 87,990
Cash, beginning year 1,281,123
Cash at end of year $1,369,113
($ thousands) 2010
Retained earnings, December 31, 2009 $ 2,339,506
Treasury stock, December 31, 2009 (1,555,046)
Treasury stock, December 31, 2010 (1,880,692)
Net income for 2010 684,863
Contributed capital, December 31, 2009 2,126,063
Dividends during 2010 303,724
Stock issued during 2010 21,767
Prepare the statement of stockholders equity for Mattel, Inc. for the year ended December 31, 2010.
Answer:
Mattel, Inc.
Statement of Stockholders Equity
For Year Ended December 31, 2010
Contributed capital, beginning of year $2,126,063
Stock issued during 2010 21,767
Contributed capital, end of year $2,147,830
Answer:
Assets = Liabilities + Equity
May 31, 2010: $14,419 = Liabilities + $9,754, Liabilities = $4,665
May 31, 2011: $14,419+ $579 = Liabilities + $9,754 + $89, Liabilities = $5,155
a. Calculate Southwest Airlines return on assets (ROA) for the year ending December 31, 2011.
b. Disaggregate Southwest Airlines ROA into profit margin (PM) and asset turnover (AT). Explain
what each ratio measures.
In millions
Total operating revenues $15,658
Net income 178
Total assets, beginning of year 15,463
Total assets, end of year 18,068
Equity, end of year 6,877
Answer:
a. Return on Assets = Net income / Average assets
= $178 / [0.5*($15,463 + $18,068)] = 1.1%
Return on assets measures profitability of a companyspecifically, how well a company has
employed its average assets in generating net income.
a. Calculate each companys return on assets (ROA) and return on equity (ROE). Comment on any
differences you observe.
b. Disaggregate the ROA for each company into profit margin (PM) and asset turnover (AT). Explain
why Whole Foods has a higher ROA, is it because of PM or AT or both?
Answer:
a. Return on Assets = Net income / Average assets
Whole Foods = $246 / $3,885 = 6.3%
Kroger = $1,133 / $23,316 = 4.9%
While Whole Foods has a higher return on assets than Kroger, Kroger has a higher return on
equity.
Whole Foods has a higher return on assets because its profit margin is higher that Krogers. This
appears reasonable since Whole Foods is an upscale grocer. Krogers asset turnover is higher
than Whole Foods turnover. Thus Kroger is more efficient.
Answer:
These following are the five forces that are key determinants of profitability.
1) Industry competition: Competition and rivalry raise the cost of doing business as companies must
hire and train competitive workers, advertise products, research and develop products, and other
related activities.
2) Bargaining power of buyers: Buyers with strong bargaining power can extract price concessions
and demand a higher level of service and delayed payment terms; this force reduces both profits
from sales and the operating cash flows to sellers.
3) Bargaining power of suppliers: Suppliers with strong bargaining power can demand higher prices
and earlier payments, yielding adverse effects on profits and cash flows to buyers.
4) Threat of substitution: As the number of product substitutes increases, sellers have less power to
raise prices and/or pass on costs to buyers; accordingly, threat of substitution places downward
pressure on profits of sellers.
5) Threat of entry: New market entrants increase competition; to mitigate that threat, companies
expend monies on activities such as new technologies, promotion, and human development to
erect barriers to entry and to create economies of scale.
Answer:
Auditors often face the issue how to deal with mistakes or deceptive reporting methods of clients,
while still trying to please the management of these client firms that ultimately pay their fees. This
conflict could lead to auditing firms viewing the CEO, rather than the shareholders or directors, as
their client. Warren Buffet has been particularly critical of potential conflicts of interest involving
auditors.
Answer:
Congress introduced the Sarbanes-Oxley act as a way of restoring confidence in the integrity of
financial statement reporting of publicly traded companies. The Act requires the chief executive
officer and chief financial officer of the company to personally sign-off on the accuracy and
completeness of financial statements and the integrity of the companys system of internal controls.
This requirement is designed to hold management personally accountable for negligence in financial
reporting and encourage vigilance in monitoring the companys financial accounting system.
Answer:
Supplying information benefits a company by helping it to compete in capital, labor, input, and output
markets. A companys performance hinges on successful business activities and the markets
awareness of that success. Economic incentives exist for those companies that disclose reliable
accounting information, especially when the company discloses good news about products,
processes, management, etc. Direct costs associated with the disclosure of information pertain to its
preparation and dissemination. More significant are other costs including competitive disadvantage,
litigation potential, and political costs. Managers must weigh these costs and benefits to determine
how much information to voluntarily disclose.
Answer:
Managers and employees Managers and employees demand financial information on the financial
condition, profitability and prospects of their companies for their own well-being and future earnings
potential. They also demand comparative financial information on competing companies and other
business opportunities. This permits them to conduct comparative analyses to benchmark company
performance and condition.
Creditors and suppliers Creditors and other lenders demand financial accounting information to help
decide loan terms, dollar amounts, interest rates and collateral. Suppliers similarly demand financial
information to establish credit sales terms and to determine their long-term commitment to supply-
chain relations. Both creditors and suppliers use financial information to continuously monitor and
adjust their contracts and commitments with a debtor company.
Shareholders and directors Shareholders and directors demand financial accounting information to
assess the profitability and risks of companies. Shareholders look for information useful in their
investment decisions. Both directors and shareholders use accounting information to evaluate
manager performance. Managers similarly use such information to request further compensation and
managerial power from directors. Outside directors are crucial to determining who runs the company,
and these directors use accounting information to evaluate manager performance.
Customers and Sales Staffs Customers and sales staffs demand accounting information to assess
the ability of the company to provide products or services as agreed and to assess the companys
staying power and reliability. Customers and sales staffs also wish to estimate the companys
profitability to assess fairness of returns on mutual transactions.
Regulators and Tax Agencies Regulators and tax agencies demand accounting information for tax
policies, antitrust assessments, public protection, price setting, import-export analyses and various
other uses. Timely and reliable information is crucial to effective regulatory policy. Moreover,
accounting information is often central to social and economic policy.
Voters and their Representatives Voters and their representatives to national, state and local
governments demand accounting information for policy decisions. The decisions can involve
economic, social, taxation and other initiatives. Voters and their representatives also use accounting
information to monitor government spending. Contributors to nonprofit organizations also demand
accounting information to assess the impact of their donations.
Answer:
Owner financing, also called equity, refers to money given to the business in exchange for partial
control of the company. Stocks are the most common form of owner financing. Companies are not
obligated to guarantee a return on owner investments. However, if returns are unacceptable to
owners, they may use their power to take the business in different directions. In sum, owner financing
provides cash inflow to the company without any guarantee of repayment. Control over the company
is vested in the shareholders.
Nonowner financing refers to money given to the business in exchange for a guaranteed repayment,
usually with interest. Loans and bonds are very common examples of nonowner investment. The risk
to the company lies in potential default if operations decline. The benefit is that the company does not
need to cede operational control to its creditors, unless it defaults on its repayment. In sum, nonowner
financing allows the current owners to maintain full control of the company, but requires repayment
with interest.
Companies that rely more heavily on owner financing are said to be financed conservatively.
Companies that rely more heavily on nonowner financing are said to be financed less conservatively.
Answer:
Return on assets (ROA) is a helpful measure of a companys profitability. In its most basic form, ROA
is a ratio between net income and average assets, i.e. it indicates the return the company is earning
from its assets. While ROA is a valuable indicator for investors, it is just as valuable for company
managers. This is because ROA indicates how successful managers are in acquiring and using
investments on behalf of shareholders. ROA is particularly useful for managers when it is
disaggregated into more focused, meaningful components.
Return on assets can be disaggregated into profit margin (PM), which measures profitability and
asset turnover (AT), which measures efficiency or productivity.
The ratio of net income to sales is called profit margin and the ratio of sales to average assets is
called asset turnover. The profit component reflects the amount of profit from each dollar of sales,
and the productivity component reflects the effectiveness in generating sales from assets.
This disaggregation yields additional insights into the factors that cause overall ROA to change during
the year. It could be that the company is more or less profitable or that the company is more or less
efficient or both. This disaggregation provides more information than just knowing that ROA has
increased or decreased during the year.
Answer:
Audit Committee - ultimately determined by the companys Board of Directors. The Board of Directors
is elected by the stockholders. They then establish various committees as a form of governance over
different areas like strategic plans and financial management. The Audit Committee is responsible for
overseeing the audit and meeting with the auditors. The committee must comprise outside directors
who focus on internal controls and other policies that ensure reliable accounting.
Independent audit firm - performs an audit and expresses an opinion whether the financial statements
present a companys financial condition fairly and whether they are prepared in accordance with the
GAAP. The financials are managements responsibility. Auditing involves sampling various
transactions and not every transaction during the year. The audit opinion provides assurance that
there are no gross material misstatements but is not a guarantee.
SEC - The SEC has the ultimate power in deciding whether to accept or deny the statements
depending on the statements integrity. If there is a problem, the company may be asked to restate
and re-file the statements with the SEC. A restatement is a serious event and could cause the
company to lose market value and reputation. Therefore, it is very important that companies submit
correct financial statements the first time.
Courts - individuals or other investors that incur financial damages due to errors in a companys
financial statements can seek remedy in the courts. The courts are responsible for settling the dispute
and assessing damages to the harmed party.