Managing Financial Resources Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Managing Financial Resources - Essay Example Proper accounting supports company officials while they make these decisions, showing them whether or not an investment will be practical, and if the company can afford it. Ethical and professional accounting forms a clear financial image of a business, and allows managers to make informed decisions, keeps investors abreast of developments in the business, and keeps the business profitable. The business performance of a company can be monitored and analysed with the use of accounting ratios. The ratios are used to interpret financial information about the company. The results can be compared with past results or with industry standards to gauge the company's overall performance. The quantitative results for this segment can be found in the Appendices section of this report. Company A's Current Ratio is 1.17, while Company B has 1.03 and Company C resulted in 2.5. This means that all three companies are still able to generate enough cash to settle its short-term liabilities. As a guide, a current ratio of 2 is ideal. For Company C, its result is higher than the ideal guideline and this suggests that Company C may have resources lying idle, for instance, the untimely collection of its receivables. A better ratio to consider when looking at the liquidity of the companies would be the Liquidity Ratio. This ratio does not take into account the companies' stocks, which can be difficult to value and which can be obsolete. Debt-Equity Ratio This assesses the financial risk of a company. A high gearing ratio poses risks if a company is unable to meet its financial obligations as this can very well lead to bankruptcy. Therefore, it is important that this is constantly monitored. Debt-Equity Ratio = Total Long Term Debt / Total Equity The Gearing Ratios for all Companies A, B and C are quite low at 9.2%, 8.1% and 15.4% respectively and the results should not cause an alarm. However, it is good to note that the companies should have a balanced mix of equity and debt to finance its operations. Return on Asset There are several ratios available that can measure the ability of a company to generate profits from its sales. These include Gross Profit Margin, Return on Assets and Return on Equity. A good profit margin is essential in any form of business to ensure there is always enough cash to run its operations. Thus, it is also important that receivables are collected on a timely basis. Return on Asset is a type of profitability ratio and measures the level of profit compared to the value of net assets invested in your business. Return on Assets = Net Income / Total Assets The profitability of all three companies is sound. The Return on Assets are 1.7%, 1.3% and 3.3% for Companies A, B and C respectively. It can be seen that Company C generates the highest return on its assets, whereas Companies A and B are

Should Parents Censor Textbooks for Children in Schools Research Paper

Should Parents Censor Textbooks for Children in Schools - Research Paper Example It is evidently clear from the discussion that the American Library Association provides information about the first amendment along with comments and opinions. The site first gives the specific text of the first amendment which is as follows – â€Å"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances†. The above statement indicates a level of relative freedom for the citizens of the country with importance given to freedom of expression which can include literature and textbooks intended for schoolchildren. The above article further highlights the observation of the 1791 ruling of the Supreme Court which states that censorship of a society is a sign of weakness and can be seen as autocratic or authoritarian. What is to be mentioned here about the site i s that it does not provide any clarifications or any other opinions about these observations and statutes. But it does provide links to other sites like the Cornell Law University and other government sites that could provide further light on the topic. So, it can be seen as an introduction to the First Amendment with good links to other literature on the topic. These issues and opinions will now be reviewed with other available literature. The problem or the confusion with regard to freedom of expression and censorship is that the law does not specifically state or define the limits of these two topics. Hence the concept of censorship has to be viewed from other angles including philosophical and social views and individual court decisions.