A cash flow statement presents the changes in the cash and cash equivalents of a business. It classifies the cash flow items into either operating, investing, or financing activities. Unlike a balance sheet that provides information about the company on a particular date, a cash flow statement proviRead more
A cash flow statement presents the changes in the cash and cash equivalents of a business. It classifies the cash flow items into either operating, investing, or financing activities. Unlike a balance sheet that provides information about the company on a particular date, a cash flow statement provides information about the flow of cash over a period of time.
OBJECTIVE
Information obtained through cash flow statements is aimed to assess the ability of a business to generate cash and at the same time, maintain liquidity. Therefore, important economic decisions can be made by evaluating these cash flow statements.
Cash Flow statements are categorized into
- Operating Activities: These activities refer to the main activities of the business during an accounting period. They involve revenue-generating activities. As per the indirect method, profit before tax is taken as the starting point and all non-cash expenses are added while non-cash incomes are deducted. Whereas in direct method, cash receipts and cash expenses are added and subtracted respectively. Eg: sale of goods.
- Investing Activities: These activities involve the sale and purchase of non-current assets and investments. Eg: cash payment for machinery.
- Financing Activities: These activities result in a change in capital or borrowings. Eg: cash proceeds from the issue of equity shares.
Importance of Cash Flow
A cash flow statement gives us knowledge about the liquidity and solvency of the company. These are necessary for the survival and expansion of the company. It also helps in predicting future cash flows by using information from previous cash flows. It also helps in comparison between companies which shows the actual cash profits.
A Cash Flow Statement analyzes the effect of various activities in the company on cash and, that is, it shows the inflow and outflow of cash and cash equivalents. A Fund Flow Statement analyzes the financial position of a company by the inflow and outflow of funds. Both the statements are financialRead more
A Cash Flow Statement analyzes the effect of various activities in the company on cash and, that is, it shows the inflow and outflow of cash and cash equivalents.
A Fund Flow Statement analyzes the financial position of a company by the inflow and outflow of funds.
Both the statements are financial statements and are used to analyze the financial performance of the company of two different reporting periods. Both the statements record the inflow and outflow of cash or funds, as the case may be.
The primary objective of preparing a Cash Flow Statement is to gain an understanding of the changes in the net working capital of the company and to classify the activities in the company under three different heads which helps in better analysis of Financial Statements for management, outsiders, and investors.
The primary objective of preparing a Fund Flow Statement is to track the movements of funds in the company, as the extent of use of long-term and short-term borrowings, frequency of their procurement, its application, etc.
The components of the Cash Flow Statement are:
The components of the Fund Flow Statement are:
Sources of Funds:
Application of Funds:
A sample format of the Cash Flow Statement will be:
A sample format of the Fund Flow Statement will be:
To conclude the difference between Fund Flow and Cash Flow Statement will be:
·      Sources of Funds
·      Application of Funds