Financial Analysis and Investment Evaluation Report

Assessment Task
Select a PLC for your assignment. The listed entity chosen must have published consolidated financial statements for an annual reporting period ended during the calendar year 2019.  The financial statements must have been prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards. The entity should be engaged in commercial activities involving manufacturing, service provision, distribution, general trading, or any mix of these. The entity should NOT be primarily engaged in the financial services sector. The basis of the project assumes that you are a potential investor and the purpose of the report is to evaluate the chosen entity as a potential investment opportunity. The report should address the following issues at a minimum:

1. An analysis and assessment of the entity’s financial performance and position for the previous two years, based on the entity’s most recent financial statements. This should include:
Full ratio analysis including the calculation of the key activity, liquidity, profitability, solvency and investment ratios for the two years. Please include a clear table showing full workings and assumptions if relevant.

Interpretation and analysis of the above ratios and the interrelationship of any trends identified.

Initial conclusion, based on the ratio analysis, on the financial position and performance of the company.

2. Prepare a table which focuses exclusively on the following three key metrics for the entity:
Cash Flow
Operating Profit/Loss
Earnings Per Share (EPS).
Critically assess the performance over the two years using these metrics and discuss the similarities and/or differences in the trend for each metric.

3. Provide a critical review of other influencing factors in terms of a potential investment in this entity. Consider the additional narrative content provided in the published financial statements and in particular the directors’/chairman’s report and the Operating and Financial Review (OFR).

4. Provide an overall conclusion on the investment decision, clearly outlining the positives and negatives of an investment in this entity and identifying any additional information which may be desirable. 

General Requirements for Students:
1. A proportion of assessment marks is allocated to presentation. All assignments must be wordprocessed, with word count noted unless otherwise stated by the lecturer.

2. Where a hardcopy submission is required, an Assignment Submission Form must be securely attached to each submission.

3. All assignments must be submitted no later than the stated deadline.
Assignments submitted after the latest deadline (date and time) specified, including any extension, are deemed to be ‘late’ and are penalised, as follows:

Where the assignment is submitted not more than seven working days after the latest specified date, the mark awarded to the assignment is reduced by 25%.

Where the assignment is submitted more than seven working days after the latest specified date, it is awarded a mark of zero

Where the assessment is undertaken in a group, the piece of work should be submitted in its complete entirety, and any penalty for late submission incurred applies to all group members

4. All relevant provisions of the Assessment Regulations must be complied with.

5. Extensions to assignment submission deadlines will be not be granted, other than in exceptional circumstances. To apply for an extension please go to http://www.dbs-students.com/Registrar/ and download the Assignment Extension Request Form. Once completed this form should then be returned to your Programme Leader, for approval.

6. Students are required to retain a copy of each assignment submitted, and the submission receipt (If a physical submission is required) until the issuing of a transcript indicating the mark awarded.

7. Assignments must be appropriately packaged and presented.

8. Where a submission involves digital media, it is the submitting students’ responsibility to ensure the media is appropriately labelled, fully working and they must retain a copy.

9. Assignments that breach the word count requirements will be penalised. There is a 10% discretion, either way, applicable in terms of word count.

10. Students are required to refer to the assessment regulations in their Student Guides and on the Student Website.

11. Dublin Business School penalises students who engage in academic impropriety (i.e. plagiarism, collusion and/or copying).

12. To prevent plagiarism please follow this link to the Harvard Style Referencing Guide - all referencing is required in this format. 

13. In relation to electronic submissions:
A. All assignments should be submitted to your subject/course page on Moodle by the deadline date.
B. It is the student’s responsibility to ensure their file is uploaded correctly.
C. When an assignment is submitted, it is the student’s responsibility to ensure that the file is in the correct format and opens correctly.