Limitations of Ratio Analysis for Cross-Sectional Comparisons Essay

Ratio analysis is a useful technique for comparing a company’s performance and position with other companies. However, such comparisons may be misleading. Some of the limitations of ratio analysis for cross-sectional comparisons are discussed below: Accounting policies: Accounting laws allow companies to choose accounting policies and use discretion while preparing accounts. Such a freedom leads to differences in the accounts of companies, which in turn distorts cross-sectional company comparisons. Historic cost: If companies are of different ages, their financial statements will include non-current assets purchased at different times in the past which will usually be recorded at historic cost. This will mean the different companies have different book values of asset, thereby affecting their financial statements even if the businesses are otherwise identical (Ireland and Leiwy, 2011). Creative accounting: Companies tend to present inflated revenues and reduced liabilities on the financial statements. In particular, they tend to window dress during earnings results seasons. These tricks make investors believe that companies have a strong financial position. However, such creative accounting misleads analysts using financial accounting and ratios for cross-sectional comparisons. Different risk profiles: Companies have different financial and market risk profiles. Companies in the same industry may face different financial and market risks. For example, a company with a low debt ratio may indicate improved financial position. However, banks may not have provided loans to the company owing to the company’s low creditworthiness or high financial risk profiling. Another company in the same industry may have a low financial risk profiling, and it may obtain loans at a reduced rate for expansions. But, the financial statement will only show a high gearing rate. In this case, ratio analysis leads to incorrect interpretations and conclusions about both the companies. Qualitative factors: Ratio analysis does not consider qualitative factors such as management quality, quality of assets, social responsibilities, goodwill etc. Despite the limitations discussed above, financial ratio analysis is still useful in assessing a company’s financial performance. Ratios can provide a functional understanding of a company’s operations if used intelligently. Analysts need to understand the limitations in the analytical method and make the necessary modifications.

Linguistics and the Analysis of Poetry Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

Linguistics and the Analysis of Poetry - Essay Example Having conducted a solid literature review on the aspect of linguistics, the essay section will focus on subjecting theoretical provisions of the review in analyzing a real poem. In order to foster objective directionality, a thesis statement will be adopted in appraising the depth and breadth of linguistic methods in integrating the aspects of clarity and artistic interpretation within poetry. Introduction On the context of artistic interpretation, a piece of art like a poem or even a painting should elicit or invoke a desired response on the audience. Lieberman (1969) says that poetry as an art acts as a bridge between target audience and the artist. It is through appropriate employment of artistic techniques that a poet can convey his or her thoughts, feelings and emotions to the audience. Techniques used must be appropriate in order to deliver intended meaning to audience. In certain cases, inappropriate use of linguistic methods may fail to create the desired expression of an ar tist’s work. Consequently, audiences will end up interpreting the underlying piece of art in a relative rather than an absolute manner. On the contrary, use of suitable linguistic methods in poetry enables poets to impress readers through elucidating process of expression. At this juncture, the thesis for the essay asserts that both formal and informal linguistic methods does not only help in elucidating poetry for average readers but also allows these readers to apply artistic interpretation. Based on the literature review section, it is undeniable that poetry as an art employs considerable use of sound, wording sequence and wording stress in giving meaning to their work. According to Frank (1970), expression of thoughts, feelings and emotions by poets is in direct relation to the manner in which sound intensity and stress elevation are used in writings. In addition, word ordering facilitates development of themes and philosophical construct behind a poem. In most cases, a p oet may not employ all the three techniques of stress, sound and word sequence variation at every point of their work. It is common to encounter an instance where a poet only uses sound variation in creating rhyme while compromising on contextual meaning of his work. In other circumstances, a poet may employ elaborate use of contextual vocabulary as a means of enhancing thematic clarity while compromising on the aesthetic values of rhyme. According to Fowler (1967), it means that linguistic methodology allows poets to vary writing styles in order to create themes and aesthetical attributes of poems. In most cases, stylistic variation derived from suitable linguistic methods allows poets to flaunt their knowledge in the process of artistic expression while still impressing readers through clear expression of intended message. Analysis of â€Å"Paradise Lost† In order to fully understand the use of sound and vocabulary variation, we will analyze a few lines from the poem  "Paradise Lost† by John Milton. Throughout the poem, John employs substantial alteration of sound patterns in creating the indented rhyme. On the other hand, variation in vocabulary enhances development of intended message, which in this case is disobedience of man towards God. In line 14 of book 1 of the poem, Milton (2010) says,

A research about plastic pollution in California Paper

A about plastic pollution in California - Research Paper Example This trash does not simply go nor does it decompose, it stays and pollutes the environment in a range of ways. Plastic is the most extensive form of rubbish disposed to our ecosystem and the issue has become a problem in need of instant solutions because its effects to our environment are devastating environmentally. California would have been the first state in the nation to implement a ban on the plastic ban in July 2014. However, due to the intervention of industries associated with plastic and bag manufacturing who paid some amount to stop this ban, the state pushed forward the deadline to November 2016. Other organizations as well contributed against the lobby with the aim of keeping factory workers’ jobs intact as well as preventing the 10-cent per paper bag used pay for all residents in California. All people resident in California should be at the forefront in advocating for the new bill concerning banning plastic bags because their pollution poses far reaching environ mental as well as health issues to the lives of human beings, animals, marine life and other species in the ecosystem generally. Environmentalists are the leading groups of people pushing for major changes of human behavior with regard to plastic bags menace. The leading plastic distributors are always stores and malls who give consumers these bags free and after using them go ahead and discard them aimlessly without minding their effects on the environment. This issue has been at the central part of many debates and it has created different opinions from the citizens of California. Those in favor of the ban have come up with measures to curb the plastic bag menace but opponents, a great number of whom are the plastic industry and bag manufacturers are against this move (Kumeh). This has created a row such that the state secretary announced a referendum to let the public decide about this decision. Plastic bags need replacement of a better substitute

Liberal view of international relations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Liberal view of international relations - Essay Example Thus, the liberal school of thought operates on certain core assumptions. The first and most fundamental premise of the liberal school of thought is the argument that the relationship that states have with other actors, state and non state, in the international community to a great extent shapes their behavior by influencing their preferences. To the liberalists, how states behave in the international arena has more to do with their preferences rather than their capabilities. Consequently, depending on such internal factors in states such as culture, the economic system or even the type of government therein, the preferences are likely to be different from state to   state. In liberalism, the relations that particular states have to the local domestic and even the global communal framework in which they are set in has a fundamental impact on their behavior as far as international politics is concerned. Thus, societal ideas, interests and the institutions in these states heavily inf luence their behaviors by shaping their preferences. The liberalists also distinguish between high and low politics as the determinants of interaction between states. That is to stay, to the liberalists, states do not only interact in the international relations as a result of high end political issues such as politics and security. State also interact on the basis of low political issues in the form of economics and culture. (Shared assumptions of realism and liberal institutionalism, n.d.)... To the liberalists, how states behave in the international arena has more to do with their preferences rather than their capabilities. Consequently, depending on such internal factors in states such as culture, the economic system or even the type of government therein, the preferences are likely to be different from state to state. In liberalism, the relations that particular states have to the local domestic and even the global communal framework in which they are set in has a fundamental impact on their behavior as far as international politics is concerned. Thus, societal ideas, interests and the institutions in these states heavily influence their behaviors by shaping their preferences. The liberalists also distinguish between high and low politics as the determinants of interaction between states. That is to stay, to the liberalists, states do not only interact in the international relations as a result of high end political issues such as politics and security. State also inte ract on the basis of low political issues in the form of economics and culture. (Shared assumptions of realism and liberal institutionalism, n.d.) Another assumption of the liberal school of though lies in the fact that rational individuals and private groups who organize and exchange to promote their interests as opposed to states are viewed as the primary actors in the international arena. Again, that states and other political institutions represent some division of domestic society. This then forms the basis of interests upon which state officials then define state preferences and therefore act with a purpose in the world politics. Lastly, that there is interdependence of

Executive Summary Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words - 2

Executive Summary - Essay Example the euro exchange economy can also be used to remove the lower bound which has an effect on the short period threatening free nominal interest (Buiter, 2010, p. 219). On the other hand, during price setting, New-Calvo-Woodford approach can be used in setting price. Their approach involve secretive division in the euro-currency financial system, government in the euro exchange economy, equilibrium in the euro currency economy, deterministic steady state in the euro currency economy and lastly the lower bound which can become a binding constraint in the euro currency economy (Buiter, 2010 p.223). In prevailing over the lower bound on nominal charge, one can use the following strategies: eliminating currency, disburse negative interest rates on money (Buiter, 2010) or taxing money or even dividing the standard of trade. The three methods of eliminating subordinate bound on nominal interest plays a role in making it possible to ensure that it target the true stability of prices (Buiter, 2010). The author use of quotes from outside source gives a back up to the points that are highlighted in the report. He used seventy outside sources to support his main ideas concerning the monetary policy. The examples used are ones that have methodology to come up with the main idea

E- Commerce Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

E- Commerce - Essay Example Many people call this as the knowledge revolution, characterized by an international data highway that works 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It has been far too long since people have acknowledged that the wired or networked world is revolutionizing business. This phenomenon has paved the way for organizations to better communicate with their market and all the stakeholders involved in the production and selling of goods and services. In a nutshell, companies use technology and electronic mediation not just to reach out to its consumers and suppliers but also to automate back-office tasks and industrial operations while pushing ahead with research and development. eCommerce eCommerce or eBusiness is the most prominent consequence of electronic mediation in business. Here, individuals and organizations can sell and/or purchase goods and services through the Internet. The standard definition for eCommerce has been put forward by the US Census Bureau , which defined eCommerce as â₠¬Å"any transaction completed over a computer-mediated network that involves the transfer of ownership or rights to use goods or services.† (Storz 2007, p. 126) The Internet, however, is not the only channel by which eCommerce can operate. For instance, transactions can be made through different communication and technological channels such as the phone. Nonetheless, the Internet dominates the electronic commerce today. It was created thanks to the personal computer (PC), telecommunications, business software, as well as the advances in office technology industries. (Shi, p. 25) What ecommerce did for companies is to tear down the traditional bricks and mortar business models and imposing its own brand that features increased performance, speed and cost efficiency. In addition, according to Kellerman (2002), â€Å"globalization is quite unique to eCommerce, permitting the creation of global market areas for many products and services,† and that its â€Å"attribute is â €Å"intelligence, whereby eCommerce is aided by sophisticated information tool, such as databases, search engine and the like.† (p. 128) There are fundamentally two classifications by which eCommerce operates: B2B eCommerce and B2C eCommerce. The transactions that are electronically mediated between enterprises are called business-to-business (B2B) eCommerce, while electronically selling goods and services by a company to its consumers is called as business-to-consumer (B2C) eCommerce. Together they manifest the best possible benefits that a company could reap out of communication and technology. Business to Business With regards to the organization, electronic mediation poses several benefits and opportunities. The most important of these is cost efficiency, productivity and convenience. In the past, for instance, a company would follow the traditional method of procurement, which entails numerous work and human resource in order for products to be bought and sent to the buy er. The consumer would order through a thick and burdensome catalog and would be punished by having to browse each and every page that could rival the number of pages of the telephone directory. After, making the selection, he would then have to phone the selling party, be given several forms to fill, fax his information and proceed with the buy and sell process. This setup can be extremely be aggravated when products and serv

Apple Operations Term Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Apple Operations - Term Paper Example The company has a wide range of products such as desktop computers, laptops, mobiles and different application software. Along with its subsidiaries the company develops and markets various portable applications as well. Some of the bestseller items of the company include portable music players, mobile communication devices and several other digital gadgets. Buzzwords such as I-pod, I-phone and I-pad are all creations of Apple. The company also has a strong presence in the field of software. The software segment includes operating systems such as Mac OS and other utility and productivity applications like Quick time player, I-work and logic studio among others (Apple Store, n.d.). The company has a global presence and owns more than 370 stores. It has a workforce of 20,000 people. Apple mainly distributes its product through whole sellers, retailers and Apple owned exclusive stores. Hewlett Packard, Dell, Google and Research in Motion Limited are the direct competitors of the company (NASDAQ, 2012). However companies such as Lenovo, Compaq, Toshiba and Hitachi are also considered as the circumlocutory competitors of the company. The aim of the report is to offer the domestic operations of the company. Also the report will stress on the global operational strategy of the company. In the operational strategies the report will offers insights about the way Apple markets its products. Finally the report will conclude by revealing the differences between the domestic operations and the global operations of the company. Domestic Operations of Apple Operations management can be regarded as the process in which human, material and financial inputs are transformed into output of products, service or other utilities (Pride, Hughes & Kapoor, 2006, p.279). However the actual creation of the product takes place in the mid half of the process and is referred to as manufacturing, production or the operations (Finch, 2008, p.164). In addition to that material management or logistics controls the transfer of raw materials through the process of value chain. The distribution on the other hand deals with the delivery of goods to the end customers. Finally the after sales provided by the company are known as support. Figure 1 (Source: McCubbrey, 2010) Value Chain of Apple The value chain of the company is discussed below:- Inbound Logistics Most of the essential components which are required for manufacturing Apple’s products are available from several sources. However some of the essential materials are obtained from single sources. In order to cite an instance IBM is the only supplier of G5 processor, which is being used in the products of PowerMac, while Motorola is the only supplier of G4 processor to the company. Operations The company has highly innovative products (O’Grady, 2008, p.xii). Hence the materials also need to be of high quality. Now as the raw materials are obtained the final assembly of the products is carried out in the manufacturing and assembling plants of Apple. Sacramento and Cork are the two places where the operations take place. Nevertheless the operations are also carried out by external vendors in places such as Netherlands, Korea, China and Taiwan among others (Day, 2010). In the portable category the products are assembled in Japan, China and Taiwan. Therefore from the findings it is clear that Apple only manufacture few of its products in USA and most of them assembled by third party vendors.