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Financial statement ratio analysis allows comparison of one industry/firm to another. Financial statement ratio analysis looks at relationships inside the industry/firm, an industry/firm of one size can be directly compared to a second industry/firm (or a collection of industries/firms) which may be larger or smaller or even in a different business. Financial statement ratio analysis is a method of comparison not dependent on the size of either industry/firm. Financial statement ratio analysis provides a broader basis for comparison than do raw numbers. However, ratios on their own, without year-to-year or other industry/firm comparative ratios, are of little use in judging the health or future of the industry/firm being analyzed. Financial statement ratio analysis provides you with 28 conversions of financial numbers for an industry/firm into ratios and two predictors of the future: Altman Z-Score and Sustainable Growth Rate.