A cash flow statement is a special document that is a mandated to be prepared by the accountants of any firm. Cash flow statements are nothing but the record of all the cash transactions that take place in a company. It is important for the financial statements of a company to make and have cash flow statements because the cash flow statements demonstrate the ability of a company to generate cash. The incoming and the outgoing cash are all recorded via these statements and it is essential to have the statement ready for future reference by the investors and the management of the company itself.
There is a lot of information that is included and presented in the cash flow statements. From an overall perspective, the cash flow statements provide an overview of the cash transactions that have taken place in a given period of time. But if one digs deeper, there is a plethora of information hidden inside these statements.
The cash flow statements present a remarkable overview of the operating activities of a firm. A firm carries out a set of activities in order to meet all its goals and objectives. The cash generated from operating activities is important to consider because that is the main income of the firm. The cash generated from the products or services that a company offers is usually recorded under cash obtained from operating activities.
In addition to the cash obtained from operating activities, the cash flow statements also talk about the cash obtained from financial activities. This helps the investors in analyzing if there has been a change in the owners’ capital or borrowings of the firm. One can gain a better understanding of the financial situation of the company by analyzing the cash flow obtained from different financing activities.
Another thing that is extremely important and can be figured out with the help of these cash flows is the short term abilities of the firm to meet its cash