HOLMES INSTITUTE FACULTY OF HIGHER EDUCATION Assessment Details and Submission Guidelines Trimester T1 2020 Unit Code HA2032 Unit Title Corporate and Financial Accounting Assessment Type Individual Assignment (Report) Assessment Title Corporate Disclosure An analysis of annual financial reporting and a company’s capital structure. Purpose of the assessment (with ULO Mapping) This assignment aims to develop students’ understanding of corporate reporting, disclosure, corporate capital structures and the different ways companies can source funds. Students will review the annual report of a selected company and provide an evaluation of the selected company’s disclosure, including the notes to the financial statements. Students will perform a comparative analysis of the sources of funds used by their selected company for two consecutive financial periods. They will need to identify any changes in the capital structure, such as changes in the combination of long term debt and equity capital used by the company. The HA2032 Unit Learning outcomes addressed in this assessment are: Explain the various methods available to companies in their resource expansion and the impact of each on the accounting records and financial statements; Critically analyse and interpret the financial statements and other disclosures produced by Australian companies and corporate groups; (ULO 2, 3). Weight 25% of the total assessment Total Marks 25 Marks Word limit 2,500 words ± 500 words Due Date Assignment submission: Final Submission of individual Assignment: 11:59 pm Friday, Week 10. Late submission incurs a penalty of five (5) % of the assessment value per calendar day unless an extension and/or special consideration has been granted by the lecturer prior to the assessment deadline. Submission Guidelines • All work must be submitted on Blackboard by the due date along with a completed Assignment Cover Page. • The assignment must be in MS Word format, no spacing, 12-pt Arial font and 2 cm margins on all four sides of your page with appropriate section headings and page numbers. • Reference sources must be cited in the text of the report, and listed appropriately at the end in a reference list using the Harvard referencing style. Page 2 of 6 HA2032 Corporate and Financial Accounting HA2032 Corporate and Financial Accounting Corporate and Financial Accounting Individual Assignment T1 2020 Assignment Specifications Purpose: In this individual assignment, students will critically analyse the different aspects of financial statements, including the application of different sources of authority and the accounting standards for corporate disclosure and for the financial reporting function. Furthermore, students will demonstrate their understanding of the different sources of funds, capital structure and provide a detailed analysis of the financial statements of an Australian publically listed company for two consecutive financial periods. Students willresearch and provide details of the different disclosure requirements for both listed and non-listed entities. Assessment Task: Part A Students will need to access the ASX website (https://www.asx.com.au) and select a company in any industry section. Students will need to download the latest Annual report for that selected company. Based on the selected company’s annual financial statements and related notes, students will need to prepare a business report addressing the requirementslisted below. It is also a requirement to attach the main financial statements and the related notes which address the requirements below in your report. 1. Discuss and provide an analysis of items in the statement of cash flow and identify item(s) which relate to the balance sheet. 2. Explain the company’s performance based on Earnings per Share (EPS) and provide EPS calculations for the last two consecutive periods. 3. Discuss whether EPS is a useful performance indicator for the company. 4. Explain how the material movements in the statement of changes in equity is reflected and reported in the statement of cash flows. 5. Discuss the items recorded as Non-Current Liabilities, including the related notes and provide an explanation of the material movements of each item. 6. Based on the capital structure of the company selected, discuss the potential advantages and disadvantages of each source of capital. Part B Students will need to research and discuss the disclosure requirements for publically listed companies in the financial statements in comparison to other non-listed companies. Students will also need to discuss the benefit(s) of disclosing comparative information in the annual financial reports to users, including key decision makers or external users, such as investors. (Note - one page is recommended to answer this section) Page 3 of 6 HA2032 Corporate and Financial Accounting The assignment structure must be as follows: Holmes Institute Assignment Cover Sheet – Full Name, Student No., Campus, Session No. Executive Summary o The Executive Summary appears as a short paragraph on the first page of the report. o The Executive summary should be concise and not involve too much detail. o It should be a summary of the main points only, the conclusions and analysis of the report. o Write the Executive Summary after the report is completed, and once you have an overview of the whole report. o 50 - 100 words is recommended Table of Contents Page – This needs to show a logical listing of all the sub-headings of the report’s contents. (Note this is excluded from the total word count.) Introduction – A short paragraph which includes background and/or scope and the main points raised in order of importance. There should be a brief conclusion statement at the end of the Introduction. Main Body Paragraphs with numbered sub-headings – Detailed information which elaborates on the main points raised in the Introduction. Each paragraph should begin with a clear topic sentence, then supporting sentences with facts and /or relevant information (evidence) and finish with a concluding sentence at the end. Conclusion – A logical and coherent evaluation based on a thorough and objective assessment of the work performed. References – Credible Academic sources must be used, such as peer reviewed journals or authoritative textbooks. The Harvard referencing style is required. Appendices – Include any additional explanatory information which is supplementary and/ or graphical to help communicate the main ideas made in the report. Refer to the appendices in the main body paragraphs, as and where appropriate. (Note this is excluded from the total word count.) Marking Criteria Assignment Marking Criteria Part A Marks Weighting Analysis of items in the statement of cash flow and identification of item(s) which relate to the balance sheet. 3 3% Discussion of the company’s performance based on Earnings per Share (EPS) and EPS calculations for the last two consecutive periods are provided with discussion of the usefulness of EPS. 3 3% Explanation of the material movements in the statement of changes in equity is reflected and reported in the statement of cash flows. 3 3% Discussion of the items recorded as Non-Current Liabilities, including the related notes and an explanation of the material movements of each item is provided. 3 3% Based on the capital structure of the company selected, there is a discussion of the potential advantages and disadvantages of each source of capital. 3 3% Part B Research and discussion of the disclosure requirements for publically listed companies in comparison to other non-listed companies and the benefit(s) of disclosing comparative information in the annual reports to intended users is provided. 6 6% Report structure and format, Punctuation, Spelling, Grammar, Correct verb forms, Appropriate Word Choice and Academic English phraseology. 2 2% References List and referencing - In-text citation, acknowledgement of sources and use of credible academic sources. 2 2% Total 25 Marks 25% Marking Rubric Part A Criteria Max Mark Excellent 3 marks Very Good 2.5 marks Good 2 marks Satisfactory 1.5 marks Unsatisfactory 1 – 0 marks Discuss and provide an analysis of items in the statement of cash flow and identify item(s) which relate to the balance sheet. 3 Marks The items recorded in the statement of cash flow have been correctly identified. The submission demonstrates an excellent understanding of each item recorded in the statement of cash flow. The items recorded in the statement of cash flow have been correctly identified. The submission demonstrates a good understanding of each item recorded in the statement of cash flow. The items recorded in the statement of cash flow have been correctly identified. The submission demonstrates a basic understanding of each item recorded in the statement of cash flow. The items recorded in the statement of cash flow have been correctly identified. The submission demonstrates a basic understanding of each item recorded in the statement of cash flow. The items recorded in the statement of cash flows have not been correctly identified. The submission does not demonstrate an understanding of each item recorded in the statement of cash flow. Explain the company’s performance based on Earnings Per Share (EPS) and provide calculations for the last two consecutive periods. Discuss if EPS is a useful performance indicator for the company. 3 Marks This is an excellent response to the company‘s performance analysis based on the EPS calculations with a detailed discussion of the usefulness of EPS for performance evaluation. The submission clearly explains the company‘s performance analysis based on the EPS calculations with a detailed discussion of the usefulness of EPS for performance evaluation with only minor adjustments for improvement noted. The explanation provided for the company‘s performance analysis based on the EPS calculations are good with a good discussion of the usefulness of EPS for performance evaluation, but with some recommendations for improvement noted. There is only a partial explanation provided for the company‘s performance analysis based on EPS calculations. There is some discussion of the usefulness of EPS for performance evaluation, but there are recommendations for improvement noted. There is an inadequate explanation provided for the company‘s performance analysis based on EPS calculations and discussion of the usefulness of EPS for performance evaluation is lacking. There are clear deficiencies noted. Explain how the material movements in the statement of changes in equity are reflected and reported in the statement of cash flow. 3 Marks The items recorded in the statement of changes in equity have been correctly identified. The submission demonstrates an excellent understanding of each item recorded in this section. The items recorded in the statement of changes in equity have been correctly identified. The submission demonstrates a very good understanding of each item recorded in this section. The items recorded in the statement of changes in equity have been correctly identified. The submission demonstrates a good understanding of each item recorded in this section. The items recorded in the statement of changes in equity have been correctly identified. The submission demonstrates an adequate understanding of each item in this section. The items recorded in the statement of changes in equity have not been correctly identified. The submission does not demonstrate a sufficient understanding of each item recorded in this section. Discuss the items recorded as non-current liabilities including the related notes. Provide an explanation of the material movements of each item. 3 Marks The submission demonstrates an excellent understanding of the items and the movements in the non-current liabilities section with detailed explanations provided. There is a very good explanation provided for the items and the movements in the noncurrent liabilities section, with only minor errors or only minor points noted for improvement. The explanation provided for the items and movements in the noncurrent liabilities section is good, with some minor errors or points noted for improvement. There is some valid explanation provided for the items and movements in the non-current liabilities section with required adjustments for improvement. There is an inadequate explanation provided for the items and movements in the non-current liabilities section and there are numerous adjustments required for improvement. Page 5 of 6 HA2032 Corporate and Financial Accounting Discuss the capital structure of the company selected and the potential advantages and disadvantages of each source of capital. 3 Marks An outstanding explanation and discussion is provided of the capital structure with detailed advantages and disadvantages and an excellent explanation of the different sources of capital. A very good explanation and discussion is provided of the capital structure with detailed advantages and disadvantages and a very good explanation for the different sources of capital with some minor recommendations for improvement. A good explanation and discussion is provided of the capital structure with the advantages and disadvantages stated and an explanation of the different sources of capital. There are some minor recommendations for improvement. There is some explanation and discussion provided about the capital structure with advantages and disadvantages stated and an explanation of the different sources of capital, but there are essential recommendations for improvement. There is an inadequate explanation and discussion provided about the capital structure with either missing, unconvincing or irrelevant advantages and disadvantages noted. There is a poor explanation of the different sources of capital. Part B Criteria Max Mark Excellent 6 marks Very Good 5 marks Good 4 marks Satisfactory 3 marks Unsatisfactory 2 - 0 marks Research and discussion of the disclosure requirements for publically listed companies in the financial statements in comparison to other nonlisted companies. Discussion of the benefits of disclosing comparative information in annual financial reports to users including key decision makers and external users, such as investors. 6 Marks An outstanding explanation is provided for the disclosure requirements for publically listed companies in the financial statements in comparison to other non-listed companies with detailed discussion about the benefits of disclosing comparative information in the annual financial reports to intended users, including decision makers or external users such as investors. There is a very good explanation provided for the disclosure requirements for publically listed companies in the financial statements in comparison to other nonlisted companies with detailed discussion about the benefits of disclosing comparative information in the annual financial reports to intended users including decision makers or external users such as investors with only minor recommendations for improvement. There is a good explanation provided for the disclosure requirements for publically listed companies in the financial statements in comparison to other nonlisted companies with a good discussion about the benefits of disclosing comparative information in the annual financial reports to intended users including decision makers or external users such as investors with some recommendations for improvement. There is an adequate explanation provided for the disclosure requirement for publically listed companies in the financial statements in comparison to other nonlisted companies with some discussion on the benefits of disclosing comparative information in annual financial reports to users including decision makers or external users such as investors, but with ostensible recommendations for improvement. There is an inadequate explanation provided for the disclosure requirements for publically listed companies in the financial statements in comparison to other non-listed companies with an inadequate discussion about the benefit of disclosing comparative information in the annual financial reports to intended users including, decision makers or external users such as investors. There are numerous deficiencies noted. Page 6 of 6 HA2032 Corporate and Financial Accounting Other Criteria Max Mark Excellent 2 Marks Very Good 1.75 marks Good 1.5 marks Satisfactory 1 mark Unsatisfactory 0.5 - 0 marks Report Structure and format 2 Marks An excellently formatted and structured report in well composed Academic English phraseology, demonstrating deep critical analysis and an outstanding clarity of thought. No major grammatical, spelling, syntax or punctuation errors are noted. A very well formatted and structured report in well composed Academic English phraseology, which demonstrates a strong coherence of thought and a very good level of analysis within the topic. Only minor grammatical, spelling, syntax or punctuation errors are noted. A well-structured report which demonstrates a sound critical analysis with a good report structure and evidence of logical thought. The report is well written in appropriate Academic English, but there are some grammatical, spelling, syntax or punctuation errors noted, which require correction. The report is adequately presented and structured. The key points were identified and supported with a well thought out rationale based on appropriate unit content. The report is well written in appropriate Academic English, but there are ostensible grammatical, spelling, syntax or punctuation errors noted. The report is poorly structured and formatted. There are numerous grammatical, spelling, syntax and punctuation errors noted. The report is poorly written. There is no logical flow of ideas noted. There are significant deficiencies noted throughout the report. References List and Referencing 2 Marks Evident use and correct acknowledgement of credible Academic sources. Correct in-text citation conventions are noted and the end of list references are correctly presented. NA NA Some use of credible Academic sources, but references are not acknowledged correctly or there are inconsistencies noted in the referencing throughout the report. Non-credible academic sources have been used. Incorrect intext citation is noted and the end of list references are either not referenced or incorrectly referenced. Total 25 Marks