Cash flow profile analysis of business: An international comparison

Cash and cash management is vitally important for business entities. The information of the source of cash that a business entity has and the knowledge of where the cash is used provide information about the current state of the business entity and its future status. Information that can be effective in the planning and decision-making process can be obtained by analyzing cash flow statements that provide important information about cash flows. The main aim of this study is to make an international comparison by evaluating the cash flow statements of the business entities with different analysis methods. For this purpose, cash flow statements covering the period 2010-2016 of 100 national and international companies with the highest net sales revenue were examined. Cash flow method and ration method are used in the analysis. In this study, information on statements is provided in accordance with national and international standards and itis tried to show that the methods used can be complementary to each other. As a result of the study, it appears that the analysis of cash flow statements provides information about cash flows as well as providing important information about the current and future situation of the business entities. In addition, it is seen that more accurate results can be obtained by using cash flow statements together with other financial statements and different analysis methods.