Comparison of Goldman Sachs and Close Brothers Annual Report

Comparison of Goldman Sachs and Close Brothers Annual Report International Financial Accounting – Comparison of the Annual Reports 2005 of Goldman Sachs and Close Brothers Description of activities and source and type of revenues Goldman Sachs has three main types of activities Investment banking. This covers services like merger and acquisition advice, helping clients raise debt. Trading and principal investments. This covers trading and investing in fixed income and equity products, currencies and commodities. This is the largest division in terms of net revenues and generated 66% of net revenues in 2005. Asset management and security services. This division provides advisory and financial planning services including brokerage and advisory services to wide range of clients like pension fund and hedge funds. Table 1 shows the net income of the above three divisions in 2005. Table 1 – Goldman Sachs: Net income in the year ended November 2005[1] Division Net revenues, $ billion Revenue as % of total Investment banking 3.67 15% Trading and principal investments 16.36 66% Asset management and security services 4.75 19% Total 24.78 100% Close Brothers provides following main activities Investment banking. Close Brothers has three main divisions under investment banking: Asset management. This division manages assets of private clients, trust funds and offshore funds. Corporate finance provides merger and acquisition, financial restructuring and debt advisory services to corporate clients. Market-making division specialises in providing liquidity to the London retail market-making markets in UK and many international shares. Banking division normal banking services like deposits and foreign exchange facilities to personal and professional clients. Table 2 shows the distribution of operating income, as a measure of revenues, of different divisions Table 2 – Close Brothers: Operating income in the year ended 31 July 2005[2] Division Operating income as % of total Asset management 21% Corporate Finance 7% Market-making 24% Investment banking 52% Banking 48% Total 100% Profitability of the two companies from the company and shareholders perspectives The table 3 shows the profitability of Goldman Sachs in the years ended November 2004 and 2005 Table 3 – Goldman Sachs: Profitability[3] 2005 2004 % change Net revenues, $ billion 24.78 20.55 20.6% Pre-tax earnings, $ billion 8.27 6.68 23.8% % of revenues 33.4% 32.5% Net earnings, $ billion 5.63 4.55 23.7% % of revenues 22.7% 22.1% Diluted earnings per common share, $ 11.21 8.92 25.7% Return on average common shareholders equity 21.80% 19.80% 10.1% Goldman Sachs increased its net revenues by 20.6 % in 2005 whereas pre-tax earnings increased by 23.8 % in the corresponding period. This shows that the company achieved not only higher profits in 2005 but also increased the profitability by limiting growth in expenses. This is supported by the fact that pre-tax earnings as a percent of net revenues were 33.4 % in 2005 compared to 32.5 % in 2004. Net earnings also increased by 23.7 % in the year 2005 in line with growth in pre-tax earnings. The higher growth in net earnings compared to net revenues shows that higher sales were not achieved at the expense of lower margins. Profitability for shareholders is measured in terms of diluted earnings per share. The growth in diluted earnings per share was 25.7 % in 2005. This was even higher than the growth in net-earnings. Shareholders’ profitability is also measured in terms of return on shareholders equity which is net earnings divided by the shareholders equity. This increased by 10% from 19.8 % in 2004 to 21.8 % in 2005. Higher return indicates Goldman Sachs is using equity to earn higher profits. The table 4 shows the profitability of Close Brothers for the years ended July 2004 and 2005 Table 4 – Close Brothers: Profitability[4] 2005 2004 % change Operating income,  £ m 448 401.2 11.7% Pre-tax profit,  £ m 108.62 101.34 7.2% % of operating income 24.2% 25.3% Profit after tax,  £ m 70.75 67.42 4.9% % of operating income 15.8% 16.8% Diluted earnings per common share,  £ 0.47 0.45 4.4% Profit attributable to shareholders,  £ m 68.58 65.21 Shareholders equity,  £ m 540.32 509.26 Return on average common shareholders equity 12.69% 12.80% -0.9% Close Brothers increased its operating income by 11.7 % in 2005 whereas pre-tax earnings increased by 7.2 % only in the corresponding period. This shows that the increase in pre-tax profits was countered by a much higher increase in expenses. The operating margin dropped by 1% from 25.3 % in 2004 to 24.2 % in 2005. Operating margins of Close Brother were about 9 % lower than that of Goldman Sachs indicating that Close Brothers operates in a more competitive environment. Similarly profit after tax as a percent of revenues were 7 % lower in case of Close Brothers – 15.8 % for Close Brothers compared to 22.7 % for Goldman Sachs. The growth in diluted earnings per share was only 4.4 % in 2005. This is much lower than the growth in Goldman Sachs earning per share. The return on common shareholder equity was only 12.70 % in case of Close Brother which means that from shareholders point of view return in Goldman Sachs is higher than Close Brothers. Long-term financial structure of two companies Table 5 shows the financial structure of Goldman Sachs looking at its short and long-term borrowings along with shareholders equity. Table 5 – Financial structure of Goldman Sachs[5] 2005 2004 $ billion % $ billion % Short term borrowings 55.22 36% 54.96 41% Long term borrowings Secured 15.67 10% 12.09 9% Unsecured 84.34 54% 68.61 51% 100.01 64% 80.7 59% Total borrowings 155.23 100% 135.66 100% Cash and cash equivalent 10.26 4.36 Net debt 144.97 131.30 Shareholders equity 28.00 25.08 Long term debt to equity 78% 76% Net debt / (net debt + equity) 84% 84% The % of long-term borrowings has increased from 59 % to 64 % in the year 2005. This has mainly come from the increase in unsecured long-term borrowings. The company is highly geared and its net debt to total capital ratio is 84 %. As of November 2005, 84 % of Goldman Sachs was financed through net debt, i.e., out of every $1 of its capital, 84 cents came from debt. The table 6 shows the financial structure of Close Brothers. Table 6 – Financial Structure of Close Brothers[6] 2005 2004  £ m %  £ m % Short term borrowings 132.22 15% 287.36 40% Long term borrowings 729.28 85% 434.00 60% Total borrowings 861.5 100% 721.36 100% Cash and cash equivalent 1.25 0.85 Net debt 860.25 720.51 Shareholders equity 540.32 509.26 Long term debt to equity 57% 46% Net debt / (net debt + equity) 61% 59% Company’s long-term borrowings have increased significantly from 60 % to 85 % in the year 2005. Close Brothers gearing are more on long-term borrowings as compared to Goldman Sachs. The net debt to total capital ratio is 61 % which means that Close Brothers is less geared compared to Goldman Sachs. Because of higher equity percent in Close Brothers, the long-term debt to equity ratio of Close Brothers is only 57 % in 2005 as compared to 78 % of Goldman Sachs. Analysis of difference in cash flow from profit Cash flows differ from profits because of the following major items: Inclusion of non-cash items like depreciation and amortisation in net profits Cash inflow and outflow in purchase and sale of property and businesses. In case of purchase, no impact is on profit and loss. In case of a sale, only profit or loss over the cost price is included in the profits and not the full amount of sale. Cash inflow or outflow from the financing activities like raising or retiring loan, issue of equity. This impacts cash flow but is not included in the profit and loss statement. We now look at the above sources of difference for both Goldman Sachs and Close Brothers. Table 7 shows the cash flow calculation from net profits of Goldman Sachs for the year 2005. Table 7 – Comparison of cash flow and profits of Goldman Sachs[7] $ bln Net profits 5.63 Cash flow Net profits 5.63 Non-cash items in net earnings 2.16 Cash used in assets and liabilities -20.203 Cash used in operating activities -12.413 Cash from investing activities -1.06 Cash from financing activities 19.37 Change in cash 5.90 Goldman used $12.4 billion of cash in operating activities in 2005 and this includes $20.20 billion of cash used in assets and liabilities. Operating activities also include $2.16 billion of non-cash items like depreciation and amortisation, deferred income tax and stock options. Another $ 1 billion of cash was used in purchase of businesses, property and leases. The cash outflow from operating activities was compensated by cash inflow from financing of $19.37 billion. This was mainly made up of cash inflow of $43 billion from long-term borrowings. Table 8 shows the cash flow calculation of Close Brothers for the year 2005. Table 8 – Comparison of cash flow and profits of Close Brothers for the year ended 31 July 2005[8]  £ m Profit after tax 70.75 Cash flow Cash flow from operating 521.52 Tax -37.82 Net cash flow from operating activities 483.70 Cash from investing activities -171.23 Cash from financing activities -67.98 Change in cash 244.49 While the profit after tax was only  £70.75 million, cash increased by  £244.49 million in the year 2005. This was mainly due to net cash inflow from operating activities of  £483 million. The differences in the sources of cash generation arise between Goldman Sachs and Close Brothers arise from the way they include cash items under different categories. Close Brother was able to show high cash inflow from operating activities because of classification of reduction in loan advances of  £190 million and loan notes issuance of  £260 million under trading activities. If we take out the above two ash inflows form operating activities, then net cash inflow from operating activities would be only  £33.7 million (483.7 – 190 – 260). Also then the cash flow form financing activities would change from - £68 million to  £382 million. Examples of accounting transactions subject to different GAAP Goodwill amortisation and impairment. Goldman Sachs is listed at New York Stock Exchange and subject to US GAAP. Under US accounting SFAS No. 142 â€Å"Goodwill and Other Intangible Asset†, Goldman Sachs tests goodwill each year for impairment[9]. It amortises intangible assets over the useful life which was on average 16 years in 2005[10]. Close Brothers follows Financial Reporting Standard No. 10 and amortised the goodwill over 20 years[11]. Where Goldman Sachs has an option to choose the useful life, companies in UK normally follow the option of 20 years. The change in amortisation years results in difference in profits even though this is a non-cash item. Share based compensation. Goldman Sachs followed US accounting principles SFAS 123 and SFAS 148 under which the compensation expense is recognised over the relevant service period[12]. Close Brother didn’t expense the share based compensation in the year 2005 and expects that future alignment with International Financial Reporting Standards on expensing of share based award will reduce profits by  £ 4 million[13]. Summary of non-numeric information in the annual report and importance to the shareholders Summary of information for Goldman Sachs Investment banking backlog increased in 2005 over 2004[14]. This means that the company was expecting more business to materialise in fees in 2005 and also shows the healthy environment in financial markets. The company increased its market risk in equities and interest rate products in the second half of 2005 assuming that market conditions will remain favourable[15]. If market conditions turn against Goldman Sachs assumption, the riskier investments would lead to higher losses. The business is very prone to financial market conditions and hence it is difficult to predict future earnings[16]. Investors with good knowledge of financial markets – mainly sophisticated institutional investors – can predict with some reasonability future earnings of a company like Goldman Sachs. It would be difficult for individual investors to do the same and hence they have to rely on credible sources for future earning potential of Goldman Sachs. Summary of information for Close Brothers The business performance is subject to economic conditions in UK[17]. Bad debt charge was low in 2005 due to low interest rate and full employment. Increase in interest rate and low employment would increase bad debt charge and reduce profitability. Reputation risk is the most importance and any public failure can lead to significant reduction in income[18]. Implementation of International Financial Reporting Standards could have a material impact on income because of issues like recognition of share based awards[19]. BIBLIOGRAPHY Goldman Sachs, Annual Report 2005, http://www2.goldmansachs.com/our_firm/investor_relations/financial_reports/annual_reports/2005/ Close Brothers, Annual Report 2005, http://www.closebrothers.co.uk/uploads/cbg2005full.pdf Footnotes [1] Goldman Sachs, Annual Report 2005 [2] Close Brothers, Annual Report 2005 [3] Goldman Sachs, Annual Report 2005 [4] Close Brothers, Annual Report 2005 [5] Goldman Sachs, Annual Report 2005 [6] Close Brothers, Annual Report 2005 [7] Goldman Sachs, Annual Report 2005 [8] Close Brothers, Annual Report 2005 [9] Goldman Sachs, Annual Report 2005, Pg. 74 [10] Goldman Sachs, Annual Report 2005, Pg. 89 [11] Close Brothers, Annual Report 2005, Pg. 31 [12] Goldman Sachs, Annual Report 2005, Pg. 73 [13] Close Brothers, Annual Report 2005, Pg. 8 [14] Goldman Sachs, Annual Report 2005, Pg. 24 [15] Goldman Sachs, Annual Report 2005, Pg. 25 [16] Goldman Sachs, Annual Report 2005, Pg. 25 [17] Close Brothers, Annual Report 2005, Pg. 5 [18] Close Brothers, Annual Report 2005, Pg. 6 [19] Close Brothers, Annual Report 2005, Pg. 8

Bizet, Georges :: essays research papers

Georges Bizet   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Georges Bizet was born in Paris on October 25th, 1838. He was trained by his parents, who were musical, and admitted to the Paris Conservatoire just before his tenth birthday. There he studied counterpoint with Zimmerman and Gounod and composition with Halà ©vy, and under Marmontel's tuition he became a brilliant pianist. Bizet's exceptional powers as a composer are already apparent in the products of his Conservatoire years, notably the Symphony in C, a work of precocious genius dating from 1855 (but not performed until 1935). In 1857 Bizet shared with Lecocq a prize offered by Offenbach for a setting of the one-act operetta Le Docteur Miracle; later that year he set out for Italy as holder of the coveted Prix de Rome.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  During his three years in Rome Bizet began or projected many compositions; only four survive, including the opera buffa, Don Procopio (not performed until 1906). Shortly after his return to Paris, in September 1861, his mother died; the composer consoled himself with his parents' maid, by whom he had a son in June 1862. He rejected teaching at the Conservatoire and the temptation to become a concert pianist, and completed his obligations under the terms of the Prix de Rome. The last of these, a one-act opà ©ra comique, La guzla de l'emir, was rehearsed at the Opà ©ra-Comique in 1863 but withdrawn when the Thà ©Ãƒ ¢tre-Lyrique director, who had been offered 100 000 francs to produce annually an opera by a Prix de Rome winner who had not had a work staged, invited Bizet to compose Les pà ªcheurs de perles.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Bizet completed it in four months. It was produced in September 1863, but met with a generally cool reception: an uneven work, with stiff characterization, it is notable for the skilful scoring of its exotic numbers. In the ensuing years Bizet earned a living arranging other composers' music and giving piano lessons. Not until December 1867 was another opera staged - La jolie fille de Perth, which shows a surer dramatic mastery than Les pà ªcheurs despite an inept libretto. It received a good press but had only 18 performances.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  1868 was a year of crisis for Bizet, with more abortive works, attacks of quinsy and a reexamination of his religious stance; and his attitude to music grew deeper. In June 1869 he married Genevià ¨ve, daughter of his former teacher, Halà ©vy, and the next year they suffered the privations caused by the Franco-Prussian war (Bizet enlisted in the National Guard).

Cases in Financial Management Essay

Case Synopsis Founded in 1984 Laurentian Bakeries Inc. operates in the industry of manufacturing a vast variety of frozen baked products within their three operating plants in Montreal, Winnipeg and Toronto. The operating plants produce items such as frozen pizza in Winnipeg, MB, pies in Montreal, QC and Cakes in Toronto, ON- with each representing 30%, 30% and 40% of the total revenue stream respectively. The buyers for this company include large institutional clients such domino’s pizza, etc. which have a significantly higher level of power whereas the seller of the products consists of several food producers which have a relatively low level of power. With the cost of setting up a plant of this scale being high, substitute products will also remain high in the market causing the overall profit margin to be low. With the company’s ongoing effort for continuous improvement Danielle Knowles (VP of operations) proposed to expand one of the operating plants in Winnipeg-which was based on the opportunity if the company expanded into the U.S. market. Statement The statement of the problem is how Danielle Knowles will prepare a capital project expenditure proposal to expand the company’s frozen pizza plant in Winnipeg; which is consistent and in line with the company’s capital allocation policy. The proposal should also satisfy the company’s continuous effort for improvement, identification of lost opportunities, satisfaction of HR and environmental impacts and provide sufficient ROI. Situational Analysis The strengths of the company are clearly visible through the company’s effective operations and reputable image in the industry. Being one of the top five in the industry, Laurentian Bakeries has established themselves as a dominant player in the market; however, with a shortage in capacity it can  potentially overpower the strengths due to its negative impact on the company. This includes a decrease in sales and potential decreases in retailer support. Nevertheless, with the acknowledgement of a capacity shortage and an opportunity to expand and grow in the U.S. market the company seems to be in good standing. Moving aside to a different area amongst the competition, all the products are similar which indicate there is heavy competition. The presence of numerous suppliers makes this industry highly competitive, as a result, there is high aggression amongst competitors. This is a leading factor that indicates this is not an attractive business to be in. SWOT ANALYSIS Strengths * Danielle Knowles has experience in the food industry for 13 years. This is a great benefit for the company, because she is able to use her knowledge and experience and apply it for Laurentian Bakeries in order to improve operations or even avoid errors. This in return can potentially save the company from incurring additional expenses. * Danielle has her Master’s in Business Administration which indicates that she is educated and has the credentials to maintain her position as the VP of operations. Also, Danielle is able to use that knowledge and apply it to everyday operations of the company. * Laurentian has above average consideration for human resource and environmental impacts. This benefits the company to the extent that it creates a public awareness which shows their commitment to the community which in return can potentially be used as a marketing tool to attract more sales. * Laurentian company is one of the five large firms that produce frozen foods dominating 21% of the market. This indicates that they are a dominant player in the market and have survived many difficulties from various competitions. * Well established and profitable company which indicates that they have survived one full economic cycle and have withstood their competition. * The company has a diversified revenue stream with three operating plants located in major cities which are not as risky as a single revenue stream. * All three segments are profitable. * Low cost pizza producer which is helping to expand into the US. Market. * Laurentian Bakeries has an integrated workforce such as sales, marketing, etc. for all of their operating plants. Weakness * Shortage of capacity. If this weakness is not dealt with the company can face losses in their sales because of the shortage. This in return lowers the overall profit of the company and can potentially decrease buyers if they cannot meet the demand due to the shortage. * Class 1 products are too risky and by taking such a great risk any wrong doing can have a negative impact on the company. Opportunities * Arrangement to supply large U.S. based grocery chain with private label brand. If the opportunity is taken to its advantage the company can potentially see higher figures in sales and profits. * Since U.S. pizza consumption is 3x bigger than the Canadian segment the overall US market is bigger which can potentially lead to a higher market share. * Within N.A. the economy is recovering modestly and is expected to grow. This indicates that consumer spending on discretionary items such as food products will remain strong. Threats * Inflation is forecasted to remain between 3-5%. This may cause interest rates to rise causing the cost of capital to increase higher than its current level. Capital projects such as expansion may suffer. * North American growth rate of gross domestic product slowed down which may lower the company sales. * Threat of new entrants will increase competition and is always a factor that makes the sales aggressive. * Health Conscious consumers will potentially affect sales due to the products offered by Laurentian Bakeries are considered â€Å"unhealthy.† With on-going health awareness the products offered by Laurentian Bakeries might not meet the changing demand of consumers. Porter’s Five Forces Buyer’s Power * Mixed Power. * There are two types of buyers: large institutional buyers such as  domino’s pizza & pizza pizza as well as large retailers. Thousands of smaller clients have less power because of their current low clientele base. Supplier Power * Low Power. * Pizza suppliers distribute production to pizza stores, restaurants and grocery chain stores. Since there are numerous suppliers in the market for ingredients such as cheese, flour, vegetables, etc. they have low power. Barriers to Entrant * High * Due to high capital costs, skilled workforces, environmental regulations, high distribution channels, entry into this industry is high. Threat of Substitute * High * The products offered by Laurentian such as their Pizza can be made at home or even purchased fresh from fast food restaurants. Also they can easily be substituted for other products such as calzone, sandwiches, tacos, etc. Competition * High * There is high competition for the items offered by Laurentian Bakers. Competition for their pizza baked items can easily be substituted through franchised restaurants such as Pizza Pizza, Boston Pizza, Pizza Hut, etc. also competition is high through other companies offering the same goods. In addition, this company is also competing against other food products rather than frozen pizza alone. Financial Analysis Financial Summary: Laurentian Bakeries is seeing a cash increase from $6.2 million in 1993 to almost double its value of $13.1 million in 1995. At the same time long term debt for the company has increased by $7.23 million which indicated that Laurentian Bakeries is funded by its long term debt and has not utilized its cash and therefore has incurred additional interest expenses. Moving over to the sales figures, Laurentian Bakeries has seen an increase of 11% from 1993-95; however, net income is flat which indicates that their COGS and operating expenses have also risen almost at the same pace as sales. This setback has no advantage to the shareholders. Alternatives 1. Continue original plans to continue expansion in Winnipeg. 2. Build a plant in U.S. to cater to that market. 3. Buy an existing plant. 4. Expand the Toronto plant as it is the strongest plant for the company. Recommendations By carefully analyzing all the alternatives, we recommend alternative one as the best fit solution to this company due to it being most practical at the company’s current situation. We strongly believe that continuing original plans to expand in Winnipeg is the beneficial solution for the company as they already produce the same type of products and have the additional land to carry forward the expansion, because this plant is a low cost producer and is ideal to utilize the U.S private label sector. In addition, this alternative is beneficial because it is consistent with the company’s overall objectives. Given the discount rate of 18% and a $5.2 million capital investment the NPV of the expected cash flow is positive. Moreover, recommendation one is the best suited for this company because: * There is land readily available in Winnipeg. This can save the company some money in terms of the expansion because these will incur less of an expense due to Laurentian owning the extra land space. * Building a plant in U.S. will require a lot of capital, additional expenses for hiring, training, etc., and potential change in production, management or other techniques due to different regulations in U.S. * Expanding in Toronto will also require additional capital and additional time to hire and train the workforce to produce the pizza products which aren’t produced in the Toronto facility.

The Search for Happiness Essay - 1026 Words

The search for happiness has been one of the greatest driving forces over the ages. Defined as an active or passive sense of pleasure or satisfaction, happiness drives individuals to accomplish a number of fulfilling activities in their lives. Thus an evaluation of meanings attached to happiness provides insight on how an individual maximizes their pleasure. Concepts of positive-psychology provide an explanation of what is happiness and show a number of activities that enhance contentment. Najemy (89) argues that the theory of authentic happiness provides an approach for explaining happiness since it employs positive emotions, engagement, and meaning to describe such emotion. The theory states that happiness is the feeling that†¦show more content†¦The well-being theory contends that those aspects are important in evaluating happiness since they contribute to an individual’s well-being, individuals for their own sake pursue them, and they are evaluated differently. The theory also discussed the significance of utilizing meaning in explaining happiness. According to Ahmed (124), attaching meaning to an individual’s activities draws higher pleasures since individuals derive purpose from their activities. Concepts of positive psychology argue that happiness in life entails participating in activities that result to the greatest benefit without obligation. Most of these activities involve the creation of meaningful relationships that promote emotional stability hence attracting enjoyment. Diener, Kahneman, and Schwarz (359) argue that different individuals derive happiness from varying activities.For instance, a number of individuals relate marriage and love to happiness and well-being. This is because those who are in love are happier, and healthier than unmarried, single individuals (Ahmed 215).The aspect of good health, and happiness in marriage can be attributed to income, companionship, and childbearing. 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