The coursework will be undertaken as an individual work. You are required to analyse the recent financial performance of a major UK company from the assigned list provided (available on Blackboard) including a financial comparison with one of its direct competitors. The report should conclude with an investment recommendation for a potential equity investor (i.e., whether to buy, sell or hold the company’s shares).
Using financial ratio analysis as well as other techniques, you are required to use the company’s latest Annual Report and to make comparisons with the performance of one other company in the same industry. When writing the report, your focus should be on the main company, using the other company and any industry average data as a benchmark for comparison. Do not write your report as if you are analysing the two companies separately.
You are required to write a 2,000-word report to an investor, containing a detailed analysis of the financial position and the financial performance of the company.
Given that the latest annual report and financial statements of any company are already out of date by the time it is made available, you will be expected to show knowledge of the present and likely future economic & business environment within which the company is operating to make informed comments on the financial ratios that you calculate. The completed coursework is to be in the form of a written report.You are encouraged to use Excel to calculate the financial ratios. Your Excel sheets (one for each company) should be copied and pasted into the main report as an appendix (not to be part of the word count).