Quality of Earnings
Free Press - Free Press
Release date: 1998-10-01
Paperback
Author: Thornton L. O'glove
Business & Economics, Business / Economics / Finance, Business/Economics, Investments & Securities - General, Business & Economics / General, Business & Economics / Investments & Securities, Investments, Finance
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Quality of Earnings
Date undefinedI read this book because a Wall Street Journal story referred to it as "the" source for quality of earnings analysis. I was somewhat disappointed with the quantity and quality of new information and analytical techniques, but that's not a knock on the book. I think it boils down to your background. If you're a CFO, Controller or seasoned accountant, there may not be alot of new information here for you. The book may be much better for financial analysts that don't have a strong accounting background but need to be able to determine earnings quality. I personally found Creative Cash Flow Reporting (Mulford & Comiskey) to be more useful. Nevertheless, I'm glad to have Quality of Earnings in my library.
Quality of Earnings
Date undefined17 years later and many things have changed. The desire of investors to accurately gauge the stability of the companies in their portfolios remains the same. The incentive of management with stock options to hide the true nature of what the reality of what the company's earnings have been remains strong. Some of the techniques mentioned will be hard to use when companies employ SPEs to hide their true indebtedness and derivative positions mask the Value at Risk. However, many of the technique still have value. The analysis of receivables and inventories can provide insight into the immediate future of the company. The techniques that have lost their clear edge are the debt and write-off analysis. Write-offs are now required by GAAP (although the "big bath" write-offs are still "non-recurring") and SPEs or variable interest entities can obscure debt. It is fascinating in light of Enron, WorldCom, Qwest, Tyco, and Adelphia the stories of companies in the 70s and 80s that were attempting to do the same thing (though often without the fraud). How little man changes through the ages.
Quality of Earnings
Date undefinedLong overdue is a middle market with different rules than those by which the traditional markets must be rated in terms of earnings, and standards, to prevent the wholesale financial shennanigans that took place during the late 90's as VC's funded IPO's and oversold them to the institutional markets. There has always been a very healthy start up market in the U.S. that has yet to be tapped for its vitality, and its uncertainty, that can be just as legitimately traded as NASDAQ and the tradtional market. Defining a method of doing that, and setting it up will provide the U.S. with the vehicle to prevent putting excess pressure on accountants and marketers to whittle away expenses and beef up assets to present healthier stocks than they are to take advantage of the speculatators that most young companies draw. In fact, there should be an entrepreneurial wild mustang market similar to the gold rush vitality that Americans come by so naturally, but apart from the traditional markets that require greater control and stability. Organizing such a market would greatly benefit both the industry, the opportunities for investment, and the many personnel who make their living serving the investment industry and its affiliates. Making such an early trader market by taking advantage of the VC interest in early entrance but allow them to cut out early would help to grow the markets exponentially.
