Introduction to Quarterly Results
Quarterly results are known from the quarterly reports that companies generate at the end of every three months in their financial year. It is an unaudited summary of financial statements that also includes comparative analysis of the previous quarter and year’s figures.
Understanding Quarterly Results
Every listed company, under clause 41 of the listing agreement, every public company is required to file the earnings report of quarter ended, the preceding quarter, corresponding quarter last year, year-to-date figures of the current year, comparative figures for the last year and numbers for the previous year. The deadline before which the report must be filed is within 45 days from the time the quarter ended. Key performance indicators are presented to the investors and the analysts, or put up publicly for anybody to analyse the statements. The notable figures analyzed include Earnings Per Share (EPS), gross sales, net sales, operating expenses, net profit. The three statements that comprise income, expenditure, cash flow and profit. The quarterly report and results vary between various companies; for instance, non-banking and banking companies report their performance differently, and manufacturing and service companies will follow varied formats. In addition to that, companies also provide an overview of their vision and mission, their objectives, the amount of money spent and contributions to CSR, employee initiatives, key strategic decisions etc.
Highlights of Quarterly Results
- Investors, retail and mutual fund houses, will pay critical attention to quarterly results of companies to determine the investing decision. It is on the basis of the EPS, the other ratios, the revenue and profits, that matter in showing the healthy growth of a company.
- Quarterly reports are filed under various heads, showing the expenditure and revenue from those investments or expenses.
- Quarterly results are usually found in the context of public companies as they are required to publish their reports owing to being listed. Private companies are not required to make quarterly reports, nor publish them.
