BUACC5932 Corporate Accounting

This assignment is part of the continuous assessment and feedback.  It is a group assignment with a maximum of three students. Please note again that as this is a group assignment and all students in the group are expected to work together and to contribute equitably. 30 % marks have been allocated to the group based case study report prepared on the basis of analysis of the annual report of the company allocated to the group and each student in a particular group will score same mark.

Due date of submission of assignment

Due date of submission of group assignment for all students is Friday week 9.

Late assignments

Extensions for assignments need to be made through Federation University’s special consideration procedures.  Assignments submitted after the due date without special consideration granted, will be automatically penalised at a rate of 10% per day late.  Assignments will not be accepted if more than five days late, unless prior approval has been given.

Objectives

The educational objective of this task is to develop student capabilities to read, interpret and analyse financial statements; to apply international accounting standards; to prepare a report on corporate financial performance; and to make judgments on applying appropriate accounting standards to different business situations. Your report should demonstrate ability to access online corporate information and analysis of accounting information. This assignment will involve the use of corporate annual reports, analysis of the relevant information provided within the reports, compare and contrast the information with the requirement of relevant accounting standards and finally reporting your observations and conclusion.

Tasks involved

1.    Choose the latest annual report for any one of the following companies

Your group shall be allocated latest annual report of one of the following companies listed on the Australian Stock Exchange.  Your group is required to answer following  assignment questions for the company selected in a report format and also compare the findings of your company ( wherever necessary) with another competing company from the same industry selected by your assignment group ( Preferably from ASX 200 companies available at http://www.asx200list.com/ )

1. AGL Energy Limited (Utilities)
2. Newcrest Mining Limited (Materials)
3. Qantas Airways Limited (Industrials)
4. Ramsay Health Care Limited (Healthcare)
5. RIO Tinto Limited (Materials)
6. TABCORP Holdings Limited (Consumer Discretionary)
7. Tatts Group Limited (Consumer Discretionary)
8. Telstra Corporation Limited (Telecommunication Services)

• All annual reports are available on the website of these companies.
• Choosing a company other than those mentioned above is not permitted.
• All accounting standards are available on online database or these standards can also be accessed on AASB web site (www.aasb.gov.au).

2. Draft a report incorporating the following points in relation to your selected company (not exceeding 2,000 words).

Company- Introduction, Business & operating activities, Finances and Financial performance

• Describe the core business of the company. Provide full details of its different activities and or business segments.
• Discuss the industry that the chosen company operates in. For example, is it a growing or declining industry; which are the main competitors of the company and what are they doing, etc.  Ensure you discuss the implications of these factors.
• How the company is funded vis-à-vis internal or external sources? Critically analyse the financial structure of the company?
• Describe key elements of Financial Performance reported by the company in the annual report.
• Has this company reported any event that occurred after the reporting date? Describe the event.
• Were there any changes in accounting policies disclosed in the annual report? If yes, describe those changes.

    Assets – PPE and Intangibles

• What is the carrying amount of each class of Property, Plant, and Equipment, at reporting date, of your company?
• Describe the accounting policies relating to Property, Plant, and Equipment adopted by your company.
• Identify the intangible assets reported by the company. Discuss their composition and relevance to the company’s business.
• Describe the accounting policies relating to Intangible Assets adopted by your company.
• Are any items of Property, Plant, and Equipment, and/or Intangible Assets of your company impaired? If so, identify which assets are impaired, and the amount of accumulated impairment losses.

Research component

• If your selected company publishes any corporate social responsibility report or sustainability report, then discuss some of their key initiatives regarding their social responsibility and sustainability
• Conduct search for any media stories, blogs or other commentary about your selected company’s initiatives. For example do they place profit before people? Do they have any credible projects? Use your analytical skills to critically analyse these issues in relations to initiatives of selected company
• Why do you think corporate social responsibility and sustainability have become so important in the modern corporate world? Use any sources (books, journal articles, Parliament debates, Royal Commissions, media, blogs, etc.) and critically argue the case.

Note:  It is important to refer to relevant accounting standards in your report to score high marks in this group assignment.