Current Ratio – Formula, Meaning, Assumptions and Interpretations
February 12, 2025
The retail business runs on wafer thin margins. As a result, every additional dollar that the store is able to generate in sales or save by reducing costs matters to the bottom line. It is for this reason that retail stores across the world have felt the need to automate their in-store operations. Retail automation […]
The ultimate aim of all business is to generate profit. That is what the investors invest for, management plans for and employees execute for. Profitability Needs Context Two companies may be generating the exact same amount of rupee profits, however that does not mean that they are equally profitable. This is because profit is an […]
Retail companies have traditionally been one of the largest users of real estate in the world. It is common for retail companies to lease out large commercial retail spaces and utilize them in their business. Over the years, the usage of real estate has drastically come down because of the increase in online retailing. However, […]
Domestic Funds Transfer It is common for individuals and entities to transfer funds to their friends, family, business partners, and associates. The way funds transfer works is opaque to the individual as he or she simply instructs the banks (or enables funds transfer when using online banking) and waits for confirmation from the other end […]
Latvia is a small country nestles in Eastern Europe. Nothing from this country seemed remarkable to the global financial world before November 2008. After 2008, Latvia became a different story altogether. This small nation was also suffering from the crisis that rocked the world in 2008. The people lost billions of dollars, and some of […]
Working Capital to Sales Ratio = Working Capital / Sales
Stating the working capital as an absolute figure makes little sense. Consider two companies, both having the same working capital of USD 100. While one company uses this working capital to generate sales of USD 500, the other uses the same amount as working capital to generate USD 1000 in sales. Which one do you think will be more profitable? Which one do you think is more efficient?
When companies use the same working capital to generate more sales, it means that they are using the same funds over and over again. This is why this ratio is also called “Working Capital Turnover Ratio” as it measures the number of times working capital has been turned over. The higher the sales, the more the profits and therefore the more appropriate use of working capital has been made.
The working capital to sales ratio uses the working capital and sales figures from the previous year’s financial statements. Hence, there is obviously an assumption that working capital and sales have been accurately stated. Companies may over stock or under stock because of expectations of shortage of raw materials. These influences are however short term. Thus while reading this number the analyst must compare it with the past numbers to see if this is usual state of affairs for the company or whether this is an exception.
These investors may be true because the stock market takes any news of cash shortage very seriously and the stock plummets in the market. But the price in the stock may be short term.
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