2023/24 ASSIGNMENT REMIT – DOCUMENT UPLOAD

Programme Title MSc/PGDip Finance and Accounting

Module Title Financial Accounting and Reporting

Module Code 1887

ASSIGNMENT TITLE Financial Accounting Report

Level Level 7

Weighting 100%

Lecturers Asif Sadiq

W/C Hand Out Date 02/10/2023

Due Date By 17:00 on 18/01/2024

Feedback Post Date 19/02/2024

ASSIGNMENT FORMAT FILE UPLOAD (DOCUMENT)

Essay/Report Format Formal Report

Assignment Word Count 3500 words

Submission Format e-Submission Individual

Permitted use of Artificial

Artificial Intelligence can ONLY be used as per the formal UCB
Intelligence within this
guidance (see UCB’s guidance on the next page)
assessment

ASSIGNMENT TASK:

Task 1:
a) To ascertain the company financial affairs and value, financial statements are being analysed. Financial
statements tend to reflect past events although it is used to make future decisions. Discuss the purpose
and value of financial accounting in decision making. (10 marks)

b) The International Accounting Standards Board is the independent standard setting body of the IFRS
Foundation. Discuss the role and objectives of International Accounting Standards Board. (10 marks)

Task 2:
a) Oak Ltd prepares financial statements to 31 December each year. The company’s trial balance at 31
December 2022 is as follows:
 £ £
Land at valuation 1650,000
Buildings at cost 2400,000
Equipment and motor vehicles at cost 600,000
Allowances for depreciation at 1 January 2022:
Buildings 360,000
Equipment and motor vehicles 150,000
Inventory at 1 January 2022 265,500
Trade receivables 216,000
Trade payables 255,000
Allowance for trade receivables at 1 January 2022 2,160
Bank balance 27,000
9% Loan 450,000
Purchases 1455,000
Sales 4518,000
Directors’ fees 150,000
Wages and salaries 315,000
General administrative expenses 420,000
General distribution costs 324,000
Interest paid 40,500
Dividends paid 120,000
Ordinary shares of £1 1062,000
Share Premium 300,000
Retained earnings at 1 January 2022 831,840
7956,000 7956,000
The following information is also available:

• Closing inventory for the year ending 31st December 2022, £360,000.
• The buildings will be depreciated using the straight-line method at 15% per annum basis. Land is
non-depreciable.
• Equipment and vehicles are depreciated at 25% per annum on the reducing balance basis.
• The allowance for trade receivables should be adjusted to 6% of the remaining trade receivables.
• The company's tax liability for the year to 31 December 2022 is estimated to be £182,000.

• General admin expenses bill prepaid for the year was £8,000.
Required:
Prepare the following financial statements for Oak Ltd. All workings must be shown.
i) A statement of profit or loss for the year to 31 December 2022.
ii) A statement of financial position as at 31 December 2022.
(10 marks)

b) You have been asked to prepare the statement of cashflows for Jubilee Ltd for the year ended 31
December 2022 using the below information:
Statement of Financial Position as at:
2022 2021
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
Non-current assets
Property, plant and equipment 8,000 5,440
Current assets
Inventory 160 80
Trade receivables 200 280
Bank 280 320
640 680
8,640 6,120
Equity and liabilities
Share capital 2,800 2,400
Share premium 600 200
Retained earnings 4,200 2,800
7,600 5,400
Non-current liabilities
Long-term loans 400 200
Current liabilities
Trade payables 80 40
Tax 560 480
640 520
8,640 6,120
Statement of Profit or Loss for the year ended 31st December 2022
£000s
Revenue 4,800
Cost of sales -800
Gross profit 4,000
Loss on disposal of property, plant and equipment -120
Distribution cost -400
Administrative expenses -800
Profit from operations 2,680
Finance cost -160
Profit before tax 2,520
Tax -720
Profit after tax 1,800
Further information:
• The total depreciation charge for the year was £600.000.
• Property, plant and equipment with a carrying value to £800,000 was sold in the year.
• A dividend of £400,000 was paid during the year.

Required:
Prepare a statement of cash flows for Jubilee Ltd for the year ended 31st December 2022.
(Total 10 marks)

Task 3:
a) Having completed master’s degree in finance and accounting, you have been appointed as an intern in
a medium sized financial investment firm, Morgan & Co. The Investment Manager of Morgan & Co has
been thinking to invest in either of two companies listed below. You have been assigned a task to analyse
and evaluate both companies and make recommendations for suitable investment.

i) Marks and Spencer Plc

M&S is a leading British retailer bringing quality, great value food, clothing and homeware to millions
of customers around the world. The company management is committed in making every moment special
for customers, through their food, clothing & home products in stores worldwide and online. M&S sells
beautifully designed, high-quality clothing and homeware through full-lines stores, outlets and M&S.com
website. Further information can be found through the link below or from the Marks and Spencer recent
annual report online.
Link:https://corporate.marksandspencer.com/sites/marksandspencer/files/2023-
06/M%26S_2023_Annual_Report.pdf
ii) Next Plc
Next plc is a British multinational clothing, footwear and home products retailer, which has its
headquarters in England. It has around 700 stores, of which circa 500 are in the United Kingdom, and
circa 200 across Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Over the last few years, several larger format fashion
and home stores have opened across the UK. Further information can be found through the link below or
through the recent annual report of Next plc:
Link:https://www.nextplc.co.uk/~/media/Files/N/Next-PLC-V2/documents/2023/annual-reports-and-
account-jan-2023.pdf

You are required to:

Prepare a report by evaluating and analysing the financial information for both companies and give your
recommendation on which of the above company is suitable for investment. The report must include:
i) The calculation of financial ratios for two years (2022 and 2023)

• Current ratio

• Net profit margin

• Gearing ratio

• Earnings per share

• Dividend pay-out ratio (5 marks)

ii) Analyse the performance, financial position and investment potential for both companies. You
should use graphs/charts to compare the performances of both companies. You will need to carry out
further research and examine the audited financial reports in order to present the performance of both
companies. (30 marks)

iii) Provide recommendations on how the financial performance of poorly performing company could
be improved. (10 marks)

b) You are working as a financial analyst for an investment company which advises businesses and
individuals on investment on share market. Your line manager has asked you to select a FTSE 100
company from the following table and write a report to the board of Directors of the company.

Anglo American Antofagasta Ashtead AB Foods BHP

Auto Trader BAE Systems Experian Bunzl BP
British American Tobacco AstraZeneca Carnival Burberry BT
Smith & Nephew Coca-Cola Compass Croda CRH
Barratt Developments Taylor Wimpey EasyJet Evraz DCC
Ferguson GlaxoSmithKline Fresnill Glencore ITV
InterContinental Hotels Imperial Brands Informa Hikma NMC
Rolls-Royce Rentokil Initial Melrose Just East Ocado
Paddy Power Betfair Johnson Matthey Micro Focus Mondi SSE
 National Grid Whitbread Pearson Kingfisher M&S
International Airlines Group Reckitt Benckiser Persimmon Halma RELX
Rightmove Rio Tinto Intertek Shell Sage
Sainsbury’s Severn Trent Centrica Smith DS TUI
Smurfit Kappa Spirax-Sarco Morrisons Diageo Tesco
Smiths Group United Utilities Unilever Vodafone Next

Detail of the report is as follow:

Obtain a copy of the latest annual reports for the selected FTSE 100 Company. You are required to use
consolidated financial statements if your chosen company is the parent of a group.

Use these annual reports and other relevant information such as Regulatory News Service (RNS),
Journals and Newspaper articles to answer the following questions.

You are required to:

i) Analyse non-financial aspects of the selected company. (Non-financial aspects may cover corporate
social responsibility, Innovation, Process, stakeholder satisfactions etc.) (10 marks)

ii) Based on your analysis above and other information such as competitors and industry average advice
whether your selected company is investable? You should clearly justify the reasons. (5 marks)
(Total: 100 marks)

(You are expected to research more information on both companies and cite material correctly)

TASK GUIDANCE:
● Focus on attention to detail, quality of work and overall academic standards.
● For additional guidance on this assignment, please access information on Canvas.
MARKING CRITERIA:
● The overall mark awarded for this assignment will be based on your performance against each
criterion.
E-SUBMISSION GUIDANCE:
● This assignment will require you to submit your work by uploading a document in Word or PDF format
to Canvas. Please follow this online guide on document submissions and contact the DICE team on
dice@ucb.ac.uk if you need any further support.
LEARNING OUTCOMES:
● Demonstrate ability to record business transactions, a trial balance and understand the application of
financial reporting standards.
● Prepare and critically analyse financial statements for sole-traders and companies in accordance with
appropriate principles and accounting standards.
● Evaluate financial position and performance of business organisations.
● Prepare a statement of cash flow in accordance with IAS 7
SKILLS OUTCOMES:
● The skills outcomes to be developed by completing this assignment can be found here.
GENERAL ASSIGNMENT GUIDANCE:
Using Artificial Intelligence
(AI) ethically within your
assessments
Teamwork and ITS
Assessment
Importance of Word Count
and Presentation Timings
E-submission
Cut-off date for late work
Grading criteria
Plagiarism
Extenuating Circumstances
UCB Referencing Guide
Access the Assignment Life
Cycle
Please read the guidance attached within this link on how to use Artificial
Intelligence (AI) ethically within your assignments –
https://rise.articulate.com/share/4h250QmyY8hNnsQ9HS7B702dJedhlsM6
Should this assignment require you to work as part of a team, you will
receive an individual grade based upon your performance as well as
personalised feedback. The module leader will explain how your individual
grade and feedback will be determined.
Assignment word counts and presentation timings should always be
observed. Ignoring a word count increases significantly the risk of your work
losing marks because it lacked focus and clarity. Students will be required to
state their word count on all submissions. A 10% leeway will be allowed – so
the maximum a student should submit will be the word count + 10%.
The word count will exclude:
o The title page
o The contents page
o Models, graphs, data tables and other exhibited figures or
images
o Lists of references
o Appendices (these should be kept to a minimum)
In addition, timings must be observed for assessed presentations for the
same reasons.
http://www.ucb.ac.uk/handbook/academic-matters/assessment-issues.aspx
http://www.ucb.ac.uk/handbook/academic-matters/assessment-issues.aspx
http://www.ucb.ac.uk/handbook/academic-matters/assessments-fairness-
and-marking.aspx
http://www.ucb.ac.uk/handbook/academic-matters/plagiarism.aspx
http://www.ucb.ac.uk/handbook/academic-matters/assessments-if-things-
go-wrong.aspx
https://portal.ucb.ac.uk/download/referencing/referencing-guide.pdf
https://ucbirmingham.instructure.com/courses/26756