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Kirkham – Volume 10, Issue 1 (2012)
© JNBIT Vol.10, Iss.1 (2012)
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Journal of New Business Ideas & Trends 2012, 10(1), pp. 1-13. ”http://www.jnbit.org”
Liquidity Analysis Using Cash Flow Ratios and
Traditional Ratios: The Telecommunications
Sector in Australia
Ross Kirkham School of Business Faculty of Arts & Business University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia Email:[email protected]
Abstract Purpose - The purpose of this study is to examine the value in analysis of the liquidity of companies using the traditional ratios as compared to the more recently devised cash flow ratios. Design/methodology/approach – The research involved the comparison between the traditional ratios and cash flow ratios of twenty five companies in the same industry over a five year period. The companies were all from the telecommunications sector and the data was obtained from the FinAnalysis database. The ratios examined were – the current ratio, quick ratio, interest coverage ratio – the cash flow ratio, critical needs cash coverage ratio, and cash interest coverage ratio. Findings – The study revealed that differences existed between the traditional liquidity ratios and the cash flow ratios. A conclusion based solely on the traditional ratios could well have led to an incorrect decision regarding the liquidity of a number of companies. In certain instances that may have been that a company was deemed to be liquid when it faced cash flow problems or that a company was not liquid when in fact it had sufficient cash flow resources. Research limitations/implications – The results support the proposition that analysis based on the traditional liquidity ratios is best compared against the cash flow ratios before reaching any conclusions regarding the financial liquidity position. Keywords: Liquidity ratios, cash flow ratios, financial statement analysis.
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Introduction
The global financial crisis has reignited the concern over the liquidity of businesses
in general, banks in particular and more importantly countries. Of the various methods for monitoring liquidity of businesses the most common has been the use of financial ratios. Traditionally the current ratio and the quick (acid test) ratio were used to analyses the short term liquidity of a business. However, these ratios relied exclusively on the values derived from the Statement of Financial Position, also known as the Balance Sheet, and were not always reliable due to the vagaries of accounting measurement of the values of assets and accrual accounting. In order to overcome the problems associated with accrual accounting and to provide a more specific focus on the cash position of a business the Australian accounting profession introduced the Statement of Cash Flows. This resolved the lack of detail concerning cash flow and also provided for the creation of a new set of ratios which could be used to analyse the liquidity of a business.
Since the introduction of the Statement of Cash Flows a number of ratios have
been developed and their use can best be described as evolving. Certainly a limited number of these new cash flow ratios have been included in first year accounting text books. However, their use and value in terms of the analysis process has received very limited attention. In deed little has been done to incorporate these into any of the existing models that are used for predicting business failure. The literature contains minimal research where such ratios have been included in an effort to broaden the model or address the limitations that had been associated with the dependence on the values contained in the Statement of Financial Position.
The telecommunications sector has undergone a number of changes as a result of the
emergence of new technologies the demand to keep pace with these changes has in turn meant that firms have had to invest heavily in order to remain competitive (Berg, 2004). In the case of the Australian telecommunications sector there have been a number of significant developments that have emphasised the need for vigilance over the cash flow of firms. The sector has been involved in major upgrades to infrastructure and increased competition from both international firms and more recently new technology linked to the internet (More & McGrath, 1999). The impact of these changes has placed a greater emphasis on the need for working capital and liquidity. The collapse of OneTel was a prime example of a firm that failed to pay sufficient attention to its liquidity and in particular its cash flow (Anderson & Davis, 2009). Thus the telecommunications sector provides an ideal area for examining the relevance of the cash flow ratios against the traditional ratios.
This paper seeks to address the gap in the literature by demonstrating the usefulness
of the cash flow ratios as a means of clarifying the findings of the traditional liquidity ratios. To that end the paper is concerned with only the short-term liquidity ratios and their place in the analysis process.
Literature review
The current ratio and the quick ratio rely on the values identified as current assets and current liabilities in the Statement of Financial Position. The current ratio is simply determined by dividing the total current assets by the total current liabilities to arrive at a ratio between the two amounts. The quick ratio provides a more narrow focus and is concerned with only those items otherwise included in the total current assets such as cash, marketable securities, and accounts receivable. This reduced amount is divided by the total current liabilities to provide a ratio between the two amounts. The analysis in very simple terms relies on the ratio being an indicator of the ability to pay for every dollar that is
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currently liable. Industry benchmarks are considered to be a valuable guide to the analysis process however, where these are not available a rule of thumb is generally used. As part of this research an industry standard on an annual basis will be calculated and included for analysis purposes.
There are a number of ratios which also assist in the process of evaluating the
liquidity position of a business. The most common are the accounts receivable turnover ratio, the inventory turnover ratio and the interest coverage (or interest earned) ratio. For the purpose of this paper the interest coverage ratio is used as a comparative cash flow ratio exists.
From the Statement of Cash Flows there are a number of ratios which may be
juxtaposed to the traditional ratios in order to obtain a comparative perspective. For the purpose of this paper the focus will be on the ratios that are most comparable with regards to the short term liquidity analysis and they are specifically, the cash flow ratio, critical needs cash coverage ratio, and cash interest coverage ratio. These ratios share some attributes which are similar to the traditional ratios and have thus been given names that indicate their similarity. The details of the ratios are presented in Table 1.
Table 1: Comparison of Ratios
Traditional Ratios Cash Flow Ratios Ratio Formula Ratio Formula
Current ratio
𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝐶𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝐴𝑠𝑠𝑒𝑡𝑠
𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝐶𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝐿𝑖𝑎𝑏𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑒𝑠
Cash Flow ratio
𝑁𝑒𝑡 𝑂𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝐶𝑎𝑠ℎ 𝐹𝑙𝑜𝑤
𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝐶𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝐿𝑖𝑎𝑏𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑒𝑠
Quick ratio (Acid-test)
𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝐶𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝐴𝑠𝑠𝑒𝑡𝑠 − 𝐼𝑛𝑣𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑖𝑒𝑠 − 𝑃𝑟𝑒𝑝𝑎𝑦𝑚𝑒𝑛𝑡𝑠
𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝐶𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝐿𝑖𝑎𝑏𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑒𝑠
Critical needs cash coverage
𝑁𝑒𝑡 𝑂𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝐶𝑎𝑠ℎ 𝐹𝑙𝑜𝑤 + 𝐼𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑡 𝑝𝑎𝑖𝑑
𝑇𝑜𝑡𝑎𝑙 𝐶𝑢𝑟𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑡 𝐿𝑖𝑎𝑏𝑖𝑙𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑒𝑠 + 𝐼𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑡
Interest Coverage
𝑁𝑒𝑡 𝑂𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑃𝑟𝑜𝑓𝑖𝑡 + 𝐼𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑡 + 𝑇𝑎𝑥 (𝐸𝐵𝐼𝑇)
𝐴𝑛𝑛𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝐼𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑡
Cash Interest Coverage
𝑁𝑒𝑡 𝑂𝑝𝑒𝑟𝑎𝑡𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝐶𝑎𝑠ℎ 𝐹𝑙𝑜𝑤 + 𝐼𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑡 + 𝑇𝑎𝑥
𝐴𝑛𝑛𝑢𝑎𝑙 𝐼𝑛𝑡𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑠𝑡
There exists a well established literature on the nature and interpretation of the
various ratios and as such it is not the intention of this paper to provide an indepth discussion as to the interpretation of each and every ratio1. Rather the focus of the paper is on providing a basis by which the traditional ratios may be compared against the ratios emanating from the statement of cash flows.
Research method
The method used in this study is based upon the approaches employed in prior research (Bell, 2001; Rahmatian & Cockerill, 2004). The research involved the comparison between the ratios of companies in the same industry over a five year period. The data for the five year period were obtained from the FinAnalysis database. There were thirty seven (37) firms in the data set, however eleven (12) were excluded as they did not have data for all the years being examined, the number of firms in the study are therefore 25. The names of the remaining twenty five firms in the final data set are provided in Table 2.
1 Most accounting text books provide a valuable source for interpretation of traditional and some cash flow
ratios – see for example Hoggett et al (2011) and Horngren et al. (2011). There are also text books which
specifically address financial ratios – see for example Gibson (2009) and Laing (1996).
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Table 2: List of Telecommunication Companies
Abbreviation Name
AMM Amcom Telecommunications Limited
BGL Bigair Group Limited
BRO Broad Investments Limited
EFT Eftel Limited
ENG Engin Limited
FRE Freshtel Holdings Limited
HTA Hutchison Telecommunications (Australia) Limited
IIN iiNET Limited
IPX Intrapower Limited
MAQ Macquarie Telecom Group Limited
MNF My Net Fone Limited
MNZ Mnet Group Limited
MTU M2 Telecommunications Group Limited
NBS Nexbis Limited
NWT Newsat Limited
QUE Queste Communications Limited
REF Reverse Corp Limited
SDL-NZ Solution Dynamics Limited
SGT Singapore Telecommunications Limited
TEL-NZ Telecom Corporation of New Zealand Limited
TLS Telstra Corporation Limited
TPC Tel. Pacific Limited
TPM TPG Telecom Limited
TTK-NZ TeamTalk Limited
VOC Vocus Communications Limited
Results
The ratios are presented on a company by company basis given that there are five years worth of ratios. The comparative analysis is concerned with identifying trends and indications of differences between the traditional ratios and the cash flow ratios.
AMM - Amcom Telecommunications Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 0.6 1.04 1.06 1.27 3.45
Cash Flow Ratio 0.59 1.29 0.96 0.95 1.17
Quick Ratio 0.54 0.96 1 1.21 3.38
Critical needs coverage 0.57 1.19 0.88 0.88 1.10
Interest Cover 34.99 13.53 11.43 32.7 23.81
Cash interest coverage 30.93 17.06 12.69 15.77 20.34
Comment – Whilst the traditional ratios and the cash flow ratios were initially very close the differences become apparent in 2011. Note that the cash flow ratios show a weaker short term liquidity position.
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BGL - Bigair Group Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 1.24 1.17 1.74 1.4 0.91
Cash Flow Ratio -0.17 0.04 1.37 1.47 1.12
Quick Ratio 1.22 1.16 1.74 1.4 0.91
Critical needs coverage -0.17 0.04 1.37 1.47 1.12
Interest Cover 12.79 28.26 -14.73 -- -39.73
Cash interest coverage -66.03 -- -- -- 531.24
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a better liquidity position
than is indicated by the traditional ratios. BRO - Broad Investments Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 4.21 0.86 1.07 1.65 1.16
Cash Flow Ratio -1.32 -0.03 -0.05 0.33 -0.27
Quick Ratio 4.21 0.6 0.65 1.65 1.16
Critical needs coverage -1.27 -0.03 -0.05 0.32 -0.27
Interest Cover -216.56 23.23 411.9 8.56 7.79
Cash interest coverage -34.94 -47.78 -38.27 14.63 -19,339
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a weaker liquidity position
than is indicated by the traditional ratios. EFT - Eftel Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 0.59 0.49 0.48 0.42 0.54
Cash Flow Ratio 0.18 0.15 0.04 0.05 -0.04
Quick Ratio 0.59 0.49 0.48 0.42 0.54
Critical needs coverage 0.17 0.15 0.04 0.05 -0.04
Interest Cover -98.5 10.66 -8.14 -2.61 --
Cash interest coverage 17.88 11.85 2.49 1.12 -24.31
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a weaker liquidity position
than is indicated by the traditional ratios. Noteably the trend indicates that the cash flow position was deteriorating.
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ENG - Engin Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 1.94 1.61 1.35 1.64
Cash Flow Ratio -1.42 -2.62 -0.29 0.18
Quick Ratio 1.84 1.48 1.31 1.58
Critical needs coverage -1.39 -2.32 -0.29 0.18
Interest Cover 26.56 -28.76 43.27 18.88
Cash interest coverage -57.66 -19.22 -13.71 23.81
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a weaker liquidity position
than is indicated by the traditional ratios. Although the trend is clearly that the liquidity was improving.
FRE - Freshtel Holdings Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 11.31 5.7 3 2.37 0.65
Cash Flow Ratio -3.95 -3.09 -5.50 -7.28 -1.83
Quick Ratio 11.19 5.59 3 2.36 0.63
Critical needs coverage -3.92 -3.07 -5.47 -6.67 -1.71
Interest Cover 10.93 11.41 43.74 -421.86 -85.74
Cash interest coverage -562.00 -707.88 -1,422.99 -84.51 -37.93
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a weaker liquidity position
than is indicated by the traditional ratios. Noteably the trend indicates that the cash flow position was however improving.
HTA - Hutchison Telecommunications (Australia) Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 0.6 0.32 0.23 0.04 0.03
Cash Flow Ratio -0.05 0.24 -1.47 0.00 0.01
Quick Ratio 0.46 0.29 0.23 0.04 0.03
Critical needs coverage -0.04 0.23 -1.46 0.00 0.01
Interest Cover -0.8 -0.72 3.04 -1.87 16.56
Cash interest coverage 0.98 5.48 -1,102.39 3.42 14.18
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a weaker liquidity position
than is indicated by the traditional ratios. Noteably the trend indicates that the cash flow position was however improving.
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IIN - iiNET Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 1.04 0.5 0.57 0.48 0.56
Cash Flow Ratio 0.52 0.76 0.60 0.65 0.91
Quick Ratio 1.03 0.49 0.56 0.47 0.52
Critical needs coverage 0.48 0.74 0.58 0.64 0.84
Interest Cover 16.77 366.06 18.36 18.63 9.35
Cash interest coverage 7.99 43.51 25.82 31.35 13.49
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a stronger liquidity
position than is indicated by the traditional ratios. Noteably the trend indicates that the cash flow position was improving in contrast to the traditional ratios which reflect a decrease over the period.
IPX - Intrapower Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 1.02 1.17 1.3 0.93
Cash Flow Ratio 0.24 0.45 0.63 0.40
Quick Ratio 1.01 1.15 1.28 0.91
Critical needs coverage 0.21 0.36 0.53 0.34
Interest Cover 4.99 -4.74 1.66 -0.5
Cash interest coverage 2.68 3.95 4.68 3.26
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a weaker liquidity position
than is indicated by the traditional ratios. Noteably the trend for both the traditional ratios and the cash flow ratios indicate a decline over the period.
MAQ - Macquarie Telecom Group Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 1.26 1.24 1.49 1.93 1.75
Cash Flow Ratio 0.31 0.42 0.65 0.72 0.97
Quick Ratio 0.9 1.24 1.49 1.93 1.75
Critical needs coverage 0.30 0.41 0.65 0.71 0.97
Interest Cover -44.1 5.39 -11.63 -6.9 -7.17
Cash interest coverage 15.08 24.26 69.53 155.79 2,555.39
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a weaker liquidity position
than is indicated by the traditional ratios. However the interest coverage is notably stronger in the cash interest coverage ratio over the period.
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MNF - My Net Fone Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 0.73 0.4 0.49 0.69 0.86
Cash Flow Ratio -0.84 -0.26 0.11 0.25 0.34
Quick Ratio 0.73 0.4 0.49 0.69 0.86
Critical needs coverage -0.84 -0.26 0.11 0.25 0.33
Interest Cover 74.89 59.78 -6.39 -26.41 -11.02
Cash interest coverage -141.87 -72.95 26.39 44.76 62.84
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a weaker liquidity position
than is indicated by the traditional ratios. However the interest coverage provides a different perspective with a reverse situation between the cash interest coverage ratio and the interest coverage ratio over the period.
MNZ - Mnet Group Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 4.47 1.49 1.45 1.2 1.8
Cash Flow Ratio 0.00 -0.08 -0.26 -0.37 0.53
Quick Ratio 4.47 1.49 1.45 1.2 1.8
Critical needs coverage 0.00 -0.08 -0.26 -0.37 0.52
Interest Cover -- 20.75 14.54 31.24 -35.58
Cash interest coverage -- 1.25 -33.71 -84.12 93.82
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a weaker liquidity position
than is indicated by the traditional ratios. Noteably the trend for both the traditional ratios and the cash flow ratios indicate a decline over the period.
MTU - M2 Telecommunications Group Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 0.9 1.06 0.84 1.18 0.88
Cash Flow Ratio 0.28 0.26 0.11 0.20 0.47
Quick Ratio 0.9 1.05 0.81 1.18 0.87
Critical needs coverage 0.28 0.26 0.11 0.19 0.46
Interest Cover -15.86 94.66 23.86 13.17 52.34
Cash interest coverage 302.20 28.97 16.51 9.55 24.67
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a weaker liquidity position
than is indicated by the traditional ratios. Noteably the trend in the cash flow ratios indicates an improvement over the period.
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NBS - Nexbis Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 2.44 1.39 9.81 0.82 5.15
Cash Flow Ratio 0.30 2.05 2.25 1.72 -7.73
Quick Ratio 2.44 1.39 9.81 0.82 5.15
Critical needs coverage 0.30 1.91 1.98 1.47 -4.00
Interest Cover 32.59 -101.98 -393.7 -1,238.35 -56.77
Cash interest coverage 156.71 34.55 21.45 13.87 -5.06
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a weaker liquidity position
than is indicated by the traditional ratios. Noteably the trend for both the traditional ratios and the cash flow ratios indicate a decline over the period.
NWT - Newsat Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 0.67 0.73 0.76 1.06 1.12
Cash Flow Ratio -0.56 -0.67 0.00 0.21 0.07
Quick Ratio 0.59 0.64 0.69 0.97 1.07
Critical needs coverage -0.45 -0.65 0.00 0.21 0.07
Interest Cover -2.61 -117.52 -8.61 0.68 -3.91
Cash interest coverage -2.06 -26.65 -0.09 2,151.00 50.39
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a weaker liquidity position
than is indicated by the traditional ratios. Noteably the trend for both the traditional ratios and the cash flow ratios indicate an improvement over the period.
QUE - Queste Communications Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 10.54 31.68 10.32 27.78 14.83
Cash Flow Ratio 1.57 -0.72 -0.42 -0.50 -1.54
Quick Ratio 10.28 31.45 9.61 26.35 13.22
Critical needs coverage 1.57 -0.71 -0.42 -0.49 -1.52
Interest Cover -62.37 12.74 24.64 0.56 41.26
Cash interest coverage 751.10 12.36 -176.29 -24.17 -162.90
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a weaker liquidity position
than is indicated by the traditional ratios. Noteably the trend in the cash flow ratios indicates a decline over the period.
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REF - Reverse Corp Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 1.78 1.55 0.75 1.1 1.78
Cash Flow Ratio 2.34 2.89 1.56 2.02 0.96
Quick Ratio 1.77 1.54 0.75 1.1 1.77
Critical needs coverage 2.32 2.84 1.52 1.92 0.96
Interest Cover -140.16 -99.83 280.51 40.31 -140.16
Cash interest coverage 417.64 266.77 111.16 52.97 --
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a stronger liquidity
position than is indicated by the traditional ratios. Noteably the trend in the cash flow ratios indicates a decline over the period.
SDL-NZ - Solution Dynamics Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 0.61 0.55 0.72 0.67 0.79
Cash Flow Ratio 0.14 0.30 -0.06 0.17 0.24
Quick Ratio 0.58 0.51 0.67 0.62 0.76
Critical needs coverage 0.12 0.27 -0.05 0.16 0.23
Interest Cover -2.09 0.03 -0.48 -0.1 2.29
Cash interest coverage 2.63 4.08 0.26 3.75 5.69
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a weaker liquidity position
than is indicated by the traditional ratios. Noteably the trend for both the traditional ratios and the cash flow ratios indicate a decline over the period. Further, the interest coverage provides a different perspective with the cash interest covergae ratio indicating a better situation than the interst covergae ratio over the period.
SGT - Singapore Telecommunications Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 1.16 0.7 0.74 0.75 0.77
Cash Flow Ratio 1.25 0.95 1.01 0.78 0.71
Quick Ratio 1.14 0.68 0.71 0.7 0.73
Critical needs coverage 1.12 0.89 0.95 0.74 0.68
Interest Cover 13.63 14.22 14.09 15.53 14.16
Cash interest coverage 12.68 15.73 16.25 17.49 17.26
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a slightly stronger
liquidity position than is indicated by the traditional ratios. Noteably the ratios are closely approximated over the period.
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TEL-NZ - Telecom Corporation of New Zealand Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 1.94 0.81 0.8 0.79 0.67
Cash Flow Ratio 1.04 0.74 1.05 1.24 0.75
Quick Ratio 1.89 0.79 0.74 0.75 0.64
Critical needs coverage 0.88 0.66 0.90 1.09 0.68
Interest Cover 5.14 7.41 4.23 4.07 4.12
Cash interest coverage 7.19 7.55 7.45 9.68 8.24
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a slightly stronger
liquidity position than is indicated by the traditional ratios. Noteably the ratios are closely approximated over the period.
TLS - Telstra Corporation Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 0.57 0.68 0.8 0.83 0.87
Cash Flow Ratio 0.90 1.09 1.16 1.12 0.94
Quick Ratio 0.53 0.64 0.77 0.79 0.84
Critical needs coverage 0.81 0.95 1.03 1.00 0.82
Interest Cover 5.32 5.73 7.29 6.75 5.02
Cash interest coverage 8.86 8.96 11.01 10.59 7.55
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a slightly stronger
liquidity position than is indicated by the traditional ratios. Noteably the ratios are closely approximated over the period.
TPC - Tel. Pacific Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 1.14 1.17 1.04 0.93
Cash Flow Ratio 0.29 0.10 0.10 -0.20
Quick Ratio 1.13 1.15 1.03 0.88
Critical needs coverage 0.29 0.10 0.10 -0.20
Interest Cover -3.19 -3.46 -2.71 8.04
Cash interest coverage 12,443.60 -14,364.39
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a weaker liquidity position
than is indicated by the traditional ratios. Noteably the trend for both the traditional ratios and the cash flow ratios indicate a decline over the period. Further, the interest coverage provides a different perspective with the cash interest covergae ratio indicating a better situation than the interst covergae ratio initially and then taking a steep decline in 2011.
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TPM - TPG Telecom Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 1.75 0.78 0.51 0.25 0.27
Cash Flow Ratio 0.28 0.12 1.02 0.75 0.79
Quick Ratio 1.72 0.77 0.51 0.25 0.27
Critical needs coverage 0.26 0.11 0.94 0.70 0.70
Interest Cover 3.67 -5.99 3.94 6.89 5.14
Cash interest coverage 6.51 5.02 14.94 12.54 7.54
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a slightly stronger
liquidity position than is indicated by the traditional ratios. Noteably the ratios are closely approximated over the period.
TTK-NZ - TeamTalk Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 1.07 0.77 0.61 0.56 0.54
Cash Flow Ratio 1.65 0.96 1.04 0.93 0.87
Quick Ratio 1.01 0.69 0.54 0.49 0.46
Critical needs coverage 1.25 0.76 0.84 0.83 0.77
Interest Cover 4.26 3.49 3.69 5.07 6.1
Cash interest coverage 7.11 5.47 5.53 9.41 8.83
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a slightly stronger
liquidity position than is indicated by the traditional ratios. Noteably the ratios are closely approximated over the period.
VOC - Vocus Communications Limited
2007 2008 2009 2010 2011
Current Ratio 42.63 32.29 57.98 1.08 0.92
Cash Flow Ratio 0.88 -0.58 -0.22 0.38 0.76
Quick Ratio 42.63 32.29 57.98 1.08 0.92
Critical needs coverage 0.88 -0.58 -0.22 0.37 0.74
Interest Cover 1.34 0.47 0.39 16.27 405.23
Cash interest coverage 17.20 39.50
Comment – In this company the cash flow ratios show a stronger liquidity
position than is indicated by the traditional ratios.
Discussion This study provides evidence of the importance of using the cash flow ratios as a
means of testing the validity of the conclusions that can be made from analysis of traditional liquidity ratios alone. There were examples of companies that had seemingly good traditional ratios and yet the cash flow ratios projected a different perspective. In contrast
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there were also companies that had seemingly poor traditional ratios and the cash flow ratios provided a better perspective.
The analysis highlights the usefulness of the cash flow ratios in conducting an
investigation of the financial statements of companies. The ratios used in this study represent but a few of the cash flow ratios that exist and were selected for the purpose of making the comparison between the traitional ratios more explicit. Further research may benefit from the provision of a greater number of cash flow ratios as compared to a wider variety of traditional ratios.
The implications of this study are that in essence the determination of cash flow
ratios provides a more wholistic approach to the analysis of the liquidity position of companies and in doing so becomes a means for making better decisions based on the data. For the purpose of the evaluation of financial data the cash flow ratios provide a valuable means by which to justify or question the relevance of the outcomes of traditional ratios.
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