Demystifying company accounts and valuations - Module One and Module Two

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This two-day course provides the foundation knowledge needed to understand a set of accounts and be able to answer questions from analysts, investors and the financial press. This course is designed for people who have no formal accounting training and will be of relevance for anyone studying for the CIR qualification. Please note all dates shown are FIRST DATE OF TWO DAY COURSE.

Module One will clearly explain accounting jargon, together with the relevance and limitations of financial statements. You will learn how to identify which key numbers are important in communicating your company’s story and the issues that need explaining.

Module Two will help you to understand in more depth how financial analysts and investors look at companies. It is not necessary to have a financial background to take Module Two, but you should have completed Module One or have an equivalent understanding of basic accounting concepts. 

What will I gain?

Module One

• Foundation knowledge in understanding a set of company accounts
• Gain fluency in financial jargon
• A clear understanding of the relevance and limitations of financial statements

Module Two

• An understanding of the key principles behind most commonly used valuation methods
• A grasp of the fundamentals of the discounted cash flow valuation model and key sensitivities
• An awareness of risk and return parameters and non-financial considerations impacting investment decision making

Course tutor: Deborah Morton-Dare

Deborah specialises in financial training for all levels from beginners to advanced. She presents a comprehensive range of courses to a diverse range of corporate clients and financial institutions and specialises in making complex technical subjects comprehensible. 

Deborah qualified as a Chartered Accountant with Arthur Young and then worked in Corporate Finance gaining wide ranging experience in a variety of corporate and financial institutions. She then worked as a financial consultant to companies assisting them in raising finance and structuring.

Guest speaker: Patrick Yau

Patrick Yau is Head of the Investor Relations function at Entertainment One, a global content production and distribution business. He joined in December 2013, bringing 20 years of sell-side analyst experience to the role. Immediately prior to joining Entertainment One, Patrick was a top-five ranked MidCap UK Media Analyst at Peel Hunt. Prior to that he worked as a Media and TMT analyst for a number of brokers, including Canaccord Adams, Bridgewell and Credit Suisse, where he was a member of the number one ranked TMT research team. Patrick holds an MSc. in Finance from UMIST and a BSc. In Human Sciences from London University.

Programme

Module one

• Introduction
• The Accounting Foundations - What is Financial Information?
• The Components of a Balance Sheet
• The Components of a Profit and Loss Account
• Cash Flow Statements

Module two

• Introduction
• Fundamental concept of discounted cash flow
• Risk vs return
• Business strategy
• Introduction to valuation methods
• Conclusion: What really matters