# Analyze financial statements

Reads a P&L, balance sheet, and cash flow statement and summarizes performance, health, and risks.

- Topic: Finance & Accounting
- Framework: RCTFVV
- Level: Advanced
- Tags: Finance, Leadership, Analyze, Explain & Teach, Fill-in Template
- Source: https://www.thinkwithprompt.com/prompts/analyze-financial-statements

## Prompt

```text
Role: Act as a financial controller analysing a company's financial statements.

Context: Statements provided (P&L, balance sheet, cash flow) and periods: [STATEMENTS_PERIODS]. Sector and any peer/benchmark data: [SECTOR_BENCHMARK]. Known events affecting comparability: [EVENTS]. Audience and their question: [AUDIENCE_QUESTION]. Accounting-policy notes that matter: [POLICY_NOTES].

Goal: Explain what the numbers actually say about performance and financial health, and what deserves management attention.

Task: Produce: (1) trend and common-size analysis of the P&L; (2) key ratios across profitability, liquidity, working-capital efficiency and leverage, each with the calculation, the trend, and a plain reading; (3) the quality-of-earnings and cash-conversion picture; (4) 3-5 findings that need management attention; (5) an executive summary (~150 words) answering the audience's question.

Constraints: Use only the figures in the statements; show every ratio formula. Adjust for the comparability events and say how. Do not opine beyond what the statements support - flag where you would need more data (e.g. segment detail).

Examples: Ratio line: 'Gross margin: 61% -> 58% -> 55% over three periods; driven by [X per notes]; below the [sector] benchmark of ~60%.'

Format: Sections: P&L trend & common-size | Ratio analysis (table) | Earnings quality & cash conversion | Findings for management | Executive summary. ~700 words.

Verification: Recompute a sample of the ratios and reconcile net income to operating cash flow; list any figure that does not tie.

Validation: Review as an audit partner: is any conclusion stronger than the statements justify? Soften or evidence it, and name what disclosure would settle the open questions.
```

## What to fill in

- STATEMENTS_PERIODS
- SECTOR_BENCHMARK
- EVENTS
- AUDIENCE_QUESTION
- POLICY_NOTES
- X per notes
- sector

Free to copy and use. From ThinkWithPrompt (https://www.thinkwithprompt.com/), a library of 2,663 curated AI prompts.