Income statement

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 What is income statement?

An income statement is a financial statement that shows you the company’s income and expenditures. It also shows whether a company is making profit or loss for a given period. The income statement, along with balance sheet and cash flow statement, helps you understand the financial health of your business.

The income statement is also known as a profit and loss statement, statement of operation, statement of financial result or income, or earnings statement.

Importance of an income statement

An income statement helps business owners decide whether they can generate profit by increasing revenues, by decreasing costs, or both. It also shows the effectiveness of the strategies that the business set at the beginning of a financial period. The business owners can refer to this document to see if the strategies have paid off. Based on their analysis, they can come up with the best solutions to yield more profit. 


Following are the few other things that an income statement informs.

  1. Frequent reports: While other financial statements are published annually, the income statement is generated either quarterly or monthly. Due to this, business owners and investors can track the performance of the business closely and make informed decisions. This also enables them to find and fix small business problems before they become large and expensive.

  2. Pinpointing expenses: This statement highlights the future expenses or any unexpected expenditures which are incurred by the company, and any areas which are over or under budget. Expenses include building rent, salaries and other overhead costs. As a small business begins to grow, it may find its expenses soaring. These expenditures may involve hiring workers, buying supplies and promoting the business.

  1. Overall analysis of the company: This statement gives investors an overview of the business in which they are planning to invest. Banks and other financial institutions can also analyze this document to decide whether the business is loan-worthy.

Who uses an income statement?

There are two main groups of people who use this financial statement: internal and external users. Internal users include company management and the board of directors, who use this information to analyze the business’s standing and make decisions in order to turn a profit. They can also act on any concerns regarding cash flow. External users comprise investors, creditors, and competitors. Investors check whether the company is positioned to grow and be profitable in the future, so they can decide whether to invest in the business. Creditors use the income statement to check whether the company has enough cash flow to pay off its loans or take out a new loan. Competitors use them to get details about the success parameters of a business and get to know about areas where the business is spending an extra bit, for example, R&D spends.

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