Financial Analysis Using Excel Training Course

Participants can interpret the relationships between income statements, balance sheets and cash flow statements.

• Income statement drivers separated into volume, price, mix and costs
• Balance sheet movements reconciled through working capital and financing changes
• Cash flow statement links tested between profit, noncash items and cash
• Common-size statements prepared using revenue, assets and total capital bases
• Horizontal analysis calculated with absolute changes, percentages and index numbers
• Accounting-policy notes assessed for comparability and analytical adjustments
• Three-statement links interpreted before building forecasts or valuation models

Participants can calculate and interpret ratios that explain financial performance and risk.

• Liquidity ratios calculated using current, quick and operating cash measures
• Working-capital days calculated for receivables, inventory and payables
• Profitability margins separated into gross, operating, EBITDA and net measures
• Return measures reconciled through ROA, ROE and invested-capital definitions
• DuPont analysis decomposes return on equity into operational drivers
• Solvency ratios evaluate debt service, interest cover and financial risk
• Ratio trends benchmarked against peers, budgets and prior reporting periods

Participants can prepare and summarise financial data efficiently for analysis and reporting.

• Importing source files with Power Query steps and refreshable connections
• Cleaning transaction data using trim, split, replace and data-type commands
• XLOOKUP, INDEX-MATCH and SUMIFS reconcile reporting datasets efficiently
• Dynamic arrays filter, sort and extract exception populations
• PivotTables summarise actuals by entity, account, customer and period
• PivotCharts compare trends, variances and segment performance visually
• Data validation lists restrict assumption inputs and reporting classifications

Participants can construct linked forecasts for profit, financial position and cash flow.

• Revenue forecasts constructed from volume, price, churn and pipeline assumptions
• Cost forecasts classified between fixed, variable, step and discretionary components
• Working capital schedules forecast receivables, inventory and payables timing
• Debt schedules model drawdowns, amortisation, interest and covenant headroom
• Integrated three-statement forecasts maintain balance sheet and cash flow links
• Forecast periods controlled through timeline drivers and circularity settings
• Assumption registers distinguish management cases from calculated outputs

Participants can investigate financial variances and convert findings into management actions.

• Budget-versus-actual variances separated into price, volume, mix and timing
• Flexible budgets restate expected costs at actual activity levels
• Waterfall charts explain bridge movements from plan to actual results
• Materiality thresholds focus investigation on decision-relevant deviations
• Root-cause analysis distinguishes operational drivers from accounting reclassifications
• Rolling forecasts update outlooks using latest actuals and revised assumptions
• Management commentary connects variance evidence to recommended actions

Participants can prepare cash forecasts and assess short-term funding requirements.

• Direct cash forecasts schedule customer receipts, payroll and supplier payments
• Indirect cash flow forecasts convert profit into operating cash movements
• 13-week rolling cash forecasts incorporate weekly opening and closing balances
• Cash conversion cycle analysis identifies liquidity tied within operations
• Scenario cash models test delayed collections, demand shocks and funding gaps
• Minimum cash thresholds linked to facility availability and covenant requirements
• Treasury actions prioritised using timing, certainty and controllability assessments

Participants can assess business value and investment cases using recognised financial methods.

• Free cash flow calculated from operating profit, tax, capital expenditure and working capital
• Discounted cash flow models structure forecast periods and terminal value
• WACC inputs distinguish cost of debt, equity risk and capital weights
• Terminal value estimated using perpetuity-growth and exit-multiple methods
• Comparable-company multiples normalised for accounting differences and capital structure
• Sensitivity tables test valuation exposure to growth, margin and discount rates
• Enterprise value reconciled to equity value through net debt adjustments

Participants can present financial findings in reports that support timely management decisions.

• Management dashboards define decision questions, measures, targets and thresholds
• Chart selection matches time trends, rankings, composition and variance stories
• Actual, budget and forecast views presented with consistent period labels
• Conditional formatting highlights exceptions without obscuring underlying numerical evidence
• Executive packs separate findings, implications, actions and unresolved questions
• Data labels, axes and titles checked for interpretation errors
• Reporting outputs tested against source totals and approved assumptions

Participants can test financial uncertainty and frame evidence-based recommendations for decision-makers.

• Scenario Manager structures base, upside and downside planning cases
• One-variable and two-variable data tables quantify key assumption effects
• Break-even analysis calculates volume thresholds under contribution-margin assumptions
• Debt covenant headroom assessed under downside liquidity and earnings scenarios
• Investment proposals compare NPV, IRR, payback and profitability index
• Recommendations framed with evidence, uncertainty ranges and decision triggers
• Personal application plans assign model improvements, owners and review dates