What Is Vertical Analysis?

Vertical analysis is a powerful financial analysis that can help businesses better understand their operations and potential for growth. It provides a way to analyze an entity’s relative performance, taking into consideration the effects of different business segments, as well as specific measures on overall financial changes. In this article, we’ll take a look at what vertical analysis is and how it can be used in both internal and external reporting. We’ll also explore the advantages and disadvantages of using vertical analysis in order to draw meaningful business insights. Let’s get started!

What is vertical analysis?

Vertical analysis is an analysis technique that is used to show the relative proportions of different items in a financial statement. This technique is also sometimes referred to as common-size analysis.

In vertical analysis, each item in a financial statement is expressed as a percentage of a base figure. The base figure can be either the total of all items in the financial statement or some other reference point, such as total assets.

The advantage of using vertical analysis is that it makes it easier to compare financial statements from different periods of time or from different companies. Vertical analysis can also be used to spot trends over time.

One disadvantage of vertical analysis is that it does not give any indication of absolute values. For example, if two companies have very different sized businesses, then their financial statements will look very different when expressed as percentages.

How is vertical analysis used?

Vertical analysis is a financial statement analysis technique that shows relationships between the different line items in a company’s financial statements.

This type of analysis is often used to evaluate a company’s financial health, as it can show how well different parts of the business are performing relative to each other.

For example, vertical analysis of a balance sheet would show the percentage of total assets that each asset category represents. This could be useful in identifying areas where a company may be over- or under-invested.

Similarly, vertical analysis of an income statement would show the percentage of total revenue that each expense category represents. This could be useful in identifying areas where a company may be able to cut costs without affecting its overall bottom line too much.

Advantages and disadvantages of vertical analysis

Vertical analysis is a financial technique that allows analysts to examine the relationships between different items in a company’s financial statements. It can be used to compare companies of different sizes, or to compare different items within the same company over time.

There are several advantages to using vertical analysis. First, it normalizes the data, making it easier to compare companies of different sizes. Second, it can be used to identify trends within a company over time. Third, it can help highlight areas where a company may be overexposed to risk.

There are also some disadvantages to vertical analysis. One is that it can be difficult to compare companies in different industries because they may have very different financial structures. Another is that vertical analysis does not take into account absolute values, only relative values. This means that two companies could have the same percentage change in an item, but if one company started with a much higher absolute value, the actual increase in cash flow would be much greater for that company.

How to prepare a vertical analysis

Vertical analysis is a financial statement analysis technique that shows how each line item on a company’s income statement or balance sheet compares to a base figure. The most common form of vertical analysis is called common-size analysis.

To prepare a vertical analysis, first choose the base figure. This is typically either total revenue or total assets. Once you have chosen the base figure, calculate the percentage that each line item represents of the base figure. For example, if total revenue is the base figure and net income is $100,000, then net income would represent 10% of total revenue.

Once you have calculated the percentages for each line item, you can then compare them across different time periods or across different companies to look for trends or patterns.

Conclusion

Vertical analysis is an important financial tool that can be used to analyze the performance of a company over time. By comparing each line item on a financial statement with its corresponding base figure, users can gain valuable insights into how well different parts of the business are performing and identify areas where companies may need to make adjustments in order to improve their bottom line. With increased visibility into a company’s finances, vertical analysis can be an invaluable resource when making key decisions about strategic planning and operations management.