Giovanni s Room By James Baldwin - 1723 Words

The two novels Giovanni’s Room by James Baldwin published in 1956 and Price of Salt by Patricia Highsmith published in 1956 share the interest of both the main characters having trouble publicizing their sexual orientation due to the way society would view them. There location of living have a big impact on their actions of expressing their sexuality towards other people or themselves. During the 1950’s, homosexual activity was prohibited. People who were found having an affair with the same sex was often given a consequence for their actions. Even though, gay men were given more of an punishment, lesbianism was not supported or approved of by the public eye. Regardless of the danger, gay men and women were able to find places to meet up†¦show more content†¦He met Giovanni in a gay bar that was owned by one of his friends named Guillaume. David kindly offered to buy Giovanni a drink and they hit it off with each other since then. Paris was known for having a h igh population in the LGBT community. There was a lot of bars, clubs, restaurants, and shops (Wikipedia 2015, para. 2). When David bought Giovanni drinks at Guillaume s bar, other men took notice of their interaction with each other. It wasn’t hard to tell that they had an instant attraction towards each other. Once he noticed that people were looking at them, he stopped instantly. Though David was already publicizing his sexual orientation from being in the bar, he couldn’t come to realization for himself nor to others. As he stated to Giovanni, â€Å"It is a crime - in my country, and, after all, I didn’t grow up here, I grew up there†(Baldwin 45). Though David was in Paris where it wasn’t looked upon as much, he still believed that it was morally wrong for two same sex genders to be together; especially since he knew his family wouldn’t accept him for it. David showed his lack of acceptance through the rejection of Giovanni’s affec tion. Since Paris was known for city life and being accompanied by a lot of people, there was various amounts of transportations. David and Giovanni mainly took cabs/taxis as there way around to places. One of the few places

Should Animals Be Used For Testing Purposes - 966 Words

Should Animals Be Used for Testing Purposes? Testing on animals has always been a controversy often debated. Millions of animals are tested on each year to aid in the research and development of commercial and scientific products. Animals get tested on to ensure the safety of human use or consumption in anything from beauty products to medicine. Testing has enabled life-saving advancements in medicine; however it is no longer necessary to harm animals in the process of saving humans. Animal testing should be deemed unethical and illegal for several reasons. There are alternatives to animal testing which eliminates the need for animals to suffer any longer. New found studies show how much distress animals actually go through during the testing period. Current laws and regulations against animal testing aren’t strict enough and have no protected animals from physical and psychological harm. Animal activists have argued for decades against the cruel and inhumane mistreatment of animals and it is time that animal testing is put to a stop. An estimated 50-100 million animals are used in experimentation each year. The term animal experimentation is used to describe an animal that is testing the safety of products, devices and medicines. Animal testing has been around for decades and it is no doubt that they have saved millions of lives when we did not have such advancements in technology. In this day in age, modern technology has enabled us to find alternatives to animal testing.Show MoreRelatedShould Animal Testing Be Used For Medical Purposes? Essay1884 Words   |  8 PagesShould animal testing be used only for medical purposes in New Zealand? By Jihad Mohd Erfino Introduction: Animal testing is one of the most controversial scientific issues debated around the world. It questions the right of wild animals to be used in commercial, cosmetics and even for medical research purposes. Although it happens in most of the world (including New Zealand) today, many question whether it should go on. Animal testing is generally the use of animals for different purposes in labRead MoreSave Animals. Say No to Animal Testing!1390 Words   |  6 PagesArgumentative essay: Save animals. Say no to animal testing! Nowadays, it is a well-known fact that many companies test their products like cosmetics and medicines with animals before production to check their products ’safety and quality. A huge amount of animals are used in research purpose every year. Is it right for human beings to sacrifice millions of animals for testing purpose? Should animal testing be banned? Animal testing is a controversial issue and there is a heated debated about prosRead MoreAnimal Testing Is A Controversial Issue For A Significant Time Frame Essay1321 Words   |  6 PagesAnimal testing Abstract: Animal testing also known as animal experimentation has become a controversial issue for a long time.Testing on animals has enormously increased with the advancement of research and development in medical field. Animals are used as experimental models to test the products, medicines and chemicals before they are released in to the market.However,testing on animals is a cruel act and should not be encouraged to carry experiments on animals for human benefits.As we knowRead MoreEssay on The Unlucky Animals Used for Testing1322 Words   |  6 Pagesnot all animals are as lucky as many household pets. Millions of animals are killed, poisoned, and abused from animal testing each year in the Unites States. Just last year the European Union banned the sale of any cosmetic ingredients that have been tested on animals. Also joining the fight against animal testing in cosmetics is Israel and India. These countries have banned all testing on animals for cosmetic purposes. China, not far behind, has just approved their first non-animal test forRead MoreThe Controversy of Testing on Animals Essay1153 Words   |  5 PagesThe Controversy of Testing on Animals Facilities that use animals for teaching, experimentations, surgery or testing purposes are known as research facilities. Currently, there are twelve animal research facilities in the state of Alabama (General Information on Animal Research). There are many different reasons why animals are used for research. Animals are used to test the products used in cosmetics, for biomedical research, for military defense and food production. Many people includingRead MoreAnimal Rights : Where Are The Limits?1680 Words   |  7 PagesAdrianna Steele Dr. Beutel ENG 101 November 18, 2014 Animal Rights: Where Are The Limits? Do animals deserve the natural rights humans have? Animals are being kept captive in science labs to test many things. In research labs they are used to test many trivial products and they are also used in valuable medical research. Many animal right activists go as far as breaking the law as an attempt to get the point across about the wellbeing of animals in science labs instead of being civil about the mannerRead MoreAnimal Experimentation, Ethics, And Ethics1703 Words   |  7 Pages Animal experimentation and Ethics -Tseten dolkar The practice of experimentation on live animals as known as vivisection is prevalent since the old roman days. In the name of Science, Animals are being mistreated, exploited and murdered worldwide. Animal are used in experimentationRead MoreAnimal Testing: A True Ethical Dilemma Essay1622 Words   |  7 Pagesis the life of a laboratory animal. Animal testing is the use of animals for scientific research purposes and experiments. It can be used for the findings of cures and medicines to testing new drugs, to understanding the behavioral psychology of the animals themselves. â€Å"Around fifty to one hundred million vertebrate animals, ranging from fish to primates, are used in experiments each year† (Lloyd). There are many different terms used to describe the research on animals but two main ideas. In vivoRead MoreShould Animal Testing Be Illegal?955 Words   |  4 PagesAnimal testing is widely used today for a variety of different reasons ranging from testing new medical treatments for serious diseases to testing new cosmetics. Due to the widespread nature of animal testing, there are those who argue that animal testing is morally wrong and that it causes unnecessary suffering in animals. However, there are some that believe animal testing’s ability to reduce human suffering makes it morally right, good, and useful. Throughout this paper, I will argue that testingRead MoreThe Facts And Benefits Of Animal Testing1533 Words   |  7 PagesLife revolves around animals When thinking of animal testing the first thing that pops into our mind may be animal cruelty, and unfair treatment. We all must set aside our personal beliefs and morals and, for a brief moment, think of the logical facts and advantages animal testing provides. When thinking of rabbits, mice, dogs, cats and other animals, the last thing that comes to mind is that they save lives. Animal research allows every day, common animals to save human lives. Vaccines, over-the-counter

Applying Sociological Imagination to the Drug or Alcohol...

C. WRIGHT MILLS SOCIOLOGICAL IMAGINATION Introduction According to C. Wright Mills (1959), sociological imagination is the ability to appreciate a different (wider) perspective of the self in relation to others and to society than the narrow perspective of the self that comes most naturally to the individual. Today, sociological imagination is a concept that is considered central to the study of sociology and other disciplines such as social psychology because the ability to shift from a personal perspective to a more objective perspective is crucial to understanding other people and to understanding the norms, values, and expectations of other societies that may differ substantially from the society of the researcher or student. Applying Sociological Imagination to the Drug or Alcohol Abuser There are at least two different aspects of sociological imagination that apply to substance abusers. First, there is the issue of how the behavior developed within the context of external social influences. For example, substance abuse rarely begins in isolation; instead, the first experiences of most drug and alcohol users is typically within the context of social relationships within a particular subcultures and the norms, values, and expectations of individuals within those subcultures. In that sense, the individual exercising sociological imagination might realize that the choices of norms and behaviors of the members of that subculture provide an impetus for every

My Experience in the Literacy Tutoring Class - 1327 Words

I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I had signed up for this class. I was searching for general education classes to fill up my schedule this semester and this one happened to show up, so I signed up for it. What would happen over the course of the semester is something that I wouldn’t have ever imagined. Over the semester my thoughts on reading, literacy, and people as a whole have changed due to this course. Coming into the class was – at first – a little intimidating for me. As I mentioned earlier, this class was a GenEd for me; when I found out that practically everybody in the class was taking the course because it was a part of their major, I felt out of place. I had known about the 24 hours required of tutoring and figured that everybody was in the same boat as me when it came being inexperienced in that regard, but turns out that I was one of the few that didn’t have any experience in tutoring. Little did I know that tutoring was going t o be a good time. Tutoring is one of the things that I look back on this semester and am actually proud of myself for. Sure, I was nervous, but when I actually got acclimated to my surroundings and became a mainstay at Roskruge, things got far better, and far easier. Though I was fulfilling a requirement for the class, I also felt like I was giving back to the community, even if very minimally. Tutoring was also the time where I saw a lot of what we had learned about in class, in action. It was so interesting to me to see theShow MoreRelatedMy Letter About The Human Service Program1107 Words   |  5 PagesMy name was Iris Edwards when I started at PCC. Divorced three times; finally realizing that it was time for me to make changes in my life. The first thing was to take my maiden name back. Iris Jackson is the name I want to appear on my AAS degree. My mother always wanted me to return to school and complete my education. She passed in 2005, and will not get to be a part of my fin ally receiving my degree. However, I know she would have been proud of me. At age 59 I started school again; this wouldRead MoreRoots Of Knowledge : Becoming Ellis Boyd Redding1287 Words   |  6 Pagesoption. The Youth Tutoring Program, a branch of the Catholic Community Services of Western Washington, seeks to address this issue, helping families who have been placed in low and mixed income housing projects. For elementary school kids, their services and curriculum appear well manicured, focusing on reading comprehension and skill building. But for the older attendees of the program, who bring in challenging assignments daily, no such planning exists and the tutor’s personal experience comes more intoRead MoreHow I Learned With Teaching Reading937 Words   |  4 Pagesmanagement tips, and gather tons of new resources. 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Financial Statement Analysis Research Paper

Question: Describe about the Financial Statement Analysis Research Paper? Answer: Introduction Financial statements help to understand the financial health of a company. However, when accounts are manipulated, it provides a negative usage to stakeholders. Stakeholders face many issues in reading the market such as improper guidelines, fraudulent practices and manipulations. This research paper makes a study of the financial statement analysis issue. The methodology involved is to study the issue through a case study of the financial statement of Apple Inc. The ratio analysis made is through the horizontal method and vertical method. The horizontal method is done through the financial statement analysis, growth expectations and equity valuation of Apple Inc., over a period of 4 years from 2012 to 2015. The analysis is made through figures presented in the annual reports of the company and the issues that stakeholders face while reading the annual reports of a firm. The literature relating to manipulation issues, the causes, methods involved in manipulations is analyzed through Apple Inc. The findings are made and conclusions of the study provided through detailed study. Literature Overview Jerry M Rosenberg has defined Accounting Ratios as any relationship of a companys earnings to the firms market price of its stock. They are also called as financial ratios as they show the relationship between various figures stated in the financial statements. Ratio analysis is the most widely used financial analysis tool. These ratios help to assess the liquidity, profitability and the capital structure of the business, especially to compare the performance of the firm in relation to its previous performance (Sarngadharan kumar, 2011). Financial Statement Analysis Users view the financial statements of a firm for various reasons. Investors look at the profitability of the firm over time and by comparing them with other firms in the same industry. The continuity, stability and solvency of a firm is seen by a strong cash flow. The capital structure gives them a picture of the value of holdings by investors. Other stakeholders include the lenders, pension fund managers, banks, employees and suppliers. The business managers read the financial statements to know the performance of the firm and to spot problems that arise in the firm(Fridson Alvarez, 2002). Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) The role of the SEC is to protect the interest of stakeholders and to maintain an orderly and efficient market to facilitate capital formation so that firms confirm to transparent accounting practice and also confirm the standards of disclosure as specified(SEC, 2013). Methodology: Case Study-Apple Inc. The research paper consists of current issues regarding the financial statement analysis of stakeholders. The methodology used in this research is through a case study of Apple Inc. The current issues that stakeholders face in reading financial statements are analyzed. Issues arise regarding financial analysis under horizontal and vertical methods. Details regarding Apple Inc and stakeholders involved in Apple Inc. are seen by using various analytical tools. Though the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) takes steps to prevent fraudulent practices manipulations, there are many reasons why corporate make use of loopholes in presenting incorrect financial statements. History Apple is an American international company which manufactures personal computers, computer software, mobile phones and computer peripherals. This company was co-founded by Steve Jobs in 1976. It is the third largest mobile phone makers. Some of its well-known products are the iPhone, iPod, the iPad, and the Macintosh line of computers. The financial statement analysis helps to inspect the productivity and feasibility of Apple Inc. through the income statement, the balance sheet, statement of retained earnings and statement of cash flows. Stakeholders of Apple Inc. The interests of the stakeholders are the main concern of Apple Inc in while considering the different aspects of its business. They are Customers or consumers: They are the companys top stakeholders. Providing effective and good products at reasonable prices to customers is the priority of the firm. But customers of Apple have accepted the premium pricing policy along with the superior quality of the product. Employees of Apple Inc Investors Employees of distributors and suppliers Impact of financial statement manipulation The stakeholders are the main users of the financial statement projected annually by the firm The investors, bankers, suppliers, creditors, employees are various stakeholders who read the financial reports and take decisions regarding the relationship with the firm. Unless the stakeholders understand the issues and read between the lines, they will be misled into taking wrong decisions regarding the firm. Big corporate like General Motors, Lehman Brothers, Enron, AIG, Freddie Mac, are some examples of bankrupt firms which predicted wrong financial statements and had to close their firms as they were bankrupt while stakeholders lost their investments in these firms. Financial Statement Analysis(Cook, Apple Inc. - Annual Report, 2015, 2015)(Cook T. , 2014)(Cook, Apple Inc.- Annual Report, 2013)(Cook, Apple Inc.- Annual Report, 2012) (Ernst Young, 2015) Financial Statements are analyzed from the annual reports of companies. A study is made on how stakeholders analyze the financial statement of Apple Inc. Key methods of analyzing financial statements are the horizontal method and the vertical method. The horizontal method analyzes the financial statement over a series of periods. In this sample the financial statements are studied for a period of four years from 2012 to 2015 of Apple Inc. The financial statement analysis, growth expectation and equity valuations are studied. The vertical method analyzes the financial statement between competing firms and between the industry figures. Horizontal method Under the horizontal method, the financial analysis made within the firm by means of ratio analysis over a time-frame. The time-frame considered here is four years from 2012 2015. The ratios analyzed on Apple Inc are to gain knowledge about financial analysis, growth expectation and equity valuation (Sarngadharan kumar, 2011) Financial Analysis Liquidity Ratios Liquidity Ratios 2012 2013 2014 2015 Current Ratio 1.50 1.68 1.08 1.11 Quick Ratio 1.48 1.64 1.05 1.08 Cash Ratio 0.76 0.93 0.40 0.52 Source: Nasdaq(Nasdaq, 2016) Liquidity ratios help to analyze if the firm has the ability to meet its current or short-term obligations The current ratio is very good in 2012 while it has come down in 2015. The current assets are just able to meet the current liabilities in 2015 and are just satisfactory. The Quick ratio shows the overall liquidity position of the firm. This is also known as the liquid ratio. It places more emphasis on the ability of the firm to convert current assets into cash. Quick assets are current assets less inventory and prepaid expenses. A liquid ratio of 1:1 is considered satisfactory and Apple Inc has just satisfactory liquid assets to meet liquid liabilities(Palepu Healy, 2013). The Cash Ratio is a liquidity ratio that reflects the ability of the firm to pay its current liabilities with its cash and cash equivalents. This ratio is analyzed by its creditors. Apple Inc has a cash ratio of less than 1 which shows that it does not have the required cash balance to pay off its debts. In fact, this ratio shows deterioration over the years. The cash balance consists of cash obtained through tax evasion as reported through new articles.(TOI, 2016). Profitability Ratios 2012 2013 2014 2015 Gross Margin 44% 38% 39% 40% Operating Margin 35% 29% 29% 30% Net Margin 27% 22% 22% 23% ROE 43% 31% 34% 46% ROA 42% 26% 26% 31% Source: Morningstar(MorningStar, 2016) Gross Margin: This shows the percentage of revenue that is available to cover operating expenditures and other expenditure. Apple Inc.s GP margin has decreased after 2012 though it is recovering over the years showing that it is increasing its revenue to cover expenses Net margin: This indicates profitability. Apple Inc.s net profit margin has also fallen since 2012, showing a marginal improvement after its fall in 201 . Year on year, the companys revenue has increased to 233.72bn from 192.80bn which is a 27.86 % increase. It has also decreased its cost of goods sold, selling and administrative expenses as well as interest paid as a percentage of sales. These improvements have increased the growth of net income to 53.39bn from 39. T5bn which is 35.14% (Marketwatch, 201). ROE: This measures how much a company generates as profit from the shareholder money invested. It compares the profitability of the company with that of other firms in the same industry. This ratio has also improved after 2013 showing that investments made with the shareholder money get good returns adding to the profit of the business ROA: We find that the ROE exceeds ROA in 2012 and 2015 showing that earnings is more than sufficient to pay the interest charges on levered capital structure(Billingsley, 2006) Growth Expectation Current Qtr Mar 16 Next Qtr June 16 Current Year Sep 16 Next Year Sep 17 Earnings estimate 2.00 1.78 9.07 10.02 Revenue Estimate 52.10B 47.76B 227.45B 240.84B Earnings 2.16 1.81 1.88 3.23 EPS 2.00 1.78 9.07 10.02 Source: Yahoo Finance(Yahoo, 2016) The dividend per share (at a five year average) at 1.26% has grown at 8.7%. This is a noteworthy positive trend since there are not many companies in the communication equipment industry paying such good dividend. The EPS (at 5 year average) is at its highest in 2015. The industry average is 9.39 which show that the company has attained good growth. The estimated growth for September 2017 is 10.02(Yahoo, 2016) The revenue estimate shows a positive trend for the next year The growth-stock newsletter: The Motely Fool has recommended that Apple Inc. will triple its stock markets return over its last 13 year performance. Apple CEO Tim Cook has made bullish statements in its last employee meeting regarding its iPad business Equity Valuation (value in 000s) 2012 2013 2014 2015 Common Stocks $16,422,000 $19,764,000 $23,313,000 $27,416,000 Retained Earnings $101,289,000 $104,256,000 $87,152,000 $92,284,000 Total Equity $118,210,000 $123,549,000 $111,547,000 $119,355,000 EPS 6.31 5.68 6.45 9.07 Dividend 0.38 1.63 1.81 1.98 Source: Nasdaq(Nasdaq, 2016) Balance Sheet (value in 000s) 2012 2013 2014 2015 Current Assets $57,653,000 $73,286,000 $68,531,000 $89,378,000 Total Assets $176,064,000 $207,000,000 $231,839,000 290,479,000 Current Liabilities $38,542,000 $43,658,000 $63,448,000 $80,610,000 Total Liabilities $57,854,000 $83,451,000 $120,292,000 $171,124,000 Source: Nasdaq(Nasdaq, 2016) Current assets include cash and cash equivalents; short-term investments; net receivables and other current assets. Total assets include current assets, long-term investments, fixed assets, goodwill, intangible assets and other assets Current liabilities include accounts payable, short-term debt and other current liabilities have increased significantly from last year Total liabilities include current liabilities, long-term debt, other liabilities and deferred liability charges (Wahlen, 2015). Porters five forces determine the ability of the firm to earn returns on capital that exceeds cost of capital Rivalry within existing firms Threat from new entrants Threat of substitutes Suppliers bargaining power Buyer bargaining power(Viebig, Poddig, Varmaz, 2008). Issues in Horizontal Analysis On analyzing the companys Balance Sheet, we find that The total assets and the total liabilities of the company have grown. However, we find that the liabilities are growing at a higher rate than the total assets though the profits projected are good. The shareholders equity has improved from last year. However, it has not been able to cross the 2013 figure. The statement of financial position and stockholders equity gives information to stakeholders about the company resources which is its assets and the source of capital which is its liabilities and equity Accounting based equity valuation is criticized as the earnings are subject to distortion and manipulation. The accounting numbers reported, affect their personal objectives. Leading Investment banks use the DCF model for equity valuation as investors prefer the present value of the future cash flows low risk, high returns and liquidity. (Wild, Subramanyam, Halsey, 2007) We find that the financial statement analysis through ratios, growth expectation and equity valuation project a good report of Apple Inc. However, we find that profit, sales and value of the firm are not steady as sales are lopsided depends only on iPad and iPhone (Benner, 2015). Vertical Method Through vertical analysis, financial statements, growth expectation and equity valuation are studied between firms within the same industry and compared to industry standards. However, stakeholders face various issues through such comparisons. Apple plays a major role in the cell phone industry and other products. Some of its competitors taken for comparison are HP Inc.and Alphabet Inc. within the electronic equipment industry Comparison between competing firms and industry standards (as of 2015) Apple Inc. HP Inc. Alphabet Inc. Industry Market Cap 589.3 21.06 509.08 993.9 Revenue 234.99 101.74 74.99 637.90 Gross Margin 0.40 0.24 0.62 0.22 Operating Margin 0.30 0.8 0.26 0.05 Net Income 53.73 4.43 16.35 0.05 EPS 9.40 2.08 23.59 0.09 RD Expenses 3.5% - 16.1% - Source: Yahoo Finance(Yahoo, 2016) Issues in Vertical Analysis Hp Inc has a comparatively low market cap but is able to generate higher revenue than Apple Inc. The gross margin and the net margin is also high showing that on a percentage basis, HP inc. generates more profits than Apple Inc. Stakeholders especially shareholders do not make such intimate study on the industry as a whole while making investments. The amount spent on research and development is also comparatively less showing that future products will be impacted by this low expenditure which would affect the future growth of the company(Yahoo, 2016) If Apple has to be compared with software companies, it should be compared to Dell, HP. Lenovo and Microsoft. Hence, with different segments within industries, it is difficult to classify firms within particular industries and make comparisons, as their line of business varies along with its revenues which confuses its stakeholders Apple has product lines like iPad, iPhone, iTunes, Mac, Software and Peripherals while Microsoft has various business divisions like Online Services, Server and Tools, Windows and Windows Live, Entertainment, Devices and Business (Office). From 2007 to 2011, the revenue has increased from $5,000 m to $27,000m for Apple while it has grown from $5,000m to 21,000, for Microsoft. However, the chief reason of growth of Apple is due to iPhone and iPad while it is an overall growth for Microsoft. Though the rate of growth of Microsoft is not as high as Apple, it shows overall growth in revenue which is healthier than Apple(Dediu, 2011). Stakeholders are the main users of the financial statements. By projecting a positive statement, firms are able to attract stakeholders to invest in their firms. This helps them in decision-making regarding investments in firms. Through financial analysis they get an idea of the performance of the firm as they help stakeholders analyse financial statements, study its growth expectation and equity valuation before investing in them(Mohana, 2011). Manipulation Issues Cause for manipulation Statutory flaws The Financial Accounting Standard Board (FASB) which is responsible for the GAAP standards provides various provisions that corporate management makes use of while preparing accounts. Firms make use of the flexibility in GAAP standards to paint a rosy picture of the companys financial position Management Corporate executives are paid in proportion to the financial performance of companies and hence project a positive statement As auditors and corporate executives have a good relationship, the auditors are influenced by corporate to bend accounting rules to keep away negative projections and bolster incomes so that stakeholders get a positive idea about the firm(Gibson, 2011). The accounts are manipulated for various reasons. a) The firm shows bad performance during the current period and can look strong in the years ahead b) To put all poor financial information into the current period so that the fault can be attributed to the current economic environment c) To project good financial information for the future period when the company can get more identity(Wahlen, 2015) Methods of Manipulation of Financial Statements Inflate earnings during the current period through artificially inflating incomes and revenues. Deflate expenses during the current period, artificially to meet expectations. Deflate earnings during the current period as a counterintuitive measure to project a poor performance of the firm. Failing to record expenses or reducing liabilities improperly. Holding back revenue to bolster future performance of the company as a revenue source. To shift future expenses into the current period, such as provision of depreciation and depletion through manipulation of accounting standards. To shift current expenses into the future period or earlier period, such as writing off impaired assets Increase profits through the sale of assets and investments and recording the sale as revenue To record fictitious revenue of sales that do not exist or showing loan proceeds as revenue To record revenue before completing the entire service and before product shipment Issues raised by stakeholders of Apple Inc. Currency Issues Apple Inc has to depend on various countries like China, Korea and India for its products. Currency fluctuations and political factors are ever-persistent risks that the company faces every year and hence comparison over time-period and between industries is tough(FinancialTimes, 2016) P/E ratio Bajarin an industry analyzer on his analysis of Apple Inc, states that market trends and business strategies are being distorted throughout the tech industry which he calls as the reality distortion theory. In the last quarter, Apple has shown a healthy profit margin with its revenue more than $48 billion. Fortune has listed Apple Inc first in four major categories. However the P/E ratio is much lesser than Amazon, Google, Facebook and Dell. Bajarin argues that investors who invest in companies after reading the annual reports come to the conclusion that Apple Inc. is a good investment but if the stock prices are less than that of its peers, they would lose out on their investments(Bajarin, 2013). Cash balance Apple Inc. (AAPL) In the 2015 annual report, Apple has shown that it holds cash of $187 billion. This amount is equal to about 88% of the annual sales of the company. Usually such high cash balance is held as precautionary cash. The reason stated, is that if such cash balances are not held, they will have to depend on debt and capital markets. Another tech company in the late 1970s was Intel, faced such as the situation when it entered innovative technology and had to depend on external capital markets for its fund. However, Faulkner argues that Apple is not using this cash balance as a precautionary reason but to get around the high corporate tax made on the company by the US. He also feels that investors would find such huge cash balance as a positive indication on the stock (Faulkender, 2016). Tax evasion Tax avoidance is an illegal and unethical perspective followed by multinationals like Microsoft, Apple, Google and Starbucks. Apple is described as the largest tax avoider by the Senate Subcommittee on Investigations in US. It has avoided 44billion pounds over the past four years through the Double Irish scheme. It has saved over $12.5 billion through intellectual property rights through commercial benefit in US corporation tax (Colle, 2014). Stock prices Time to time, Apple Inc., stock prices show irregularities. The instance taken for analysis is between September 19, 2013 to December 28, 2013 when the stock closed at $702.10 and 509.8 respectively. The stock had drifted low without any concrete reason such as low earnings or poor product line development. This stock manipulation also took place during July 25, 2013 and August 2013when shares soared 24%. This was an increase of about $135 within 42 trading sessions. These manipulations are due to the ground breaking innovations brought about by Apple and hence movement of these stocks is easier than Microsoft or other firms in the same sector(Johnson, 2013). These stock movements are due to rumors spread deliberately by the management to make use of market movement Forecast rumors Apple has project revenue for the end-of-quarter at $75.5-$77.5 billion. Though the numbers are high, it has fallen below the Wall Street forecast. Forecasts are artificially created by firms to get investor attention. Lopsided growth Another reason for its slow growth is the poor sales in iPad though iPhone continues its growth Though Apple Inc. shows good overall growth, the sales figures are high, mainly due to its iPad and iPhone turnover showing that the company has a lopsided growth. If these products fail, the company will not be able to survive for long (Fool, 2016). Findings The research paper has made a study on the financial statement analysis, growth expectation and equity valuation. The projections that the stakeholder will read through these analysis and the true picture of Apple Inc. through the horizontal and vertical analysis present a vast difference. This is because financial analysis faces various issues. A definite underlying theory to analyze financial statements does not exist: With no definite theory, ratios are subject to untested assertions and are replete Conglomerate firms are large firms having a wide range of industries and diversified product lines. They do not have suitable benchmarks for financial evaluation Window dressing is part of financial accounting practice to present a rosy picture to its stakeholders Price level changes are not included in price level changes Variations in accounting policies between companies such as depreciation policy, valuation of stock, foreign exchange transaction, provision of reserves, research and development and revaluation of assets Interpretation of results have varying yardsticks with industry averages. Hence whether a certain ratio is good or bad cannot be judged easily(Chandra, 2008) Conclusion Apple Inc. is a successful company on a global level playing an important role by producing innovative models and marketing good quality products. The research paper has taken Apple Inc. for its case study to study the financial statement analysis issues. The study has done the financial statement analysis through the horizontal and vertical method by using various ratios from the reports of Apple Inc. Through comparative study over a time period and within firms and the industry, the issues that stakeholders face when they invest their money into Apple Inc. is projected. Manipulations issues affect the financial statement analysis, growth expectation and equity valuation distorting the view of stakeholders who are the real users of the financial statements of the firms. Bibliography Bajarin, B. (2013, March 4). Apple's Reality Distortion Field Relocates to Wall Street. Retrieved March 23, 2016, from Techland Time: https://techland.time.com/2013/03/04/apples-reality-distortion-field-relocates-to-wall-street/ Benner, K. (2015, October 28). Apple's sees another quarter of enviable growth; but can the iPhone grow in fiscal 2016. The Economic Times , pp. 1-10. Billingsley, R. (2006). Understanding Arbitrage: An Intuitive Approach to Financial Anlaysis. New Delhi: Wharton School Publishing. Chandra, P. (2008). Financial Management: Theory and Practice. New Delhi: Mc-Graw-Hill. Colle, S. (2014). State-induced, Strategic, or Toxic? An Ethical Analysis of Tax Avoidance Practices. Business and Professional Ethics Journal , 53-82. Cook, T. (2014). Apple Inc. - Annual Report. Washington: Apple Inc. Cook, T. (2015). Apple Inc. - Annual Report, 2015. Washington D.C.: Apple Inc. Cook, T. (2012). Apple Inc.- Annual Report. Washington D.C.: Apple Inc. Cook, T. (2013). Apple Inc.- Annual Report. Washington D.C.: Apple Inc. Dediu, H. (2011, September 29). Comparing Top Lines: Apple vs. Microsoft. Retrieved March 3, 2016, from ASYMCO: https://www.asymco.com/2011/09/29/c Ernst, Young. (2015). Apple Inc. - Current Report. California: Apple Inc. Faulkender, M. (2016, February 5). Apple Inc. (AAPL) Sitting on $187 billion to Avoid US Tax; Economic Distortion Not Clear. Retrieved March 23, 2016, from Value Walk: https://www.valuewalk.com/2016/02/apple-inc-aapl-sitting-on-187-billion-to-avoid-u-s-tax-economic-distortion FinancialTimes. (2016, March 20). Equities: Apple Inc. Financial Times , pp. 1-5. Fool, M. (2016, February 19). Motely Fool: Investing. Retrieved March 20, 2016, from The Motley Fool: https://www.fool.com/investing/general/2016/02/ Fridson, M., Alvarez, F. (2002). Financial Statement Analysis: A Practioner's Guide. New York: John Wiley Sons. Gibson, C. (2011). Financial Reporting and Analysis: Using Financial Accounting Informatiopn. Australia: Cengage Learning. Johnson, S. (2013, July 1). Apple Inc. (AAPL) Stock Manipulation Report. Retrieved March 23, 2016, from Personal Finance: https://www.pfhub.com/apple-inc-aapl-stock-manipulation-report Marketwatch. (201, March 24). Fact Set Research Systems Inc. Retrieved March 24, 2016, from Market Watch: https://www.marketwatch.com/investing/stock/aapl/financials Mohana, P. (2011). Financial Statement Analysis and Reporting. New Delhi: PHI Learning. MorningStar. (2016, March 17). Financials-Morningstar. Retrieved March 17, 2016, from Apple In AAPL: https://financials.morningstar.com/ratios/r.html?t=AAPL Nasdaq. (2016, March 17). Nasdaq. Retrieved March 17, 2016, from AAPL Company Financials: https://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/aapl/financials?query=ratios Palepu, K., Healy, P. (2013). Business Analysis and Valuation: Using Financial Statements. South-Western: Cengage Learning. Sarngadharan, kumar, R. S. (2011). Financial Analysis for Management Decisions. New Delhi: PHI Learning Priviate Limited. SEC. (2013, June 10). US SEC: What We Do. Retrieved March 24, 2016, from US Securities and Exchange Commission: https://www.sec.gov/about/whatwedo.shtml TOI. (2016, March 20). Apple: News. Times of India , pp. 1-5. Viebig, J., Poddig, T., Varmaz, A. (2008). Equity Valuation: Models from Leading Investment Banks. West Sussex: John Wiley Sons. Wahlen, J. (2015). Financial Reporting, Financial statement Analysis and Valuation. Mason: Content Technologies. Wells, J. (2011). Corporate Fraud Handbook: Prevention and Detection. New Jersey: John Wiley Sons. Wild, J., Subramanyam, Halsey, R. (2007). Financial Statement Analysis. New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill. Yahoo. (2016, March 24). Apple Inc (AAPL). Retrieved March 24, 2016, from Yahoo Finance: https://in.finance.yahoo.com/q/co?s=AAPL

Tourism and Hospitality Business-Free-Samples-Myassignmenthelp

Question: Discuss about the Cultural Diversity amongst the Employees in the Hospitality Industry. Answer: Diversity is the variety of factors that differentiate one individual from another. It can be on the basis of age, gender, culture, religion, sexual orientation, social status and personality. Many global companies credit their diverse employees for their success. The businesses which run successfully across various latitudes and longitudes have culturally diverse employees. Culture diversity is the diversity of human on the basis of different cultures and societies. These cultures and societies help build his value system. Cultural diversity also takes into account the religion, language, race, gender, ethnicity and sexual orientation. The companies started to accept this diversity in early 2000s due to changes in demography and workforce (Canas and Sondak, 2014). This essay focuses on the cultural diversity amongst the employees in the hospitality industry. Managing people across varied cultures has become very important aspect of this industry. People from various cultures come together in hospitality to work together and this provides newness to the companys environment and helps in handling diverse customers as well. However, this also poses certain challenges for the management to coordinate the diverse staff and maintain harmony amongst them. These diverse employees have varied history, traits, language and come from different location. Thus, they have varied needs that shall be coordinated with that of the company to motivate them to excel in their respective jobs. Depending upon the culture, they may have different areas of expertise as well. Cashing on those can prove to be fruitful for the organization. For example, French are believed to have food knowledge of healthy food and wine, while an American can have hardcore management acu men that can help manage the organization more professionally (Abramson, Moran and Harris, 2014). Collision of different cultures in the workplace may have great impact on the whole organization. Thus, cultural diversity and its awareness can be very useful and profitable for any company in tourism and hospitality industry. Employees cultural background also effects how they act on a given situation, how they communicate with each other, whether they are team player or individual worker, and what is their approach towards task completion. For example, for Germans truth is of utmost importance, while for English they prefer things not being poked unnecessarily. Japanese bow while greeting each other and not prefer to shake hands while in western countries it is a common practice. Thus, different cultures affect the overall working of the organization by bringing in their individual value system in it (Singal, 2014). Cultural diversity in tourism and hospitality industry facilitates cultural exchange on global level. Hospitality industry gives a great opportunity to the employees and tourists to learn about various places and cultures. Every employee thus needs to be trained to respect and appreciate various cultures. This would help them attend to various guests with equality and do justice to their jobs. Working in diverse environment enables one to understand other cultures, religion and language easily and appreciate it. This knowledge cannot be left upon the hand of personnel who might not completely appreciate the knowledge and diversity of guests coming from around the world, despite having the best intentions. Employees with diverse background can help design and implement the corporate vision and mission that would help company grow globally. The well comprehended vision would facilitate understanding and appreciating different cultures and also ensure satisfactory delivery of the servic es through effective communication and service standards (Aitchison, MacLeod and Shaw, 2014). Higher level of management is most visible face of the company in the competitive environment. Cultural diversity at this level would enable the business to portray and develop a positive image of the company. The image would portray that the company is inclusive in this nature and provides equal employment opportunity to all the cultures and sections of the society regardless of their religion, race, nationality, gender etc. Further, cultural diversity is crucial for hospitality and tourism industry at all the levels. To acquire talented pool of employees, the recruiter needs to be open to diversity. The culturally diverse top management would promote the recruitment of culturally diverse employees at all the levels. Also the new talent would be keener to apply and work in such diverse company where he can learn about various other cultures as well. Organizations that discriminate are not promoted and appreciated by youth of this century (Reynolds, Rahman and Bradetich, 2014). Diverse workforce creates a competitive advantage for the organization by improving staffs morale which in turn increases the employee retention of the organization. The customers in hospitality and tourism industry come from various locations on the globe. Culturally diverse workforce brings stronger cultural approach and understanding of the varied clients that they are serving. With the increased growth of social media, it takes no time for companies to grow or fall. Hotel and tourism industry is most vulnerable of all. Having diverse workforce and servicing clients by understanding them can prove to be a great deal for the organization to promote itself in the market (Hult News, 2017). The tourism and hospitality industry needs to account upon the cultural diversity in the organization. If a business fails to do so, it may set itself as a bad example in the industry and tends to lose the number of clients who may come from various cultures. The big chains of businesses are usually present in a number of cities. For example, Four Point by Sheraton is available in a variety of countries and cities. Thus it shall have a pool of faithful customers who would like to book it at all the possible locations. However, if the hotel does not have diverse staff in all its location to take care of variety of clients, its customers would feel new uniqueness in the hotel in that particular location. This may lead to boredom and clients may want to shift to other hotel which has local culture to offer along with their standards of service. This way, the hotel would lose its customer to another chain which is more adaptive in its nature (Suedekum, Wolf and Blien, 2012). This example is more appropriate for the diverse locations which have unique style and culture. The hotels in such locations are booked only on the basis of unique experiences they offer to their customers. The businesses shall thus focus on exploring the cultural diversity of their local talent along with their standard employees in order to serve better experience in terms of food, culture, language and experience. The businesses can also explore the type of tourists visiting the particular area based on cultural diversity and provide services which amalgamates there style with the local style. This way they would not lose on the customer for not being adaptive and competitive enough (Kalargyrou and Costen, 2017). As found in one of the Glassdoor surveys, majority of the job seekers prefer diversity while evaluating the company. If the company isnt culturally diverse enough, it portrays being closed minded and not adaptive enough to promote multicultural environment. This would reduce the talent pool of the employer and only a few bunches of people who might be merely motivated by the money would be interested in applying in such company. Thus the company might have to compromise on the quality of staff it recruits. Also when an employee may not feel appreciated on the grounds of his culture and society, he might be less loyal towards that company and shift at the first opportunity available to him ( Hult News, 2017. In order, to improve their position as a culturally diverse company, the management needs to understand how it can manage its diverse workforce. Managers shall different cultures share different experiences. They need to sync these experiences and values to strengthen the core of the company. The managers shall create programs that help employees share each others culture and increase awareness about various cultures. This shall improve the employees attitude towards various cultures and appreciate the shared point of views. Further, it shall help employees become flexible to communicate with one another and help solve confusions faced in relation to alien culture which they may have to deal with while serving the clients (Gong, 2012). The companies shall also conduct training and education sessions for their employees to understand and be sensitive towards differences. This training would help them become competitive and successful in conducting their jobs better. Cross cultural tr aining at higher levels would help managers to gain knowledge different cultures and develop managerial skills to tackle diversities in foreign markets and have a competitive edge over managers of other companies. Another important practice shall be to provide equal opportunities to all. Negative stereotype should be avoided. Everyone shall be given equal chance of proving his/her capabilities. Pre-employment screening shall also be fair. The interview shall be similarly structured for all the applicants and cultural sensitive test should be conducted. HR department shall be regular with their measures of practicing fairness with the employees from different cultural backgrounds. Such company would have an upper hand over its competitors with satisfied employees and diverse cultural setup (Boella and Goss-Turner, 2013). References Abramson, N., Moran, R. and Harris, P. (2014). Managing cultural differences. 9th ed. London: Routledge. Aitchison, C., MacLeod, N. and Shaw, S. (2014). Leisure and tourism landscapes. London: Routledge, Taylor and Francis. Boella, M. and Goss-Turner, S. (2013). Human resource management in the hospitality industry. 9th ed. London: Routledge. Can?as, K. and Sondak, H. (2014). Opportunities and challenges of workplace diversity. 8th ed. Boston: Pearson. Gong, Y. (2012). Managing cultural diversity in hospitality industry. Las Vegas: University of Nevada, pp.20-27. Hult News (2017). How cultural differences impact international business in 2017 - Hult News. [online] Hult News. Available at: https://www.hult.edu/news/cultural-differences-impact-international-business/ [Accessed 10 Aug. 2017]. Hult News (2017). 13 benefits and challenges of cultural diversity in the workplace in 2017 - Hult News. [online] Hult News. Available at: https://www.hult.edu/news/benefits-challenges-cultural-diversity-workplace/ [Accessed 10 Aug. 2017]. Kalargyrou, V. and Costen, W. (2017). Diversity management research in hospitality and tourism: past, present and future. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 29(1), pp.68-114. Reynolds, D., Rahman, I. and Bradetich, S. (2014). Hotel managers' perceptions of the value of diversity training: an empirical investigation. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 26(3), pp.426-446. Singal, M. (2014). The business case for diversity management in the hospitality industry. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 40(2), pp.10-19. Suedekum, J., Wolf, K. and Blien, U. (2012). Cultural Diversity and Local Labour Markets. Regional Studies, 48(1), pp.173-191.