Accounting for Corporations

Note: This discussion is comprised of two parts. Both parts must be answered in your initial post.

Part 1: Businesses are classified into one of three basic organizations: Sole proprietorships, partnerships, or corporations.

For Part 1, describe at least three accounts that would be present in a corporation's financial statements as opposed to a partnership or a proprietorship. The accounts may be assets, liabilities, or equity. Be sure to explain the reasons why the accounts you selected are unique to the corporate structure.

Part 2:

Using an internet search engine, search for the most recent Annual Report of a corporation of your choice. Review the Annual Report and post a brief description of your chosen corporation and its services or products. Then, answer these questions.

1. Which financial statements does your corporation report? Are the names/titles of the financial statements the same as shown in your textbook or are they different? Speculate as to the reason(s) why the names of the financial statements might be different.
2. Does your corporation report both preferred and common stock? Does it report different classes of stocks? Explain. You will want to review the Notes to the Financial Statements (in the Annual Report) to answer this question.
3. Review the Management Discussion and Analysis (MD&A) section of the Annual Report. Based on your interpretation of the discussion in this section and based on the financial statements reported, would you consider investing in this company. Elaborate your response.