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Financials
Income Statement
1 min read

What is an Income Statement?

The Income Statement presents a company’s financial performance by detailing how revenues are transformed into net income or loss. It shows the results of operations for a period—typically quarterly or annually—by matching revenues earned against expenses incurred.

Why is the Income Statement Important?

  • Performance Measurement: Shows profitability trends and operational efficiency.
  • Decision-Making: Guides management in cost control, pricing, and investment.
  • Investor Insight: Helps investors assess earnings quality, growth prospects, and valuation metrics such as Price/Earnings ratio.

How to Read an Income Statement

  1. Top Line: Start with total Revenue.
  2. Gross Margin: Assess production efficiency by comparing Gross Profit to Revenue.
  3. Operating Margin: Evaluate core operations by examining Operating Income relative to Revenue.
  4. Net Margin: Determine overall profitability by relating Net Income to Revenue.
  5. Trend Analysis: Compare line items over multiple periods to identify growth, cost pressures, or one-time impacts.

Additional Considerations

  • Non-Recurring Items: Identify and adjust for one-time gains or losses to gauge sustainable earnings.
  • Seasonality: Be aware of seasonal fluctuations in revenue or expenses.
  • Comparability: Use consistent accounting policies and compare to industry peers for meaningful insights.
Revenue

Total revenue is the total amount of income generated from the sale of goods or services before any expenses are deducted. It represents the "top line" or gross income on an income statement

Cost of Revenue

Cost of Revenue (COR) refers to the **total expenses incurred in producing and delivering a product or service to consumers.

Gross Profit

Gross profit is the amount remaining after subtracting the cost of revenue (or cost of goods sold) from total revenue. It represents the profitability of a company’s core production activities before operating and other expenses.

Profit Ratio

The gross profit ratio (or gross margin) shows the portion of revenue that exceeds the cost of revenue, expressed as a percentage. It measures how much of each sales dollar remains to cover operating expenses and profit.

R&D Expenses

Research and Development Expenses (R&D Expenses) are costs incurred to develop new products, improve existing offerings, and innovate processes. They reflect a company's investment in future growth and competitiveness.

G&A Expenses

General and Administrative Expenses (G&A) include the overhead costs necessary to run a business that are not directly tied to production or sales. They cover functions such as management, accounting, human resources, and office operations.

S&M Expenses

Selling and Marketing Expenses encompass costs related to promoting, advertising, and selling a company’s products or services. They reflect investments in customer acquisition and brand awareness.

SG&A Expenses

Selling, General and Administrative Expenses (SG&A) include all indirect costs not tied to production, covering sales, marketing, and corporate overhead. They reflect the total cost of running and promoting the business.

Other Expenses

Other Expenses include all costs that do not fall under direct production, selling, or administrative categories. They capture miscellaneous outflows that impact a company’s bottom line.

Operating Expenses

Operating Expenses are the ongoing costs a company incurs to run its core business operations, excluding the cost of revenue. They include expenses for sales, administration, research, and other day-to-day activities.

Cost & Expenses

Cost and Expenses represents the total of all direct and indirect costs incurred by a company during a period, including the cost of revenue and operating expenses. It reflects the complete outflow required to generate sales and maintain operations.

Interest Income

Interest Income is the revenue earned from a company’s cash holdings, investments, or loans provided to others. It reflects the return on financial assets and idle cash balances.

Interest Expense

Interest Expense is the cost incurred by a company for borrowed funds. It represents the interest payable on any borrowings—such as bonds, loans, convertible debt or lines of credit.

Depreciation & Amortization

Depreciation and Amortization allocate the cost of tangible and intangible assets over their useful lives. They reflect how assets lose value as they are used in operations.

EBITDA

EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization) measures a company’s operating performance by excluding non-operating and non-cash expenses.

EBITDA Ratio

EBITDA Ratio measures a company’s operating profitability relative to its revenue, expressed as a percentage. It shows how much of each dollar in revenue translates into earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization.

Operating Income

Operating Income, also known as operating profit or EBIT (Earnings Before Interest and Taxes), represents the profit a company generates from its core business operations before financing and tax costs.

Operating Margin

The Operating Income Ratio (Operating Margin) measures the percentage of revenue remaining after covering all operating costs. It reflects a company’s efficiency at generating profit from core operations.

Other Income/Expenses

Total Other Income & Expenses, Net represents the net amount of non-operating gains and losses, including items outside core business operations such as investment income, foreign exchange impacts, and one-time charges.

Income Before Tax

Income Before Tax (also known as Pre-Tax Income or Earnings Before Tax) represents a company’s profit after accounting for operating and non-operating items, but before deducting income tax expense.

Pre-Tax Margin

Income Before Tax Ratio (Pre-Tax Margin) measures a company’s profitability before tax relative to its revenue, expressed as a percentage. It shows how much of each sales dollar remains after covering all operating and non-operating costs but before taxes.

Income Tax Expense

Income Tax Expense is the amount a company recognizes as a liability for taxes on its pre-tax income during a reporting period. It reflects taxes payable to government authorities based on accounting earnings.

Net Income

Net Income is the residual profit a company retains after subtracting all expenses, including operating costs, interest, taxes, and non-recurring items, from its total revenue.

Net Margin

Net Income Ratio (Net Margin) measures a company’s profitability after all expenses, expressed as a percentage of total revenue. It indicates how much of each sales dollar remains as net profit.

EPS

Earnings Per Share (EPS) measures the portion of a company's profit allocated to each outstanding share of common stock, indicating the profitability on a per-share basis.

EPS Diluted

Diluted EPS measures earnings per share assuming all potential common shares (stock options, warrants, convertible securities) are exercised, showing the worst-case dilution of existing shares.

Shares Outstanding

Weighted Average Shares Outstanding is the average number of a company’s common shares in circulation during a reporting period, weighted by the time each share was outstanding. It is used in per-share metrics to accurately reflect share count changes.

Shares Outstanding Diluted

Weighted Average Shares Outstanding (Diluted) includes the average number of shares plus all potentially dilutive shares outstanding during a period, reflecting the maximum share count for diluted per-share metrics.