

Not all companies classify their operating results the same way. Otherwise, relying on the net sales line on the income statement is sufficient.

If it’s important that the final model includes a scenario analysis - for example, what if iPhone unit sales are better than expected, but the iPhone average selling price is worse than expected? - a detailed historical segment breakout is useful to provide a foundation for forecasts. For example, while Apple provides a consolidated “net sales” figure in the income statement, the footnotes provide sales by product (iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, etc.). Some companies report segment- or product-level revenue and operating detail in footnotes (which roll up into the consolidated income statement). When inputting historical income statement data, several issues are usually encountered: Deciding the level of revenue (sales) detail The process involves either manual data entry from the 10K or press release, or using an Excel plugin through financial data providers such as Factset or Capital IQ to drop historical data directly into Excel.Ĭommon issues when inputting historical income statement data Learn More → Investment Banking Primer Historical dataīefore any forecasting can begin, we start by inputting historical results. In the following guide, we address the common approaches to forecasting the major line items in the income statement in the context of an integrated 3-statement modeling exercise.
Projected cash flow statement how to#
Sensitivity Analysis (“What if” Analysis) How to Forecast the Income Statementįorecasting the income statement is a key part of building a 3-statement model because it drives much of the balance sheet and cash flow statement forecasts.
