Among many ways of manipulating the cash flow statement, two more commonly used ways are: selling receivables prematurely for cash even if it means selling them at a discount (we saw this in an earlier discussion), and delaying the payment of accrued expenses to the following accounting period. When you delay paying your "bills", it makes it look like your have more cash flow now than you really do. There are books written by experts on how companies manipulate the cash flow statement. Of course, the purpose of this discussion is not to promote the idea.

Now based on the three sections of a statement of cash flows, what would you consider to be the signs of a start-up company, a healthy and growing company, and a mature company? Would each of these companies have a positive or negative NET cash flow from operating activities, investing activities, and financing activities?