As an accountant, it is not only important to be able to construct financial statements but you must be able to critical analyze their content. This discussion will provide you an opportunity to review actual statements and provide comments on their content.

Topic 1: Critical Analysis of Financial Statement Data

In this weeks Discussion, you will be comparing the financial statements of two companies. Please select from the following list:

1. Wal-Mart
2. Kmart
3. Target
4. Carrefour Group
5. Tesco plc.

To locate the financial statements, go to the Investors section of the company website and access the most recent annual report. Be sure when you are comparing the companies, the annual report selected is for the same year. Once you have made your selection, please answer the following:

• What are the differences and similarities between their income statements?
• What are the differences and similarities between their balance sheets? What classifications are presented?
• Locate the notes to the financial statements and highlight some of the notes you found that would be of interest to investors about each company.