Thoroughly read all directions!

Select one of the following companies to analyze. You will use the same company for each of

the three assignments. Choose one that is most interesting to you.

Disney

Truist Financial Corporation

The Kraft Heinz Company

Dollar General

The purpose of this assignment is to apply the concepts as you learn them throughout this course,

and your overall education, to analyze the strategy and performance of a publicly traded

company. Public companies must release annual reports, called $10-$Ks$.$ These reports will be your

sources for the analysis and are available on corporate websites. You may also need information

from the company's overall website. You should also monitor current events related to the

company you select. Things change over a four$-$month period. There will almost certainly be

new information that changes things, at least slightly, for your company.

The emphasis for this assignment is analysis. You should demonstrate that your answers are

based on evidence, and they should be truthful. Students sometimes lean toward telling a positive

story. I am not interested in that. If you put a positive spin on a company that is struggling it will

significantly hurt your grade. You are a detective looking for the truth, not a storyteller trying to

convince me of something.

Review the introductory material in the Annual Report $($everything before the page that says,

"Form $10-$K$".$ Companies will sometimes try to tell you a story in the early parts of annual

reports $($likely the Letter to Shareholders$/$Letter from the CEO$).$ These may contain a rosy

outlook. You should consider what they say but need to draw your own conclusions. Some

companies include this section in the $10-K,$ others have a separate document with it$.$ You should

review both regardless of how the company presents it$.$

Then read Item $1,$ titled "Business". After doing this you should be prepared to complete the

steps below.

Requirements

What time period is the most recent annual report covering? Annual reports cover fiscal

years, which may or may not match a calendar year. Include this on your title page. $($Example:

Fiscal Year Ended March $2021).$ Some companies may release a new $10-$K during the semester.

If that happens you are responsible for knowing that and making the switch to the new one.

If you are looking at a report that is over $12$ months old, you should look carefully to make sure

it's the newest. There is a good chance it is not the most recent $10-K.$