Financial Insights

Stories Behind the Numbers

Real analysis from people who spend their days digging through statements. We're sharing what actually matters when you're trying to make sense of financial data—without the unnecessary jargon.

Latest Coverage

What We've Been Working On

Financial statement analysis workspace with documents and charts

Cash Flow Analysis

When Operating Cash Tells a Different Story

A Thai manufacturer looked profitable on paper. Their cash flow statement revealed something completely different—and it saved their partnership deal.

March 14, 2025 • 6 min read

Ratio Analysis

Quick Ratio Reality Check for Service Businesses

March 8, 2025

Balance Sheet

Goodwill Impairment That Nobody Saw Coming

February 28, 2025

Income Statement

Revenue Recognition Changes We're Seeing in 2025

February 19, 2025

Monthly Insights

Recent Deep Dives

January 2025

Depreciation Methods That Actually Match Reality

Most companies default to straight-line depreciation because it's simple. But we worked with a logistics company where their trucks lost value way faster in early years. Switching to declining balance changed their whole financial picture—and helped them plan replacements more realistically.

December 2024

Working Capital Patterns in Seasonal Businesses

A resort in Phuket had perfect annual numbers but nearly ran out of cash every low season. Their statements looked fine until we mapped working capital month by month. Sometimes the timing matters more than the totals.

November 2024

Inventory Valuation When Costs Keep Changing

FIFO versus weighted average isn't just accounting theory. For importers dealing with exchange rate swings and shipping cost changes, the choice affects gross margin by several percentage points. We break down when each method actually makes sense.

Case Study

Real Situations, Real Solutions

Business meeting discussing financial reports and analysis

Debt Coverage Analysis

The EBITDA Trap That Almost Cost a Restaurant Chain

They had eight locations doing well on paper. Strong EBITDA, growing revenue, happy investors. But their debt service coverage ratio was declining every quarter.

The issue? Aggressive expansion meant lease obligations that didn't show up in traditional metrics. By the time we got involved, they were three months from missing a payment despite looking profitable.

We restructured the analysis to include all fixed obligations—not just interest. Turned out they needed to pause expansion for six months and focus on existing location cash flow. Not the answer they wanted, but it kept them operational.

Expert Perspective

From Someone Who Does This Daily

Freja Bergström

Senior Financial Analyst

Opinion

Why I Don't Trust Single-Period Statements Anymore

After twelve years analyzing financials, I've learned that one quarter or even one year rarely tells the complete story. Context matters—industry cycles, company lifecycle stage, market conditions. I've seen too many decisions made on snapshot data that looked convincing until you pulled back the lens. Now I insist on at least three years of statements before forming conclusions. The patterns matter more than the points.