文档介绍：Page iii
How to Read a Financial Report
Wringing Vital Signs Out of the Numbers
Fifth Edition
John A. Tracy, ., CPA
Page iv
This book is printed on acid-free paper.
Copyright © 1999 by John A. Tracy. All rights reserved.
Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Published simultaneously in Canada.
No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or
by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise, except as
permitted under Section 107 or 108 of the 1976 United States Copyright Act, without either the prior
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This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject
matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher is not engaged in rendering
professional services. If professional advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a
competent professional person should be sought.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data:
Tracy, John A.
How to read a financial report : wringing vital signs out of the
numbers/John A. Tracy.—5th ed.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 0-471-32935-5 (cloth : alk. paper).—ISBN 0-471-32706-9
(paper : alk. paper)
1. Financial statements. I. Title.
1999
657'.3—dc21 98-49083
Printed in the United States of America.
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3
Page v
Preface to the Fifth Edition
When I started this book we had no grandchildren; today we have eight. Then (1979–1980) the Dow
Jones Industrial Average hovered ar