MMGT6017 Assignment: Semester 2, 2023
Due Date: 5pm (Sydney time) on Tuesday, September 5, 2023
Length: 2,000 words
Format: Individual case study
Marks: 50% of total unit assessment
This unit emphasises the need for managers to closely engage with the financial
circumstances of their firm. The unit also provides the tools for an external party to critically
analyse the financial circumstances of a firm. The focus throughout the unit is on the key
finance-related decisions encountered by a firm’s managers and the variables that they
should consider when making those decisions.
In this project, you are required to choose ONE of the two companies listed below and then
complete the accompanying requirements for submission by 5pm on Tuesday, September 5.
The requirements for each company are the same. The most recent Annual Reports for both
companies are available on Canvas.
COMPANY 1: ARB Corporation Limited (ASX: ARB)
COMPANY 2: Lindsay Australia Limited (ASX: LAU)
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ARB Corporation:
ARB Corporation Limited (ARB) is engaged in the design, manufacture, distribution and sale
of motor vehicle accessories and has a geographical presence in Australia, USA, Thailand and
Middle East & Europe.
Lindsay Australia:
Lindsay Australia Limited (LAU) is engaged in the transportation of refrigerated and general
freight (mainly agricultural products), logistic services associated with the import and export
of horticultural goods, and the merchandising of rural supplies.
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You are to adopt the perspective of an external management consultant for this project. You
are required to prepare a report to present to the Board of Directors of the company you
select, where your focus is on the financial status of that firm. Specifically, the company’s
Board has requested that you:
1. Analyse the selected company’s current financial circumstances given the detail
contained in its 2022 Annual Report. You should consider a range of measures
(substantially produced through financial ratio analysis) to inform your analysis and
your accompanying commentary. The selection of the appropriate measures/metrics
is left to your discretion but your analysis should be penetrating, and not merely a
description and listing of ratios.
You must submit an accompanying Excel file that shows FULL workings and the
formulae you use for the calculation of the measures you include. Ensure that the
Excel file is clear and well-presented. DO NOT merely present ratios calculated by
third-party sources. YOU must calculate these ratios yourself and include evidence of
those calculations. To be clear, your ensuing analysis of the financial metrics (ratios)
is just as important as your accurate calculation of those ratios.
2. Given your analysis of the financial circumstances of your chosen firm (from task 1),
detail what you beli
eve should be the primary focus – from a financial perspective –
of the company going forward. That is, you need to make a recommendation
stipulating how the firm should manage – or exploit – its financial position. This
might mean, for example, that you consider:
a. divesting assets or business segments to improve the firm’s financial strength,
b. consolidating the firm’s activities to build a larger cash balance,
c. opportunities to organically grow the firm to generate additional revenues,
d. raising external funds to pursue acquisitive or organic growth opportunities,
e. managing costs or adjusting dividend payments to regulate cash flow,
f. or some other course of action.
The guidance you give here should be supported by your analysis of ‘the numbers’
(from task 1) and the broader external environment, both current or projected. To be
clear, the focus of your analysis and recommendation(s) should centre on the firm’s
financial circumstances and the action(s) the firm should take to address those
circumstances, rather than a strategic deep dive into the company’s markets,
business focus, and industry. That is, you should provide the financial framework
within which strategic business decisions could be made by the Board.
Each of the two (2) tasks listed above has an equal weighting. As such, each of the two parts
should also be approximately equal in length.
You should incorporate all recently relevant information into your project. That is, you
should base your analysis on all post-reporting date information – you are producing this
report as a consultant in the contemporary time frame. Nevertheless, the full year figures
produced in the latest ANNUAL report (2022) of each company should form the basis of your
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financial statement and ratio analysis (your analysis can be supplemented by subsequent
interim reports, if available).
Your report should be professionally presented as a submission to the Board of Directors of
your chosen company. This might be in the form of a Word document or a PowerPoint
presentation. You should present your document from the perspective of a professional
external consultant (not as a student from MMGT6017). The quality of your presentation
(including the excel file containing your workings) will impact your mark.
Whilst the 2022 Annual Reports of each company are provided on Canvas, any additional
information you desire is left for you to source. But please pay STRICT attention to the
Academic Integrity requirements of the University, as detailed on Canvas. There will be zero
tolerance for work submitted that is not original (or appropriately referenced). All submitted
work will be processed through the Turnitin academic integrity software. See additional
guidance below, in this regard.