Assignment: Assignment: In this benchmark assignment we are seeking your ability to research companies and determine their strength as a business. Return to Yahoo Finance for the healthcare sector. ht

Assignment:

Assignment: In this benchmark assignment we are seeking your ability to research companies and determine their strength as a business.

Return to Yahoo Finance for the healthcare sector. http://finance.yahoo.com/sector/healthcare. Select three different companies that are in the same sector of the industry (example: healthcare provider, insurer, manufacturer, etc.) and click on their symbol in order to view their financial statement.  

Carry out the ratio calculations for all financial ratios as described on pages 644-653 of the text. Present the results of your analysis along with all ratios in a spreadsheet and answer the following questions:

Which company exhibits the strongest financial ratios?

Identify any possible weaknesses that you observe in the financial ratios of any of the three companies. Describe what you observe, discuss the implications for the company, and explain actions you might take to improve ratios that suggest weakness.

Present your findings in a spreadsheet accompanied by a one-page report summarizing your findings, analysis, and conclusions.

Assignment Expectations:

• Length: 1000-1250 words in essay format; answers must thoroughly address the questions in a clear, concise manner
• Structure: Include a title page and reference page in APA style. Separate each section in your paper with a clear heading that allows your professor to know which bullet you are addressing in that section of your paper. Support your ideas with at least three (3) citations in your essay. Make sure to reference the citations using the APA writing style for the essay. The cover page and reference page do not count towards the minimum word amount.
• References: Include the appropriate APA style in-text citations and references for all resources utilized to answer the questions
• Format: save your assignment as a Microsoft Word (.doc or .docx), Open Office (.odt) or rich text format (.rtf) file type.
• Filename: name your saved files according to your last name, first initial, and the week (for example, “jonesb.week1”)