個案資料

The United States had recently experienced a recession, and a credit analyst with Gift Card Capital Inc. (GCC) needed to financially evaluate two troubled restaurant chains. GCC's unusual business model involved offering capital financing in exchange for gift cards that GCC then offered to individual customers and third-party loyalty programs. The analyst needed to weigh the benefits of increasing the size and diversity of GCC's gift card portfolio against the estimated viability of any gift cards received. It was critical to determine whether the businesses could sustain operations for the gift certificates' redeemable time period—roughly up to five years. The analyst was unsure of what to do. Should he offer a cash advance to one, both, or neither of the firms? If he chose to extend a cash advance, how large should that advance be? What specific terms or conditions should be associated with any cash advance? How were the companies adapting to their financial situation and their past performance? How likely was it that either of the companies would become insolvent and shut down overnight?

This case is suitable for undergraduate-level courses on financial statement analysis, financial accounting, or financial management. After working through the case and assignment questions, students will be able to do the following:<ul><li>Construct a statement of cash flows.</li><li>Conduct a comparable company analysis.</li><li>Interpret common-size income statements.</li><li>Interpret the statement of cash flows.</li><li>Understand the meaningful difference between net income and cash flow from operations.</li></ul>

• cash flow
• gift card
• financial statement analysis
• restaurants