【導讀】財務管理和財務分析作為財務學科中應用工具。本書的寫作目的在于交流基本的財。通過對本書的學習，你將了解我們是如何理解財務的。司所做決策的一部分，不是一個被分離出來的功能。市場部和生產(chǎn)部。就像對小規(guī)模的私營企。業(yè)而言存在如何籌資的問題，大企業(yè)面臨所有權(quán)和經(jīng)營權(quán)分離時出現(xiàn)的代理問題。公司的規(guī)模和形式是如何的，公司財務管理的基本原理是一樣的。例如，無論是獨資企。業(yè)做出的決策還是大企業(yè)做出的決策，今天一美元的價值都高于未來一美元的價值。我們所說的財務原理和財務工具適用于全球的企業(yè)，不僅限于美國的企業(yè)。成本和支出的時間和設備的不確定性），這個企業(yè)位于美國、英國還是在其他的地方?資和財務決策十分必要。行的資產(chǎn)負債增長率通過復利的方式，在數(shù)學上表示為次數(shù)和柱狀圖。和處理政府法規(guī)?；蛘叱鍪鬯姓邫?quán)益。由于每一種理財方式都使企業(yè)在一種程度上負有義務，財務

　　

【正文】 ate the credit quality of debt obligations issued by corporations and express these views in the form of a rating that is published in the reports available from these three anizations. FORMS OF BUSINESS ENTERPRISE Financial management is not restricted to large corporations: It is necessary in all forms and sizes of businesses. The three major forms of business anization are the sole proprietorship, the partnership, and the corporation. These three forms differ in a number of factors, of which those most important to financial decisionmaking are: ■ The way the firm is taxed. ■ The degree of control owners may exert on decisions. ■ The liability of the owners. ■ The ease of transferring ownership interests. ■ The ability to raise additional funds. ■ The longevity of the business. Sole Proprietorships The simplest and most mon form of business enterprise is the sole proprietorship, a business owned and controlled by one person—the proprietor. Because there are very few legal requirements to establish and run a sole proprietorship, this form of business is chosen by many individuals who are starting up a particular business enterprise. The sole proprietor carries on a business for his or her own benefit, without participation of other persons except employees. The proprietor receives all ine from the business and alone decides whether to reinvest the profits in the business or use them for personal expenses. A proprietor is liable for all the debts of the business。 in fact, it is the proprietor who incurs the debts of the business. If there are insufficient business assets to pay a business debt, the proprietor must pay the debt out of his or her personal assets. If more funds are needed to operate or expand the business than are generated by business operations, the owner either contributes his or her personal assets to the business or borrows. For most sole proprietorships, banks are the primary source of borrowed funds. However, there are limits to how much banks will lend a sole proprietorship, most of which are relatively small. For tax purposes, the sole proprietor reports ine from the business on his or her personal ine tax return. Business ine is treated as the proprietor’s personal ine. The assets of a sole proprietorship may also be sold to some other firm, at which time the sole proprietorship ceases to exist. Or the life of a sole proprietorship ends with the life of the proprietor, although the assets of the business may pass to the proprietor’s heirs. Partnerships A partnership is an agreement between two or more persons to operate a business. A partnership is similar to a sole proprietorship except instead of one proprietor, there is more than one. The fact that there is more than one proprietor introduces some issues: Who has a say in the daytoday operations of the business? Who is liable (that is, financially responsible) for the debts of the business? How is the ine distributed among the owners? How is the ine taxed? Some of these issues are resolved with the partnership agreement。 others are resolved by laws. The partnership agreement describes how profits and losses are to be shared among the partners, and it details their responsibilities in the management of the business. Most partnerships are general partnerships, consisting only of general partners who participate fully in the management of the business, share in its profits and losses, and are responsible for its liabilities. Each general partner is personally and individually liable for the debts of the business, even if those debts were contracted by other partners. A limited partnership consists of at least one general partner and one limited partner. Limited partners invest in the business but do not participate in its management. A limited partner’s share in the profits and losses of the business is limited by the partnership agreement. In addition, a limited partner is not liable for the debts incurred by the business beyond his or her initial investment. A partnership is not taxed as a separate entity. Instead, each partner reports his or her share of the business profit or loss on his or her personal ine tax return. Each partner’s share is taxed as if it were from a sole proprietorship.、 The life of a partnership may be limited by the partnership agreement. For example, the partners may agree that the partnership is to exist only for a specified number of years or only for the duration of a specific business transaction. The partnership must be terminated when any one of the partners dies, no matter what is specified in the partnership agreement. Partnership interests cannot be passed to heirs。 at the death of any partner, the partnership is dissolved and perhaps renegotiated. One of the drawbacks of partnerships is that a partner’s interest in the business cannot be sold without the consent of the other partners. So a partner who needs to sell his or her interest because of, say, personal financial needs may not be able to do so. Another drawback is the partnership’s limited access to new funds. Short of selling part of their own ownership interest, the partners can raise money only by borrowing from banks—and here too there is a limit to what a bank will lend a (usually small) partnership. In certain businesses—including accounting, law, architecture, and physician’s services—firms are monly anized as partnerships. The use of this business form may be attributed primarily to state laws, regulations of the industry, and certifying anizations meant to keep practitioners in those fields from limiting their liability. Corporations A corporation is a legal entity created under state laws through the process of incorporation. The corporation is an anization capable of entering into contracts and carrying out business under its own name, separate from it ow