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July 2008 Avoiding Market Abuse This updated briefing paper covers how companies and consultancies can avoid committing market abuse and incorporates the latest best practice advice from the FSA. download	June 2008 A Beginner's Guide to the Credit Crunch This paper shows the link between sub-prime mortgage lending in the US and current financial market conditions around the world. It also considers likely future developments. download	April 2008 Introduction to Financial Markets This paper provides a general introduction to financial markets, covering stock markets, investment banks, the Bank of England, retail banks, stock brokers regulators and investors - institutional and retail. download	March 2008 Investor Relations Policy - A Checklist This briefing paper is designed to provide a checklist for anyone putting together an IR or corporate communications policy document. It is designed for a medium-sized company but could be adapted to meet the needs of a smaller company with fewer resources. download
February 2008 Announcing Results This briefing paper covers the requirements for results announcements, top tips for press releases and a guide to what happens on results days for a company and its target audiences. download	November 2007 Analysing & Communicating Corporate Strategy in an IR Context This briefing paper covers how strategy statements are devised and how strategy is analysed by the investment community. download	October 2007 Continuing Obligations for AIM Companies This month’s briefing paper covers the ongoing obligations for AIM companies, including the role of the Nomad, the market abuse rules, dealing with inside information, disclosure of transactions, financial calendar, websites and corporate governance. download	September 2007 Half-Yearly Reporting This paper covers half-yearly reports under the Disclosure & Transparency Rules. We looks at best practice and some early examples of reporting on the risks and uncertainties facing the second 6 months of the year. download
August 2007 UK Takeover Rules This paper covers the City Code on Takeovers and Mergers, published and administered by the Takeover Panel, including the timetable, requirements for meetings and documentation and the rules surrounding the initial announcement. download	June 2007 Calculating & Interpreting Financial Ratios This briefing paper covers the most commonly used Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). We show you how they are calculated, what they mean and how they link to the creation of shareholder value. download	May 2007 Interim Management Statements This briefing paper covers the new requirement for Interim Management Statements introduced by the Transparency Directive. We review the statements issued to date and comment on emerging best practice. download	April 2007 Understanding & Analysing the Balance Sheet This paper summarises the purpose of the balance sheet, identifies the key lines, provides a checklist for a balance sheet review, explains the use of a number of useful ratios and comments on topical issues affecting balance sheet communications. download
March 2007 UK Financial Calendar - Rules & Best Practice This paper covers the key requirements of the financial calendar for both Main Market and AIM companies and discusses best practice. download	February 2007 UK Regulations Overview This paper covers the key rules and regulations that affect Investor Relations and Financial PR, taking into account rule changes up to the end of February 2007. download	January 2007 Understanding Investment Styles This paper explains the key investment styles – value, growth and momentum. It covers how styles affect sell-side research, how to drive a re-rating and create momentum and it looks formulating your communications to maximise your company’s appeal. download	November 2006 Understanding Hedge Funds This briefing paper is designed to help you understand hedge funds - their characteristics, their investment styles and how to deal with them from an IR perspective download
October 2006 A Quick Guide to Reading an Annual Report This paper updates our 2004 briefing for IFRS jargon. It offers a quick guide to reading the financial information in a company's annual report. It is designed to give you a view of how a company is doing in less than 30 minutes. download	September 2006 Discounted Cash Flow Valuation Following on from our “Introduction to Investment Maths”, this paper takes a more in-depth look at DCF valuation and how IR can influence value by understanding the key variables. download	August 2006 Introduction to Investment Maths This briefing paper explains yields and the basic calculations and theories behind discounted cash flow valuation. download	June 2006 Understanding Banks This briefing paper, is designed to help you understand banks - their capital structure (including regulatory capital), accounts and how they are valued. download
May 2006 Share Buy-Backs This briefing paper, by Mike Cahill, deals with share buy-backs, covering what they are, why companies undertake them and when they work. download	March 2006 Understanding EV Ratios This briefing paper, by Mike Cahill, deals with EV ratios - defining EV and showing you which ratios are used when and why. It also deals with the pros and cons of EBITDA as a performance measure. A good follow on from our paper on P/E ratios. download	February 2006 Understanding & Analysing the Income Statement This briefing paper covers the income statement under IFRS. It shows you how to tell the story, what analysts look out for and how they will analyse the numbers. download	January 2006 Understanding P/E Ratios This briefing paper, by Mike Cahill explains everything you have ever wanted to know about P/E ratios, P/E relatives and PEG ratios. It deals with lots of analysts' jargon and looks at the lessons for corporate communications. download
November 2005 Introduction to Companies, Financial PR & Investor Relations This paper provides a good general introduction to companies, boards, shareholders and lenders, advisers and the basics of financial PR and Investor Relations. download	October 2005 Accounting Basics This briefing paper covers the basics of financial statements and how accountants think. We define profit and loss accounts, balance sheets, cash flow statements and common terms such as depreciation, capex, EBITDA and GAAP. download	September 2005 Cost of Capital This briefing paper deals with the cost of capital and explains why it matters. We define the cost of debt, cost of equity and the weighted average cost of capital (WACC) in simple terms and show you how to do the sums. We look at the perspectives of both investors and companies, with examples. download	March 2005 An Introductory Guide to Shareholder Identification, Analysis & Targeting This briefing paper covers the basics of share register analysis - what it is, how it is done and why, both in the UK and across Europe. download
October 2004 Communications Implications of the move to IFRS This briefing paper supercedes the others that we have prepared on international accounting standards. It covers the communications implications of the change, the key accounting policies that might be affected, first time implementation issues and the possible impact on share price. download	April 2004 A Quick Guide to Reading a UK Annual Report This paper shows you how to get the most out of a set of UK company accounts in the shortest space of time. download	March 2004 Rights Issues This paper defines rights issues and placings. It also deals with the impact on share price and the options available to shareholders. download	March 2004 Valuing Mergers & Acquisitions This paper deals with the calculations of earnings enhancement or dilution and the valuation of cost savings. download
August 2003 CSR, SRI and SEE This paper covers corporate social responsibility and the related areas of socially responsible investing and social environmental and ethical reporting. We deal with definitions, the demand for CSR information and CSR guidelines. Finally, we look at whether CSR should matter to companies. download