7.4: Summary
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Most of this document has been a discussion of financial accounting, which relates to preparing the four financial statements - the income statement, retained earnings statement, balance sheet, and statement of cash flows – for a company as a whole. These reports are prepared according to generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) to ensure consistency from company to company and period to period. The financial statements are published on a regular basis, such as monthly or annually, primarily for external users such a stockholders, creditors, investors, and government/tax entities.