Financial Statements, SEC Filings and Ratio Analysis (Coursera)

Financial Statements, SEC Filings and Ratio Analysis (Coursera)

The objective of Financial Statement and Ratio Analysis for MBAs is to provide you with the knowledge and skills necessary to analyze, interpret, understand, and use financial information to make informed decisions. We will discuss financial reporting from a user’s perspective, use a variety of tools to break apart financial reports into meaningful units for analysis, forecast financial statements, and value a firm. This course is intended to give you exposure to the issues facing users of financial statements.

Class Deals by MOOC List - Click here and see Coursera's Active Discounts, Deals, and Promo Codes.

You will better understand your role in the financial reporting process if you know how the financial statements will ultimately be used.
Financial Statement and Ratio Analysis for MBAs will require you to think critically about issues for which there can be more than one “correct” answer. Hence, your analysis and conclusions must be based on sound assumptions and well-constructed analysis and arguments.

Syllabus

WEEK 1
Course Orientation
You will become familiar with the course, your classmates, and our learning environment. The orientation will also help you obtain the technical skills required for the course.
Introduction to Financial Statements & Basic Accounting Principles
In this module, you will review financial statement and accounting basic principles and learn the differences between the book value, intrinsic value, and market value of equity.

WEEK 2
Introduction to SEC filings
In this module, you will obtain an understanding of the most common SEC filings and the information included within them.

WEEK 3
Financial Ratios and Share Buybacks
In this module, you will obtain an understanding of common financial ratios, learn how to calculate various ratios, and understand the performance drivers of the applicable ratios.

WEEK 4
Accounting Quality
In this module, you will learn what is meant by accounting quality, understand why "accounting quality" matters and how to detect issues.

Go to Class
MOOC List is learner-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Related Courses

Financial Statement Analysis (Coursera) Coursera
Intuit

Financial Statement Analysis (Coursera)

In the final course of this certificate, you will apply your skills towards financial statement analysis. If you have the foundational concepts of accounting under your belt, you are ready to put them into action in this course. Here, you will learn how to reconcile different types of accounts, check for accuracy, and troubleshoot errors. Additionally, you will practice how to apply different analytical methods to key financial statements and understand how these methods inform a variety of business decisions.

Nov 9th 2026
4 Weeks
Infonomics II: Business Information Management and Measurement (Coursera) Coursera
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Infonomics II: Business Information Management and Measurement (Coursera)

Even decades into the Information Age, accounting practices yet fail to recognize the financial value of information. Moreover, traditional asset management practices fail to recognize information as an asset to be managed with earnest discipline. This has led to a business culture of complacence, and the inability for most organizations to fully leverage available information assets. This second course in the two-part Infonomics series explores how and why to adapt well-honed asset management principles and practices to information, and how to apply accepted and new valuation models to gauge information’s potential and realized economic benefits.

Nov 9th 2026
4 Weeks
Finance for Managers (Coursera) Coursera
IESE Business School

Finance for Managers (Coursera)

When it comes to numbers, there is always more than meets the eye. In operational finance, you will learn how to read the “story” that the balance sheet and income statement tells about the company’s operations. The insights you gain from this “financial story” will then become a tool for short-term decision-making at the top management level relating to current assets, current liabilities and the management of working capital. Finally, by the end of the course you will understand the financial consequences of managerial decisions on operations, marketing, etc.

Nov 23rd 2026
4 Weeks
Financing and Profiting from Innovation for Corporate Entrepreneurs (Coursera) Coursera
University of Maryland, College Park

Financing and Profiting from Innovation for Corporate Entrepreneurs (Coursera)

This course is for aspiring or active corporate entrepreneurs who wants to understand how to secure and manage funding for their corporate venture. We will demystify key accounting and financing concepts to give corporate entrepreneurs a guide to developing the business case for their ideas, and securing funding to translate ideas into reality.

Nov 9th 2026
4 Weeks
Applying Data Analytics in Accounting (Coursera) Coursera
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Applying Data Analytics in Accounting (Coursera)

This course explores business analytic applications in accounting. First, it presents a survey of technology topics in accounting, including process mining, blockchain and applications in audit, tax, and assurance. Next, the course explores visualization and basic analytics in audit and control testing using R and Alteryx. Next, the course examines the uses of text analysis in accounting and conducts text analysis using R and RStudio. Finally, the course examines robot process automation in general using UiPath and its applications in accounting.

Nov 9th 2026
4 Weeks
Financial Accounting: Foundations (Coursera) Coursera
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Financial Accounting: Foundations (Coursera)

In this course, you will learn foundations of financial accounting information. You will start your journey with a general overview of what financial accounting information is and the main financial statements. You will then learn how to code financial transactions in financial accounting language. In the meantime, you will learn about the most important concept in contemporary financial accounting: accrual accounting. You will then critically analyze how firms recognize revenues. Finally, you will finish the course with an analysis of accounting for short-term assets where you will go into detail on how firms account for accounts receivables and inventories.

Nov 9th 2026
4 Weeks
More Introduction to Financial Accounting (Coursera) Coursera
University of Pennsylvania

More Introduction to Financial Accounting (Coursera)

The course builds on my Introduction to Financial Accounting course, which you should complete first. In this course, you will learn how to read, understand, and analyze most of the information provided by companies in their financial statements. These skills will help you make more informed decisions using financial information.

Nov 9th 2026
5-12 Weeks
Financial Accounting Fundamentals (Coursera) Coursera
University of Virginia

Financial Accounting Fundamentals (Coursera)

This course will teach you the tools you'll need to understand the fundamentals of financial accounting. Concise videos, the financial records of a small business, and "your turn" activities guide you through the three most commonly used financial statements: the Balance Sheet, the Income Statement, and the Statement of Cash Flows. Beyond recording transactions, you'll learn how to prepare these financial statements, and read and analyze them to draw basic conclusions about a company's financial health.

Nov 9th 2026
5-12 Weeks
Intro to Finance in Healthcare (Coursera) Coursera
Northeastern University

Intro to Finance in Healthcare (Coursera)

This course is best suited for individuals currently in the healthcare sector, as a provider, payer, or administrator. Individuals pursuing a career change to the healthcare sector may also be interested in this course. In this course, you will have an opportunity to explore concepts and topics related to accounting and finance basics for healthcare organizations.

Nov 23rd 2026
4 Weeks
Advanced Financial Reporting: Accounting for Business Combinations and Preparation of Consolidated Financial Statements (Coursera) Coursera
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Advanced Financial Reporting: Accounting for Business Combinations and Preparation of Consolidated Financial Statements (Coursera)

This course covers the accounting for business combinations (ASC 805), the preparation of consolidated financial statements (ASC 810), and other related topics including, but not limited to: step-by-step acquisition, deconsolidation, segments reporting, and the goodwill impairment test. This course begins with a discussion of the scope of ASC 805 and the differences between business combinations and asset acquisitions.

Nov 16th 2026
5-12 Weeks