2.1

Change in Net Working Capital.  Go to the Investor Relations area for Alcoa at www.alcoa.com. Find the most recent annual report and locate the balance sheets for the past two years. Use these balance sheets to calculate the change in net working capital. How do you interpret this number?

2.2

Book Values versus Market Values.  The home page for Coca-Cola Company can be found at www.coca-cola.com. Locate the most recent annual report, which contains a balance sheet for the company. What is the book value of equity for Coca-Cola? The market value of a company is the number of shares of stock outstanding times the price per share. This information can be found at finance.yahoo.com using the ticker symbol for Coca-Cola (KO). What is the market value of equity? Which number is more relevant for shareholders?

2.3

Net Working Capital.  Duke Energy is one of the world's largest energy companies. Go to the company's home page at www.dukeenergy.com, follow the link to the investor's page, and locate the annual reports. What was Duke Energy's net working capital for the most recent year? Does this number seem low to you given Duke's current liabilities? Does this indicate that Duke Energy may be experiencing financial problems? Why or why not?

2.4

Cash Flows to Stockholders and Creditors.  Cooper Tire and Rubber Company provides financial information for investors on its Web site at www.coopertires.com. Follow the "Investors" link and find the most recent annual report. Using the consolidated statements of cash flows, calculate the cash flow to stockholders and the cash flow to creditors.