×

Total return to shareholder analytics

  • US 7,349,877 B2
  • Filed: 03/02/2005
  • Issued: 03/25/2008
  • Est. Priority Date: 03/02/2004
  • Status: Active Grant
First Claim
Patent Images

1. A system for analyzing the financial performance of a business unit of a company, the system comprising:

  • a database having a means for receiving, storing and retrieving financial data about a first business unit and a second business unit different from the first business unit, and having a communications interface for receiving and transferring financial data about the first business unit and the second business unit;

    means for determining Net Operating Profit Less Adjusted Taxes (NOPLAT), revenue, capital charge, spread percentage, and invested capital values for each of the first business unit and the second business unit at least at a first time and a second time from the financial data;

    means for determining at least two data points for the first business unit and the second business unit, respectively, based on the NOPLAT, revenue, capital charge, spread percentage, and invested capital values, each data point including a first component indicative of NOPLAT divided by revenue, a second component indicative of revenue divided by capital charge, and a third component indicative of invested capital, the at least two data points indicative of values determined at one of the first time and the second time, for the first business unit and the second business unit, respectively;

    means for forecasting the NOPLAT, revenue, capital charge, and invested capital values for the first business unit for a third time, said third time being subsequent to said first time and said second time;

    means for determining a third data point for the first business unit based on the forecasted values, the third data point including a first component indicative of NOPLAT divided by revenue, a second component indicative of revenue divided by capital charge, and a third component indicative of invested capital, the third data point indicative of determined values forecasted for the third time;

    at least one display area comprising;

    a user interactive and numerical data display area for receiving a user input and displaying numerical data, wherein the user input comprises commands to input, delete, modify and retrieve financial data from the database, and to select the first business unit and the second business unit;

    a graphical display area for graphically displaying the financial performance of the first business unit and the second business unit comprising;

    right, left, top and bottom regions;

    right, left, top and bottom edges that define the border of the graphical display area;

    a vertical axis with a bottom end and a top end corresponding to a low to a high percentage of profitability values from, bottom to top, the profitability values represented by NOPLAT divided by revenue, the vertical axis positioned in the left region of the graphical display area to the right of the left edge of the graphical display area;

    a horizontal axis with a left end and a right end corresponding to a low to a high capital utilization values from left to right, the capital utilization values represented by revenue divided by capital charge, the horizontal axis positioned to intersect at the left end of the horizontal axis with the vertical axis at the point along the vertical axis representing the percentage of profitability value of zero;

    wherein the top end of the vertical axis ends before the top edge of the graphical display area, wherein the bottom end of the vertical axis ends before the bottom edge of the graphical display area, wherein the right end of the horizontal axis ends before the right edge of the graphical display area,wherein the vertical axis and the horizontal axis define a boundary of a plot area; and

    a legend area outside the plot area;

    wherein the plot area comprises;

    at least two circles representing the first data point for the first time and the second data point for the second time for each of the first business unit and the second business unit, respectively, wherein the at least two circles are positioned in the plot area to visually indicate the NOPLAT divided by revenue, revenue divided by capital charge, and spread percentage values for the first data point and the second data point for each of the first business unit and the second business unit, respectively, wherein the size of the at least two circles is indicative of the invested capital of the first business unit and the second business unit, respectively, wherein the at least two circles have a unique color or pattern to distinguish the first time from the second time, and wherein a trend line is drawn between the center of the at least two circles for each of the first business unit and the second business unit, respectively;

    a third circle for the first business unit representing the third data point for the third time, wherein the third circle is positioned in the plot area to visually indicate the forecasted NOPLAT divided by revenue, revenue divided by capital charge, and spread percentage values for the first business unit, wherein the size of the third circle is indicative of the invested capital of the first business unit, wherein the third circle has a unique color or pattern to distinguish the third time from the first time and the second time; and

    a plurality of isoquant lines indicative of spread percentage values, wherein the plurality of isoquant lines are positioned in the foreground of the plot area, and the at least two circles and trend lines for the first business unit and the second business unit, respectively, and the third circle for the first business unit are positioned in the background of the plot area.

View all claims
  • 2 Assignments
Timeline View
Assignment View
    ×
    ×