An Evaluation of Business and Financial Performance of Barclays PLC

By

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I would take this opportunity to thank my research supervisor, family and friends for their support and guidance without which this research would not have been possible.

DECLARATION

I, [type your full first names and surname here], declare that the contents of this dissertation/thesis represent my own unaided work, and that the dissertation/thesis has not previously been submitted for academic examination towards any qualification. Furthermore, it represents my own opinions and not necessarily those of the University.

Signed __________________ Date _________________

Table of Contents

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTii

DECLARATIONiii

PART 1: INTRODUCTION1

1.1Project Objectives1

1.2Overall Research Approach1

1.3Company Introduction2

1.4Global Presence3

1.5History4

PART 2: INFORMATION GATHERING6

2.1Financial variables6

2.2The theory of market valuation in the new economy7

2.3Firm's intrinsic value is driving its market value8

2.4Financial Management9

2.5Financial Ratio Analysis10

PART 3: ANALYSIS AND RESULT11

3.1UK banking IndustryAnalysis11

3.2Company Analysis12

3.2.1 Key figures12

3.3Market Analysis13

3.4Economic Analysis13

3.5Financial Ratio Analysis14

3.5.1.Liquidity Ratios15

3.5.2.Profitability Ratios17

3.5.3.Asset Turnover Ratio19

3.5.4.Debt Management Ratios20

3.5.5.Capital Market Ratio22

3.6SWOT Analysis23

3.6.1.Strengths23

3.6.2.Weaknesses25

3.6.3.Opportunities26

3.6.4.Threats26

3.7Risk28

3.8Conclusion29

REFERENCES30

APPENDICES32

Appendix A32

Appendix B33

Appendix C34

Appendix D35

Appendix E36

Appendix F37

PART 1: INTRODUCTION

This report evaluates the business and financial performance of Barclays Plc during the period of years 2008 to 2010. The report also gives the overview of the United Kingdom's banking sector and its current market analysis. The literature review chapter gives brief concepts of financial variables and terms that are used in analyzing the financial performance of the company.

Project Objectives

The main objective of this research project is to evaluate the business and financial performance of the Barclays Plc and compare the financial performance with another company of the same industry. The aims and objectives of this research study are as follows.

To study about the chosen company, its history and industry

To analyse the current market and industry situation and perform a SWOT analysis to evaluate the business situation.

To perform financial analysis through ratio analysis and compare the results with the competitor.

Overall Research Approach

A mixed method will be employed to gather general and then more specific information from participants and sources. The mixed method includes both the quantitative and qualitative research methods for gathering information. The qualitative and quantitative research methods will be used for this research study. Apart from qualitative and qualitative research methods, the secondary and primary research methods will be used for the data collection.

In the research study, the qualitative, as well as, the quantitative research methods will be used. Quantitative research is used to collect, process, and analyze quantitative data on variables or predetermined numbers.  Quantitative research explores the association or relationship between the variables that have been quantified, which further helps in the interpretation of results. Quantitative research methods have a long history in academia and are the most accepted due to their well-documented mathematical foundations (Silverman, 2001, 45). Qualitative approaches to research provide valuable holistic insight that does not rely on numerical analysis to determine its findings. Qualitative researchers believe that the world is more than what can be reduced into a set of independent and dependent variables. This research is based on the secondary data. This research involved studies in detail the news, articles from journals, and online material available on the ...