Which financial statement lists assets, liabilities, and shareholders' equity?

Which financial statement lists assets, liabilities, and shareholders' equity?

• A. Balance sheet
• B. Income statement
• C. The statement of cash flows
• D. The statement of changes in equity

Answer: (A)

The balance sheet lists assets, liabilities, and shareholders' equity. It shows the company’s financial position at a specific date, detailing resources it controls (assets), obligations it owes (liabilities), and the owners’ stake remaining after obligations are accounted for (shareholders' equity). This is grounded in the accounting equation: assets = liabilities + shareholders' equity. This differs from the income statement, which covers performance over a period (revenues and expenses leading to net income), the statement of cash flows, which tracks cash movements, and the statement of changes in equity, which shows how equity components change over the period. Because the question asks for a statement that lists all three categories in a single snapshot, the balance sheet is the correct one.

The balance sheet lists assets, liabilities, and shareholders' equity. It shows the company’s financial position at a specific date, detailing resources it controls (assets), obligations it owes (liabilities), and the owners’ stake remaining after obligations are accounted for (shareholders' equity). This is grounded in the accounting equation: assets = liabilities + shareholders' equity.

This differs from the income statement, which covers performance over a period (revenues and expenses leading to net income), the statement of cash flows, which tracks cash movements, and the statement of changes in equity, which shows how equity components change over the period. Because the question asks for a statement that lists all three categories in a single snapshot, the balance sheet is the correct one.