Financial Analysts

Financial analysts are the profesionals who help people decide how to invest their money. They work for banks, insurance companies, mutual funds, and securities firms. Financial analysts help businesses and other organizations come up with investment strategies to meet their financial goals. Financial analysts and personal financial advisors provide analysis and guidance to businesses and individuals to help them with their investment decisions. Both types of specialists gather financial information, analyze it, and make recommendations to their clients.

However, their job duties differ because of the type of investment information they provide and the clients for whom they work. Financial and investment analysts collect and analyze financial information such as economic forecasts, trading volumes and the movement of capital, financial backgrounds of companies, historical performances and future trends of stocks, bonds and other investment instruments to provide financial and investment or financing advice for their company or their company's clients.
Some of the major functions performed by financial analysts are:
» Analyze financial information to produce forecasts of business, industry, and economic conditions for use in making investment decisions.

» Evaluate financial risk, prepare financial forecasts, financing scenarios and other documents concerning capital management, and write reports and recommendations.

»Plan short- and long-term cash flows and assess financial performance.

»Maintain knowledge and stay abreast of developments in the fields of industrial technology, business, finance, and economic theory.

»Analyze investment projects.

»Advise on and participate in the financial aspects of contracts and calls for tender.

»Investigate and resolve accounting problems for the area of responsibility such as bank reconciliation or federal and state reporting.

»Creates fiscal spreadsheets and databases using macros, functions or pivot tables.

» Follow up on financing projects with financial backers.

» Develop, implement and use tools for managing and analyzing financial portfolio.

» Prepare a regular risk profile for debt portfolios.

» Assist in preparing operating and investment budgets.