Audit Planning and
Analytical Procedures
Chapter 8
©2008 Prentice Hall Business Publishing, Auditing 12/e, Arens/Beasley/Elder
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Learning Objective 1
Discuss why adequate audit
planning is essential.
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Three Main Reasons for
Planning
1. To obtain sufficient competent evidence
for the circumstances
2. To help keep audit costs reasonable
3. To avoid misunderstanding with the client
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Risk Terms
 Acceptable audit risk
 Inherent risk
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Planning an Audit and
Designing an Audit Approach
Accept client and perform initial audit planning.
Understand the client’s business and industry.
Assess client business risk.
Perform preliminary analytical procedures.
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Planning an Audit and
Designing an Audit Approach
Set materiality and assess acceptable audit risk
and inherent risk.
Understand internal control and assess control risk.
Gather information to assess fraud risks.
Develop overall audit plan and audit program.
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Learning Objective 2
Make client acceptance decisions
and perform initial audit planning.
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Initial Audit Planning
 Client acceptance and continuance
 Identify client’s reasons for audit
 Obtain an understanding with the client
 Develop overall audit strategy
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Learning Objective 3
Gain an understanding of the
client’s business and industry.
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Understanding of the Client’s
Business and Industry
Factors that have increased the
importance of understanding the
client’s business and industry:
 Information technology
 Global operations
 Human capital
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Understanding of the Client’s
Business and Industry
Understand client’s business and industry
Industry and external environment
Business operations and processes
Management and governance
Objectives and strategies
Measurement and performance
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Industry and External
Environment
Reasons for obtaining an understanding of the
client’s industry and external environment:
1. Risks associated with specific industries
2. Inherent risks common to all clients in
certain industries
3. Unique accounting requirements
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Business Operations
and Processes
Factors the auditor should understand:
 Major sources of revenue
 Key customers and suppliers
 Sources of financing
 Information about related parties
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Tour the Plant and Offices
By viewing the physical facilities,
the auditor can asses physical
safeguards over assets and interpret
accounting data related to assets.
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Identify Related Parties
A related party is defined as an affiliated
company, a principal owner of the client
company, or any other party with which
the client deals, where one of the parties
can influence the management or
policies of the other.
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Management and Governance
Management establishes the strategies and
processes followed by the client’s business.
Governance includes the client’s organizational
structure, as well as the activities of the board
of directors and the audit committee.
 Corporate charter and bylaws
 Code of ethics
 Meeting minutes
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Code of Ethics
In response to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the SEC
now requires each public company to disclose
whether is has adopted a code of ethics that
applies to senior management.
The SEC also requires companies to disclose
amendments and waivers to the code of ethics.
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Client Objectives and
Strategies
Strategies are approaches followed by the
entity to achieve organizational objectives.
Auditors should understand client objectives.
 Financial reporting reliability
 Effectiveness and efficiency of operations
 Compliance with laws and regulations
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Measurement and
Performance
The client’s performance measurement system
includes key performance indicators. Examples:
 market share
 sales per employee
 unit sales growth
 Web site visitors
 same-store sales
 sales/square foot
Performance measurement includes ratio analysis
and benchmarking against key competitors.
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Learning Objective 4
Assess client business risk.
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Assess Client Business Risk
Client business risk is the risk that the
client will fail to achieve its objectives.
 What is the auditor’s primary concern?
 Material misstatements in the financial
statements due to client business risk
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Client’s Business, Risk, and
Risk of Material Misstatement
Industry and external environment
Understand client’s
business and industry
Assess client business
risk
Business operations and processes
Management and governance
Objectives and strategies
Assess risk of material
misstatements
Measurement and performance
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Sarbanes-Oxley (new title)
The Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires that
management certify it has designed
disclosure controls and procedures to
ensure that material information about
business risks is made known to them.
It also requires that management certify
it has informed the auditor and audit
committee of any significant deficiencies
in internal control.
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Enterprise Risk Management
Enterprise risk management (ERM) has
emerged as a new paradigm for managing risk.
ERM integrates and coordinates risk
management across the entire enterprise.
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Learning Objective 5
Perform preliminary analytical
procedures.
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Preliminary Analytical
Procedures
Comparison of client ratios to industry
or competitor benchmarks provides an
indication of the company’s performance.
Preliminary tests can reveal unusual
changes in ratios.
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Examples of Planning
Analytical Procedures
Selected Ratios
Client Industry
Short-term debt-paying ability:
Current ratio
3.86
5.20
Liquidity activity ratio:
Inventory turnover
3.36
5.20
Ability to meet long-term obligations:
Debt to equity
1.73
2.51
Profitability ratio:
Profit margin
0.07
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0.05
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Summary of the Parts
of Auditing Planning
A major purpose is to gain an understanding
of the client’s business and industry.
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Key Parts of Planning
Accept client and perform initial planning
 New client acceptance and continuance
 Identify client’s reasons for audit
 Obtain an understanding with client
 Staff the engagement
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Key Parts of Planning
Understand the client’s business and industry
 Understand client’s industry and external
environment
 Understand client’s operations, strategies,
and performance system
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8 - 30
Key Parts of Planning
 Assess client business risk
 Evaluate management controls
affecting business risk
 Assess risk of material misstatements
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8 - 31
Key Parts of Planning
Perform preliminary analytical procedures
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Learning Objective 6
State the purposes of analytical
procedures and the timing
of each purpose.
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Analytical Procedures
SAS 56 emphasizes the expectations
developed by the auditor.
1. Required in the planning phase
2. Often done during the testing phase
3. Required during the completion phase
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8 - 34
Timing and Purposes of
Analytical Procedures
Purpose
(Required)
Planning
Phase
Understand client’s
industry and business
Primary
purpose
Assess going concern
Secondary
purpose
Indicate possible
misstatements
(attention directing)
Reduce detailed tests
Primary
purpose
Testing
Phase
(Required)
Completion
Phase
Secondary
purpose
Secondary Primary
purpose
purpose
Secondary Primary
purpose
purpose
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8 - 35
Learning Objective 7
Select the most appropriate
analytical procedure from
among the five major types.
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Five Types of Analytical
Procedures
Compare client data with:
1. Industry data
2. Similar prior-period data
3. Client-determined expected results
4. Auditor-determined expected results
5. Expected results using nonfinancial data.
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Compare Client and Industry
Data
Client
Inventory turnover
Gross margin
Industry
2007
2006
2007
2006
3.4
26.3%
3.5
26.4%
3.9
27.3%
3.4
26.2%
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Compare Client Data with
Similar Prior Period Data
2007
Net sales
Cost of goods sold
Gross profit
Selling expense
Administrative expense
Other
Earnings before taxes
Income taxes
Net income
(000)
Prelim.
% of
Net sales
$143,086
103,241
$ 39,845
14,810
17,665
1,689
$ 5,681
1,747
$ 3,934
100.0
72.1
27.9
10.3
12.4
1.2
4.0
1.2
2.8
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2006
(000)
% of
Prelim. Net sales
$131,226
94,876
$ 36,350
12,899
16,757
2,035
$ 4,659
1,465
$ 3,194
100.0
72.3
27.7
9.8
12.8
1.6
3.5
1.1
2.4
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Learning Objective 8
Compute common financial ratios.
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Common Financial Ratios
 Short-term debt-paying ability
 Liquidity activity ratios
 Ability to meet long-term debt obligations
 Profitability ratios
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Short-term Debt-paying Ability
Cash ratio
(Cash + Marketable securities)
=
Current liabilities
Quick ratio
(Cash + Marketable securities
=
+ Net accounts receivable)
Current liabilities
Current assets
Current ratio =
Current liabilities
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Liquidity Activity Ratios
Accounts receivable
Net sales
=
turnover
Average gross receivables
Days to collect
receivable
365 days
=
Accounts receivable turnover
Inventory
turnover
Cost of goods sold
=
Average inventory
Days to sell
inventory
365 days
=
Inventory turnover
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Ability to Meet Long-term Debt
Obligation
Debt to equity =
Total liabilities
Total equity
Times interest
=
earned
Operating income
Interest expense
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Profitability Ratios
Earnings
per share
Gross profit
percent
=
Net income
Average common shares outstanding
=
(Net sales – Cost of goods sold)
Net sales
Profit margin =
Operating income
Net sales
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Profitability Ratios
Return on
=
assets
Income before taxes
Average total assets
Return on
common
=
equity
(Income before taxes
– Preferred dividends)
Average stockholders’ equity
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Summary of Analytical
Procedures
They involve the computation of ratios
and other comparisons of recorded
amounts to auditor expectations.
They are used in planning to understand
the client’s business and industry.
They are used throughout the audit to identify
possible misstatements, reduce detailed tests,
and to assess going-concern issues.
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End of Chapter 8
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