Devised in the 1960s by Edward Altman, a Z score indicates the probability of a company entering bankruptcy within the next two years. The higher the Z score, the lower the probability of bankruptcy. A score above three indicates that bankruptcy is unlikely; a score below 1.8 indicates that bankruptcy is possible. It works by analysing the financial strength of a company using five balance-sheet and profit-and-loss-account measures profit to total assets, retained earnings to total assets, working capital to total assets, sales to total assets and market capitalisation to total assets. These are then weighted to reflect their relative importance before being combined into a single figure, the Z score.
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Millions of over 50s fear pension investment risk – how should you position your portfolio?To de-risk or not to de-risk, that is the question. Act too late and you could face irreversible losses. Move too early and miss out on significant gains that could transform your retirement.
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£150 off energy bills: millions more to get discount this winterThe expansion of the Warm Home Discount scheme follows a government U-turn on the Winter Fuel Payment. We explain who will get the £150 discount
