What does horizontal analysis involve?

Horizontal analysis involves comparing financial statement items over multiple periods to identify trends and assess the company's performance over time. This technique allows stakeholders to see how specific line items grow or shrink in relation to previous years, thus providing insights into financial patterns and operational efficiency. By examining changes in data across different periods, analysts can make more informed decisions about the company's direction, potential growth, and areas needing attention.

Comparing items as percentages (the other choice) is more aligned with vertical analysis, which looks at a single period's financials as proportions of a whole. Evaluating financial ratios focuses on relationships between different financial metrics to gauge overall health versus time-based trends. Lastly, taking a snapshot of a company's financial position represents how things stand at a single moment in time, rather than analyzing changes over periods, which is at the heart of horizontal analysis.