In financial accounting, a cash flow statement is a financial statement that shows how changes in balance sheet accounts and income affect cash and cash equivalents and breaks the analysis down to operating, investing, and financing activities.
People and groups interested in cash flow statements include: (1) Accounting personne, (2) potential lenders or creditors, (3) potential investors, (4) potential employees or contractors, and (5) shareholders of the business.
The cash flow statement is intended to provide information on a firm's liquidity and solvency, improve the comparability of different firms' operating performance, and to indicate the amount, timing, and probability of future cash flows.
solvency The state of having enough funds or liquid assets to pay all of one's debts; the state of being solvent.
liquidity
An asset's property of being able to be sold without affecting its value; the degree to which it can be easily converted into cash.