Balance Sheet: Assets
Quarterly Data
The balance sheet provides creditors, investors, and analysts with information on company resources (assets) and its sources of capital (its equity and liabilities). It normally also provides information about the future earnings capacity of a company assets as well as an indication of cash flows that may come from receivables and inventories.
Assets are resources controlled by the company as a result of past events and from which future economic benefits are expected to flow to the entity.
Assets: Selected Items
Current Assets: Selected Items
Based on: 10-Q (reporting date: 2018-02-28), 10-Q (reporting date: 2017-11-30), 10-K (reporting date: 2017-08-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2017-05-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2017-02-28), 10-Q (reporting date: 2016-11-30), 10-K (reporting date: 2016-08-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2016-05-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2016-02-29), 10-Q (reporting date: 2015-11-30), 10-K (reporting date: 2015-08-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2015-05-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2015-02-28), 10-Q (reporting date: 2014-11-30), 10-K (reporting date: 2014-08-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2014-05-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2014-02-28), 10-Q (reporting date: 2013-11-30), 10-K (reporting date: 2013-08-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2013-05-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2013-02-28), 10-Q (reporting date: 2012-11-30), 10-K (reporting date: 2012-08-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2012-05-31), 10-Q (reporting date: 2012-02-29), 10-Q (reporting date: 2011-11-30).
Total assets exhibited moderate volatility over the analyzed period, fluctuating between a low of 19.4 billion USD in February 2016 and a peak of 24.1 billion USD in November 2013. While total assets remained relatively stable in the 20 to 23 billion USD range, the internal composition of these assets shifted, characterized by seasonal swings in current assets and a steady long-term expansion of fixed assets.
- Current Asset Trends and Seasonality
- Current assets showed significant quarterly variance, driven primarily by trade receivables and inventory. Trade receivables demonstrated a consistent seasonal pattern, peaking annually around May (e.g., 4.2 billion USD in May 2014 and 3.9 billion USD in May 2017), followed by sharp declines in August. This suggests a cyclical business model related to planting or harvesting seasons. Inventory levels generally trended upward, rising from 3.1 billion USD in November 2011 to 4.0 billion USD by February 2018, indicating an increase in the volume of goods held for sale.
- Liquidity Position
- Cash and cash equivalents experienced high volatility, with substantial peaks in November 2012 (4.6 billion USD) and November 2013 (4.5 billion USD), and notable troughs in February 2016 (1.05 billion USD). Short-term investments declined sharply from 302 million USD in 2011 to negligible levels by 2017, suggesting a shift in how excess liquidity was managed or deployed.
- Fixed Asset Expansion
- A consistent growth trajectory is observed in Property, Plant, and Equipment (PPE). Gross PPE increased from 8.5 billion USD in November 2011 to 12.7 billion USD in February 2018. Despite the steady rise in accumulated depreciation, which grew from 4.3 billion USD to 6.6 billion USD over the same period, net PPE increased from 4.2 billion USD to 6.1 billion USD, reflecting sustained capital investment in infrastructure and productive capacity.
- Intangible Assets and Goodwill
- Goodwill remained stable for the first two years before increasing to approximately 4.3 billion USD in November 2013, remaining near the 4 billion USD level thereafter. In contrast, other intangible assets showed a gradual downward trend, decreasing from 1.3 billion USD in November 2011 to 977 million USD in February 2018, likely due to systematic amortization.
The overall asset structure indicates a company with heavy capital intensity and significant seasonal working capital requirements. The growth in net PPE and the stability of goodwill suggest a strategy of both organic capacity expansion and the maintenance of acquired intangible value, while the volatility in current assets underscores the impact of cyclical operational cycles on the balance sheet.
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