ISA 520 · ISA 570 · Transportation

Financial Ratio Calculator
for Transportation

Pre-configured for transportation entities. Heavy IFRS 16 lease impact on leverage, fleet depreciation considerations, and fuel cost volatility adjustments.

Financial Data

Enter the essential financial figures below. Expand the additional sections for a comprehensive analysis.

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ISA 520.5 — Design and perform analytical procedures near the end of the audit that assist in forming an overall conclusion.

ISA 520.A1 — Analytical procedures may include ratios such as gross margin percentages and ratio of sales to accounts receivable.

ISA 570.A3 — Negative working capital, adverse key financial ratios, operating losses, and other indicators may cast doubt on going concern.

Financial Ratio Analysis for Transportation

Transportation company financial ratio analysis is heavily influenced by IFRS 16 lease accounting, fleet asset intensity, and fuel cost volatility. IFRS 16 has had a disproportionate impact on transportation companies — airlines, shipping lines, trucking companies, and rail operators with extensive leased fleets now carry significant right-of-use assets and lease liabilities on their balance sheets, fundamentally changing leverage and profitability ratios compared to pre-IFRS 16 periods.

The debt-to-equity ratio for transportation companies (BACH median: 1.60x) is structurally elevated because of IFRS 16 lease liabilities. An airline that previously appeared to have D/E of 1.0x may now show 3.0x after capitalising aircraft operating leases. When performing ISA 520 analytical procedures, auditors must compare against post-IFRS 16 benchmarks and distinguish between financial debt (loans, bonds) and lease liabilities when assessing capital structure quality.

Fuel cost volatility creates significant P&L swings for transportation companies that are not fully hedged. A 20% increase in jet fuel or diesel prices can reduce EBITDA margin by 3–5 percentage points for unhedged operators. Hedging positions under IFRS 9 create their own complexity — mark-to-market gains and losses on fuel derivatives can distort reported profitability. For route/segment profitability analysis, allocate fuel costs per route kilometre or per revenue tonne-kilometre to identify unprofitable operations.

Regulatory Context

IFRS 16 lease accounting impact. IFRS 9 fuel hedging. Fleet depreciation policy and residual value estimates. Operating licence/permit compliance. EU Mobility Package (road transport). IATA financial standards (airlines).

Industry-Specific Going Concern Indicators (ISA 570)

Fleet financing covenants breached

Fuel hedging losses threatening liquidity

Majority of routes or segments loss-making

Load factors/utilisation below breakeven levels

Loss of key customer contracts

Inability to fund fleet renewal or maintenance

Worked Example: European Logistics Company

TransEuro Logistics BV — road freight and warehousing with €42M revenue

Key results: Current Ratio: 1.05, Gross Margin: 25.0%, Net Margin: 5.0%, ROE: 12.4%, ROA: 3.8%, D/E: 2.24 (includes IFRS 16 lease liabilities), Interest Coverage: 1.72x, DSO: 50 days, Altman Z'-Score: 1.98 (Grey Zone — IFRS 16 effect)

Frequently Asked Questions — Transportation

How does IFRS 16 affect transportation ratio analysis?
IFRS 16 capitalises operating leases as right-of-use assets with corresponding lease liabilities. For transportation companies with extensive leased fleets (aircraft, vehicles, containers), this increases total assets (reducing ROA, asset turnover), increases total liabilities (worsening D/E, debt-to-assets), increases EBITDA (because lease payments are split into depreciation and interest rather than being a single operating cost), and may improve or worsen interest coverage depending on the EBIT/interest split. Always compare against post-IFRS 16 benchmarks.
What is a good interest coverage ratio for transportation?
BACH data shows median interest coverage of 3.5x for European transportation companies, but this varies significantly: asset-light logistics companies may achieve 6–10x, while asset-heavy airlines or shipping lines with significant lease obligations may operate at 1.5–3.0x. Post-IFRS 16, interest expense includes lease interest, which is a fixed operational cost — the effective 'financial' interest coverage may be higher than the reported ratio suggests.
How should fuel cost volatility be handled in ratio analysis?
For ISA 520 analytical procedures, analyse gross margin and EBITDA margin both as reported and adjusted for fuel cost changes. Compare the entity's fuel cost per unit of output (per kilometre, per revenue tonne-km) against industry benchmarks and prior periods. Separately assess the P&L impact of fuel hedging derivatives — hedging gains/losses should be identified and their impact on reported profitability understood.
What fleet depreciation considerations affect ratio analysis?
Fleet asset depreciation policy significantly affects profitability and asset ratios. Key areas: useful life estimates (longer life reduces annual depreciation, improving margin but inflating asset book value), residual value assumptions (higher residual reduces depreciation but creates risk at disposal), and fleet age profile (an ageing fleet has lower book value but higher maintenance costs). Compare depreciation per unit of capacity against peers.
What are transportation-specific going concern indicators?
ISA 570 indicators for transportation include: fuel hedging losses threatening liquidity, fleet financing covenants breached, route profitability analysis showing majority of routes loss-making, load factors (utilisation) declining below breakeven, loss of key contracts or regulatory licences, and inability to fund fleet renewal. For airlines specifically: forward booking data declining, frequent flyer liability exceeding cash reserves, and slot rights at risk at congested airports.

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