The Income Statement is one of a company’s core financial statements that shows their profit and loss over a period of time.  The profit or loss is determined by taking all revenues and subtracting all expenses from both operating and non-operating activities.

The income statement is one of three statements used in both corporate finance (including financial modeling) and accounting. The statement displays the company’s revenue, costs, gross profit, selling and administrative expenses, other expenses and income, taxes paid, and net profit, in a coherent and logical manner.

The statement is divided into time periods that logically follow the company’s operations. The most common periodic division is monthly (for internal reporting), although certain companies may use a thirteen-period cycle. These periodic statements are aggregated into total values for quarterly and annual results.

This statement is a great place to begin a financial model, as it requires the least amount of information from the balance sheet and cash flow statement. Thus, in terms of information, the income statement is a predecessor to the other two core statements.