University Accounting Research Project: ASX Listed Companies Analysis

This accounting research project analyzes the impact of sustainability and corporate social responsibility (CSR) practices on the financial performance of ASX-listed companies. The research examines the annual reports of ten companies, including Rio Tinto, Wesfarmers, and Woolworths, to evaluate their accounting practices and sustainability initiatives. The project explores the use of Environmental Management Accounting and other relevant accounting techniques. The findings reveal a positive correlation between sustainability efforts, such as strengthening corporate governance, improving product quality, and enhancing community involvement, and improved financial outcomes, including increased revenue, profit margins, and stakeholder trust. The project concludes that sustainability practices are crucial for enhancing profitability, gaining investor confidence, and fostering customer loyalty, ultimately benefiting the company's financial health and long-term success. The research also highlights the challenges associated with implementing these accounting systems.

Running head: ACCOUNTING RESEARCH PROJECT
ACCOUNTING RESEARCH PROJECT
Name of Student
Name of University
Author’s Note

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Table of Contents
ANALYSIS OF ASX LISTED COMPANIES:..................................................................2
Rio Tinto Limited:...........................................................................................................2
Wesfarmers Limited:.......................................................................................................3
Woolworths Group Limited:............................................................................................4
Webjet Limited:...............................................................................................................4
Coles Group:....................................................................................................................4
Bellamy’s Australia Limited:..........................................................................................4
CSL Limited:...................................................................................................................5
Transurban Group:...........................................................................................................5
Aristocrat Leisure:...........................................................................................................5
Brambles Limited:...........................................................................................................5
ACCOUNTING PRACTICES:...........................................................................................6
FINDINGS:..........................................................................................................................6
CONCLUSION:..................................................................................................................7
REFERENCE:.....................................................................................................................9

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ANALYSIS OF ASX LISTED COMPANIES:
Rio Tinto Limited:
After analyzing the annual report of Rio Tinto Limited, it can be understood that the
company follows the accounting standards that are embedded by International Financial
Reporting Standard and Australian Accounting Standard Board. The representation of the
financial statements in the annual report assists the company to maintain the shareholder’s
interests. The company produces environment friendly products like anti-microbial copper for
the hospitals, aluminium for the smartphones and cars and borates for helping to grow crop. It is
clearly evident from the annual report of the company.
FINANCIAL STATEMENT
(Source: Annual Report 2018)

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Wesfarmers Limited:
Wesfarmer’s Limited value system assists the operation of the company to maintain the
shareholder’s interests. It is one of the few companies in the world that tries to provide 100%
satisfaction to their shareholders. The satisfactory return to the shareholders is one of the prime
objectives for the company. The company does so by keeping financial discipline in the system.
The exceptional management and diversified portfolio are some of the major reasons that enable
the company to determine the shareholder’s interests (Wesfarmers.com.au. 2020).
DIVEDEND PAID
(Sourced: Annual Report of 2019)

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Woolworths Group Limited:
The company is one of the core members of United Nations Global Compact. The
company provides considerable amount of aids towards the labour standards, human rights, anti-
corruption and environment on worldwide basis. The involvement with United Nations Global
Compact gave Woolworths a worldwide recognition. With rise in goodwill the legitimacy of the
company improves.
Webjet Limited:
Webjet Limited’s Corporate Social Responsibility program concentrates on three
fundamental areas. They are Diversity and Inclusion, Operating Responsibility and Environment
and sustainability. The fundamental program assists the company to maintain its sustainability in
the business as well as in industry and also assists the company to fulfil the shareholder’s
interests.
Coles Group:
After analyzing the sustainability report of Coles Group it can be determined that the
company performs their daily operation under the three sustainable pillars. The three sustainable
pillars of Coles Group are production of sustainable product, developing the society and also
increase the quality of the environment. The stakeholder’s interests are also considered while
performing the sustainability project (Colesgroup.com.au. 2019).
Bellamy’s Australia Limited:
Bellamy Australia Limited mainly focuses in improving the governance of the company.
The corporate governance of the company mainly assists the company to increase their revenue

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and profit margin of the company. The increase performance assists the company to maintain the
shareholder’s interests and also the sustainability of the company.
CSL Limited:
CSL Limited mainly deals with environmental and social activity. The company aims to
increase the quality of the environment and society, so that the future of all living being remains
safe. The corporate social responsibility of the company increases the goodwill of the company
in the industry that assists the company to gain more investments from the market.
Transurban Group:
Transurban Group follows different process while reporting the material issues in their
annual report. The company mainly follows the standards of UN Sustainable Development Goals
and GRI Standards (Transurban.com. 2019). The company also considers the feedback of the
stakeholders.
Aristocrat Leisure:
Aristocrat Leisure actually uses cutting-edge research to find the relationship between the
sustainability reporting and corporate reputation of the company. The company uses absolute
performance scale for calculating the sustainability activities.
Brambles Limited:
The sustainability activities of Brambles Limited involve the essentials providing to the
commoner or normal people, so that they can meet the everyday expenses. The company also
provide considerable amount of money to reduce or eliminate the waste from their supply chain
(Brambles.com. 2019).

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ACCOUNTING PRACTICES:
The companies that trade under Australian Stock Exchange mainly follow the
Environmental Management Accounting. The accounting of the country also guessed that the use
of this accounting practice will increase in future. The international competition and
sustainability factor are the prime factor that restricts the companies around the world to
implement the Environmental Management Accounting. Environmental Management
Accounting assists the company to identify the perfect cost saving opportunities. The accounting
process also generates different mix of products. This accounting practice also assists the
company to select the perfect pricing strategy. The increase in the goodwill is one of the major
benefits that this accounting practice brings in the operations. In spite of having greater
advantage the awareness of the environmental accounting techniques are pretty low. Due to the
low awareness countries around the world were unable to apply and enjoy the benefits of
Environmental Management Accounting.
The companies of Australia trading under the wing of Australian Stock Exchange mainly
follow these accounting practices while performing the corporate social responsibility. The main
problem that Australian company’s faces are the actions that the companies take while
performing the corporate social responsibility. Thus, the companies need to calculate the values
that are involved with the corporate social responsibility activity.
FINDINGS:
As per the analysis of the annual report of 2018 of Australian companies, it can be
determined that all the companies perform the sustainability and corporate social responsibility
activity. The corporate social responsibility activity of Australian companies mainly involves the
strengthen of the corporate governance, increase the quality of the products like anti-microbial

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copper for the hospitals, aluminium for the smartphones and cars, borates for helping to grow
crop. Australian companies also perform much activity that ultimately improves the quality of
community. Some of the companies also increase the labor standards (Cslships.com. 2019). The
companies aim to increase the awareness about the human rights and the anti-corruption policies.
Increase the quality of environment is one of the major social activities that Australian
companies perform. Some of the companies also prioritize the stakeholders of their companies.
One of the company research is about the relationship between the reporting the sustainability
and goodwill of the company. Thus, overall sustainability practices of Australian companies
assist the companies not only gain stakeholder’s trust but it also gains considerable amount of
business from the market. The increase in business led to the rise in the revenue and profit
margin of the company.
CONCLUSION:
After analysing the above data it can be understood that the sustainability or corporate
social responsibility activity of Australian listed companies improves the profitability and
revenue. The sustainability activities also assists the companies to gain shareholder’s trust, which
in long run assists the company to gain considerable amount investments. The sustainable
activity of the company also increases the level of customers that ultimately increases the
revenue and profit margin for the company. Other stakeholders like suppliers and employees of
the company also get benefitted from the sustainable practices of the company. The employees
of the company get better exposure in the company as the corporate governance of the company
increases by considerable means. After analysing the best accounting practices that most of the
company’s uses in their system, it can be identified that there are several amount of problems
that are related with the adoption of the accounting system. Environmental Management

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Accounting is the most common type of accounting techniques that the companies of Australia
adopts to deal with the sustainability practices of the company. Thus, sustainability practices of
the company can easily be valued through these accounting techniques. The benefits that are
related with accounting process is immense.

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REFERENCE:
Brambles.com. 2019. [online] Available at:
https://www.brambles.com/Content/cms/sustainability-2018/Sustainability_Review_2018.pdf.
Colesgroup.com.au. 2019. [online] Available at:
https://www.colesgroup.com.au/FormBuilder/_Resource/_module/ir5sKeTxxEOndzdh00hWJw/
file/Coles_Sustainability_Report_2019.pdf.
Corporate Social Responsiblity (CSR) ratings on over 32,357 of the world’s largest public and
private companies. [online] Available at:
https://www.csrhub.com/CSR_and_sustainability_information/Aristocrat-Leisure-Limited].
Cslships.com. 2019. Sustainability Report | CSL. [online] Available at:
https://www.cslships.com/en/our-values/corporate-sustainability-report.
CSRHub - Sustainability and Corporate Social Responsiblity (CSR) ratings on over 32,412 of the
world’s largest public and private companies. (2020). CSR information for Bellamy's Australia
Ltd. [online] Available at:
https://www.csrhub.com/CSR_and_sustainability_information/Bellamys-Australia-Ltd.
Riotinto.com. (2020). Annual Report. [online] Available at:
https://www.riotinto.com/en/invest/reports/annual-report.
Riotinto.com. 2019. [online] Available at:
https://www.riotinto.com/documents/RT_2018_Sustainable_development_report.pdf.
sustainability.wesfarmers.com.au. 2019. [online] Available at:
http://2018.sustainability.wesfarmers.com.au/media/2467/sustainability_website_2018.pdf.

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Transurban.com. 2019. [online] Available at:
https://www.transurban.com/content/dam/transurban-pdfs/01/sustainability-reports/FY19-
Sustainability-Data.pdf.
Webjetlimited.com. 2020. [online] Available at:
https://www.webjetlimited.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Corporate-Social-Responsibility-
Statement-_-01June2018updated.pdf.
Wesfarmers.com.au. 2020. [online] Available at: https://www.wesfarmers.com.au/docs/default-
source/reports/wesfarmers-annual-report-2019.pdf?sfvrsn=2.
Woolworthsgroup.com.au. 2019. [online] Available at:
https://www.woolworthsgroup.com.au/icms_docs/195398_2018-sustainability-report.pdf.
Wow2019.qreports.com.au. (2020). 2019 Annual & Sustainability Report Highlights. [online]
Available at: https://wow2019.qreports.com.au.

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