New IRF study on financial guidance Short-termism dominates financial guidance of large Swiss companies

10.07.2023

Already for the eighth time we conducted our study on the financial guidance of Swiss companies. For 46 companies from the SMI Expanded, we examined whether and which target figures are considered in their financial guidance as part of their 2022 annual reporting.

We found out that most of these forecasts are short-term, based on sales and the current market situation. Compared to the last IRF study in 2019, statements on non-financial forecasts and targets have increased significantly.

Key findings:

With one exception, all companies in the SMI Expanded discuss forward-looking targets in their annual reports.
80% of companies use both qualitative and quantitative measures
91% of companies provide a short-term guidance of one year, considering the current market situation.
More than 90% of companies report on environmental and social factors
Compared to the last survey four years ago, there has been an increase in the number of explanations regarding the development of turnover and non-financial indicators