How to: Balance Sheet setup

Step-by-step

1. 1. Use the end-of-year convention (important)

   X-ASTRiS uses end-of-year values. That means you enter the balance sheet numbers as they were at the end of the year (e.g. 31 December of that year), not the beginning.

2. 2. Investments & Fixed Assets: start here
   Base year: Total Fixed Assets (end-of-year)

   Enter Total Fixed Assets for the base year as an end-of-year value.

   Base year: enter Investments too (so scenario charts work)

   Also enter investments in the base year. This is needed for scenario charts and historical comparison — without a base-year investment value, those visuals can’t show the baseline properly.

   Forecast years: only enter Investments

   For forecast years you only enter investments. X-ASTRiS then calculates Fixed Assets as:

   Fixed Assets (t) = Fixed Assets (t-1) + Investments (t) − Depreciation (t)

3. 3. Depreciation logic (simple by design)

   Depreciation usually has a limited impact compared to revenue, payroll and working capital, so X-ASTRiS models it in a simple, consistent way:

   Depreciation is calculated as a percentage applied to the fixed asset base (the value at the end of the previous year).

   How to use the depreciation %

   Set the depreciation percentage. If you expect more or less depreciation, tweak the percentage.

   Depreciation is then automatically reflected in the P&L.

4. 4. Working capital (AR/AP/Inventory) + ratios

   Working capital is the cash tied up in daily operations — typically driven by accounts receivable, inventory and accounts payable. It often explains why “profitable” companies still run out of cash.

   Base year first

   Enter the working capital items for the base year. Based on these values, X-ASTRiS calculates default ratios such as:

   • • DSO (Days Sales Outstanding)
   • • DIO (Days Inventory Outstanding)
   • • DPO (Days Payables Outstanding)
   • • Other assets / other liabilities as % of revenue

   Those ratios are then used to forecast the working capital items automatically.

   Optional: adjust ratios per year (value creation plan)

   If you have a value creation plan (e.g. improve collections, reduce inventory days), you can adjust DSO/DIO/DPO (and other % assumptions) per year. The working capital line items will adapt automatically and your cash runway will update.

5. 5. Equity (end-of-year) + roll-forward logic

   Enter equity for the base year as an end-of-year value. This matters especially for startups: equity at year-end includes the net result of “year 0”, so don’t use a start-of-year number.

   Forecast logic

   In forecast years, equity is calculated automatically as:

   Equity (t) = Equity (t-1) + Net result (t) − Dividends (t) + Capital injections (t)

   You can input dividends and capital injections per year in the forecast.

6. 6. Financing: short-term debt, long-term debt + interest

   Enter short-term debt and long-term debt for all years. Then enter the interest rate.

   X-ASTRiS calculates interest and automatically feeds it into the P&L.

7. 7. Cash is the plug — and must match Cash Flow

   Cash is calculated as a closing plug based on all drivers and must reconcile with the Cash Flow statement (change in cash).

   Sanity check: does the calculated base-year cash match your actual cash? If not, it usually means one of the base-year inputs is off — commonly in P&L, fixed assets (end-of-year), or working capital items.