| Session 14: Fixed Income: Valuation Concepts Reading 53: General Principles of Credit Analysis
 
 
 LOS e: Analyze why and how cash flow from operations is used to assess the ability of an issuer to service its debt obligations and to assess the financial flexibility of a company.     Discretionary cash flow is defined as: 
 
 
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| A) | net income + noncash expenses ± changes in current assets and current liabilities (excluding cash). |  |  
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| B) | net income + noncash expenses - noncash revenue items included in net income. |  |  
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| C) | net income + depreciation +/– other noncash items + decrease (increase) in noncash current assets + increase (decrease) in nondebt current liabilities - capital expenditures - cash dividends. |  |  
 
   
Discretionary cash flow = net income + depreciation +/– other noncash items + decrease (increase) in noncash current assets + increase (decrease) in nondebt current liabilities - capital expenditures - cash dividends. It represents the cash flow available to a firm after it has funded its basic operating requirements. |