Financial report
September, closed and explained. Written from the books the morning the month closes, so nobody spends the first week of October building it.
September in plain words
The five things worth knowing, before anyone opens a spreadsheet.
- 01September brought in $277K, +3.9% on August and +15.5% on September last year.
- 02Net profit was $55K, a 19.8% margin.
- 03The third quarter came in $44K under plan on profit. Most of it is two retainer clients who left in July.
- 04Cash ended the month at $236K, up $29K on the end of June.
- 054 clients owe $51K on invoices older than 45 days.
2026 against plan
January to September from the books, October to December from the live forecast.
Where the third quarter landed against plan
Profit, July to September. Five reasons, and they add up to the whole difference.
Two retainer clients left in July
−$32KBoth had used well under their hours for months before they gave notice. Clients showing the same pattern are now on the At risk list, while there is still time to call them.
Two projects slipped into October
−$20KThe work is signed and has moved into the fourth quarter, so the revenue is late rather than lost.
Hourly work ran ahead
+$11KThree clients bought extra hours for their busy season on top of their retainers.
Less contractor time than planned
+$781With less work coming in, the team covered more of it themselves. The saving is real, but it comes from the shortfall above.
A marketing push in August
−$4.0KA conference and a new website, decided in July and not in the plan. Every other cost landed within a few hundred dollars.
Month by month
Profit against plan. The last three months are forecast.
| Month | Plan | Actual | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 26 | $42,347 | $42,354 | +$7 |
| Feb 26 | $51,611 | $46,910 | −$4.7K |
| Mar 26 | $48,956 | $48,283 | −$673 |
| Apr 26 | $51,131 | $48,080 | −$3.1K |
| May 26 | $59,970 | $54,842 | −$5.1K |
| Jun 26 | $60,458 | $54,563 | −$5.9K |
| Jul 26 | $55,310 | $46,964 | −$8.3K |
| Aug 26 | $63,343 | $46,289 | −$17K |
| Sep 26 | $73,859 | $54,902 | −$19K |
| Oct 26forecast | $80,872 | $61,270 | −$20K |
| Nov 26forecast | $78,886 | $55,329 | −$24K |
| Dec 26forecast | $59,899 | $47,891 | −$12K |
The last three months move with the forecast. Change an assumption on the Forecast model and this report updates where the year will land.