Computer Associates 1997 Annual Report Download - page 15

Report of Management Report of Independent
Auditors
Management is responsible for the preparation, integrity and
objectivity of the financial information presented in this Annual
Report. The accompanying consolidated financial statements have
been prepared from accounting records which management
believes fairly and accurately reflect the operations and financial
positions of the Company. These statements have been prepared
in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles and of
necessity include some amounts that are based on management’s
best estimates and judgments. Management has established a
system of internal controls to provide reasonable assurance that
assets are maintained and accounted for in accordance with its
policies and that transactions are recorded accurately on the
Company’s books and records.
The Company’s Internal Audit Program provides for
ongoing evaluation of the adequacy, effectiveness and adherence
to management’s established policies and procedures. The Board
of Directors exercises its responsibility for these financial state-
ments through its Audit Committee, which consists entirely of
non-management Directors. The independent auditors and the
internal auditors have full and free access to the Audit Committee.
The Company has distributed to key employees its policies for
conducting business affairs in an ethical and professional manner.
The financial statements of the Company have been
audited by Ernst & Young LLP, independent auditors. Their accom-
panying report is based on an audit conducted in accordance with
generally accepted auditing standards, including a review of inter-
nal accounting controls and financial reporting matters.
CHARLES B. WANG
Chairman of the Board
and Chief Executive Officer
PETER A. SCHWARTZ
Senior Vice President
and Chief Financial Officer
Islandia, New York
May 23, 1997
Stockholders and Board Of Directors
Computer Associates International, Inc.
We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets
of Computer Associates International, Inc. and subsidiaries as of
March 31, 1997 and 1996, and the related consolidated state-
ments of operations, stockholders’ equity and cash flows for each
of the three years in the period ended March 31, 1997. These
financial statements are the responsibility of the Company’s
management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on
these financial statements based on our audits.
We conducted our audits in accordance with generally
accepted auditing standards. Those standards require that we
plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about
whether the financial statements are free of material misstate-
ment. An audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence sup-
porting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements.
An audit also includes assessing the accounting principles used
and significant estimates made by management, as well as evalu-
ating the overall financial statement presentation. We believe that
our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinion.
In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements
referred to above present fairly, in all material respects, the consol-
idated financial position of Computer Associates International, Inc.
and subsidiaries at March 31, 1997 and 1996, and the consolidat-
ed results of their operations and their cash flows for each of the
three years in the period ended March 31, 1997, in conformity
with generally accepted accounting principles.
As discussed in Note 1 to the consolidated financial state-
ments, in fiscal year 1997, the Company changed its method of
accounting for deferred income taxes relating to in-process research
and development acquired in purchase business combinations.
New York, New York
May 23, 1997
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