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A) Measure the company's performance over a period of time
B) Make sure that the company's assets and the company's liabilities "balance"
C) Determine taxes owed or not owed
D) Show the company's value as of a given point in time
E) Determine if the company will have enough cash to operate properly
Errr ... none of these.
It is simply a statement of the company's assets and liabilities, at the close of business on the stated day, according to the chosen accounting standards.
The "balance" part is basically a type of "checksum" that is part of commonly accepted accounting standards - it really just makes it easier to spot a mistake.
The company's "value" is given by its stock market valuation, not by the balance sheet.