how do I set a year to commence on date other than January 1

[MPCB]

I wnat to compare data between year 1 and year 2 etc. in Excel, and I also
need that the year is Oct to Sept. Is there a formula that will conver a date
into a Year (or period of 12 months) and identify it as year 1 or year 2 etc.

 

[Dave Peterson]

I use this formula to show the fiscal year and quarter:

="FY"&YEAR(A1)-(MONTH(A1)<#)&"-Q"&INT(1+MOD(MONTH(A1)-#,12)/3)

So if the fiscal year starts on Oct 1st, then I'd use:
="FY"&YEAR(A1)-(MONTH(A1)<10)&"-Q"&INT(1+MOD(MONTH(A1)-10,12)/3)

It results in an expression like:
FY2009-Q1

If you don't care about the quarter, you an drop that stuff:
="FY"&YEAR(A1)-(MONTH(A1)<10)