Chapter 12

Leverage and Capital Structure

P. 537 What other factors may have led to the 2004 decline in the Krispy Kreme stock price?

There were several other events in 2004 which probably had more to do with the decrease in Krispy
Kreme stock than the low-carb diet phenomenon. One significant event was the sale of its existing
Montana Mills operation. The sale resulted in a loss of $34.3 million or $0.54 per share. In July 2004, the
Krispy Kreme disclosed an SEC informal inquiry related to the company’s franchise reacquisitions and the
company’s previously announced reduction in earnings guidance. Any announcement of reduced expected
earnings usually has a negative effect on a company’s stock price. Finally, Krispy Kreme sells doughnuts.
Like any restaurant, many people like to try a new product when it first appears simply out of curiosity.
Eventually, the novelty may wear off and the store has to work harder to maintain its customer base.

2. The firm’s operating breakeven point is the level of sales at which all fixed and variable operating
costs are covered; i.e., EBIT equals zero. An increase in fixed operating costs and variable operating costs
will increase the operating breakeven point and vice versa. An increase in the selling price per unit will
decrease the operating breakeven point and vice versa.

3. First question only: What is operating leverage? Operating leverage is the ability to use fixed
operating costs to magnify the effects of changes in sales on earnings before interest and taxes.

4. Financial leverage is the use of fixed financial costs to magnify the effects of changes in EBIT on
earnings per share. That is, financial leverage is the use of debt to magnify (increase or decrease) returns.
6. A firm’s capital structure is the mix of long-term debt and equity it utilizes. The key differences
between debt and equity capital are summarized in the table below.

Key Differences between Debt and Equity Capital

Type of Capital
Characteristic Debt Equity
Voice in management * No Yes
Claims on income and assets Senior to equity Subordinate to debt
Maturity Stated None
Tax treatment Interest deduction No deduction
* In default, debt holders and preferred stockholders may receive a voice in management; otherwise, only common
stockholders have voting rights.
The ratios used to determine the degree of financial leverage in the firm’s capital structure are the
debt and the debt-equity ratios, which are direct measures; and the times interest earned and fixed-
payment coverage ratios which are indirect measures. Higher direct ratios indicate a greater level of
financial leverage. If coverage ratios are low, the firm is less able to meet fixed payments and will
generally have high financial leverage.

8. The tax-deductibility of interest is the major benefit of debt financing. In effect, the government
subsidizes the cost of debt through the tax deduction. Because this reduces the amount of taxes paid,
more earnings are available for investors.

9. Business risk is the risk that the firm will be unable to cover its operating costs. Three factors
affecting business risk are the use of fixed operating costs (operating leverage), revenue stability, and
cost stability. Revenue stability refers to the relative variability of the firm’s sales revenues, which is
a function of the demand for the firm’s product. Cost stability refers to the relative predictability of
the input prices such as labor and materials. The greater the revenue and cost stability the lower the
business risk. The capital structure decision is influenced by the level of business risk. Firms with
high business risk tend toward less highly leveraged capital structures, and vice versa.
Financial risk is the risk that the firm will be unable to meet required financial obligations. The more
fixed-cost components in a firm’s capital structure (debt, leases, and preferred stock) the greater its
financial leverage and financial risk. Therefore, financial risk is affected by management’s capital
structure decision, and that is affected by business risk.

12. As financial leverage increases, both the cost of debt and the cost of equity increase, with equity
rising at a faster rate. The overall cost of capital–with the addition of debt–first begins to decrease,
reaches a minimum, and then begins to increase. There is an optimal capital structure under this
approach, occurring at the minimum point of the cost of capital. This optimal capital structure allows
management to invest in a larger number of profitable projects, maximizing the value of the firm.
E12-1. Breakeven Analysis
Answer: The operating breakeven point is the level of sales at which all fixed and variable operating
costs are covered and EBIT is equal to $0.

Q = FC ÷ (P – VC)

Q = $12,500 ÷ ($25 − $10) = 833.33 or 834 units

OR

25Q = 10Q + 12,500

15Q = 12,500

Q = 833.33 or 834 units

E12-2. Changing Costs and the Operating Breakeven Point

Answer: Calculate the breakeven point for the current process and the breakeven point for the new
process and compare the two.

Current breakeven: Q1 = $15,000 ÷ ($6.00 − $2.50) = 4,286 boxes

New breakeven: Q2 = $16,500 ÷ ($6.50 − $2.50) = 4,125 boxes

If Great Fish Taco Corporation makes the investment, it can lower its breakeven point by 161
boxes.

P12-1. LG 1: Breakeven Point–Algebraic

FC
Q=
(P − VC)
$12, 350
Q= = 1, 300
($24.95 − $15.45)

P12-2. LG 1: Breakeven Comparisons–Algebraic

FC
(a) Q =
(P − VC)
$45, 000
Firm F: Q= = 4, 000 units
( $18.00 − $6.75)
$30, 000
Firm G: Q= = 4, 000 units
( $21.00 − $13.50 )
$90, 000
Firm H: Q= = 5, 000 units
( $30.00 − $12.00 )
(b) From least risky to most risky: F and G are of equal risk, then H. It is important to recognize
that operating leverage is only one measure of risk.
P12-3. LG 1: Breakeven Point–Algebraic and Graphic

(a) Q = FC ÷ (P − VC)
Q = $473,000 ÷ ($129 − $86)
Q = 11,000 units
(b)

Graphic Operating Breakeven Analysis

3000 Profits
Breakeven Sales Revenue
2500 Point
Total
2000 Operating
Cost/Revenue Cost
($000) Losses
1500

1000

500 Fixed Cost

0
0 4000 8000 12000 16000 20000 24000

Sales (Units)
P12-4. LG 1: Breakeven Analysis

$73, 500
(a) Q = = 21, 000 CDs
( $13.98 − $10.48)
(b) Total operating costs = FC + (Q × VC)
Total operating costs = $73,500 + (21,000 × $10.48)
Total operating costs = $293,580
(c) 2,000 × 12 = 24,000 CDs per year. 2,000 records per month exceeds the operating breakeven
by 3,000 records per year. Barry should go into the CD business.
(d) EBIT = (P × Q) − FC − (VC × Q)
EBIT = ($13.98 × 24,000) − $73,500 − ($10.48 × 24,000)
EBIT = $335,520 − $73,500 − $251,520
EBIT = $10,500
P12-5. LG 1: Breakeven Point–Changing Costs/Revenues

(a) Q = F ÷ (P − VC) Q = $40,000 ÷ ($10 − $8)= 20,000 books

(b) Q = $44,000 ÷ $2.00 = 22,000 books
(c) Q = $40,000 ÷ $2.50 = 16,000 books
(d) Q = $40,000 ÷ $1.50 = 26,667 books
(e) The operating breakeven point is directly related to fixed and variable costs and inversely
related to selling price. Increases in costs raise the operating breakeven point, while increases
in price lower it.

P12-7. a and b only LG 2: EBIT Sensitivity

(a) and (b)

8,000 units 10,000 units 12,000 units
Sales $72,000 $90,000 $108,000
Less: Variable costs 40,000 50,000 60,000
Less: Fixed costs 20,000 20,000 20,000
EBIT $12,000 $20,000 $28,000

P12-10. LG 2: EPS Calculations

(a) (b) (c)

EBIT $24,600 $30,600 $35,000
Less: Interest 9,600 9,600 9,600
Net profits before taxes $15,000 $21,000 $25,400
Less: Taxes 6,000 8,400 10,160
Net profit after taxes $9,000 $12,600 $15,240
Less: Preferred dividends 7,500 7,500 7,500
Earnings available to $1,500 $5,100 $7,740
 common shareholders
EPS (4,000 shares) $0.375 $1.275 $1.935

P12-16. LG 3: Various Capital Structures

Debt Ratio Debt Equity

10% $100,000 $900,000
20% $200,000 $800,000
30% $300,000 $700,000
40% $400,000 $600,000
50% $500,000 $500,000
60% $600,000 $400,000
90% $900,000 $100,000
 Theoretically, the debt ratio cannot exceed 100%. Practically, few creditors would extend loans to
companies with exceedingly high debt ratios (>70%).

P12-17. (a) LG 3: Debt and Financial Risk

(a) EBIT Calculation

Probability 0.20 0.60 0.20
Sales $200,000 $300,000 $400,000
Less: Variable costs (70%) 140,000 210,000 280,000
Less: Fixed costs 75,000 75,000 75,000
EBIT $(15,000) $15,000 $45,000
Less Interest 12,000 12,000 12,000
Earnings before taxes $(27,000) $3,000 $33,000
Less: Taxes (10,800) 1,200 13,200
Earnings after taxes $(16,200) $1,800 $19,800
P12-19. LG 5: EBIT-EPS and Capital Structure

(a) Using $50,000 and $60,000 EBIT:

Structure A Structure B
EBIT $50,000 $60,000 $50,000 $60,000
Less: Interest 16,000 16,000 34,000 34,000
Net profits before taxes $34,000 $44,000 $16,000 $26,000
Less: Taxes 13,600 17,600 6,400 10,400
Net profit after taxes $20,400 $26,400 $9,600 $15,600

EPS (4,000 shares) $5.10 $6.60

EPS (2,000 shares) $4.80 $7.80

(b)

Comparison of Financial Structures

8
Sructure B
7
Crossover Point
6 $52,000

5
EPS($) Structure A
4

0
10000 20000 30000 40000 50000 60000
EBIT ($)

(c) If EBIT is expected to be below $52,000, Structure A is preferred. If EBIT is expected to be

above $52,000, Structure B is preferred.
(d) Structure A has less risk and promises lower returns as EBIT increases. B is more risky since
it has a higher financial breakeven point. The steeper slope of the line for Structure B also
indicates greater financial leverage.
(e) If EBIT is greater than $75,000, Structure B is recommended since changes in EPS are much
greater for given values of EBIT.

EBIT ($)
P12-21. LG 3, 4, 6: Integrative–Optimal Capital Structure

(a)
Debt Ratio 0% 15% 30% 45% 60%
EBIT $2,000,000 $2,000,000 $2,000,000 $2,000,000 $2,000,000
Less interest 0 120,000 270,000 540,000 900,000
EBT $2,000,000 $1,880,000 1,730,000 $1,460,000 $1,100,000
Taxes @40% 800,000 752,000 692,000 584,000 440,000
Net profit $1,200,000 $1,128,000 $1,038,000 $876,000 $660,000
Less preferred
dividends 200,000 200,000 200,000 200,000 200,000
Profits available to
common stock $1,000,000 $928,000 $838,000 $676,000 $460,000
# shares
outstanding 200,000 170,000 140,000 110,000 80,000
EPS $5.00 $5.46 $5.99 $6.15 $5.75

EPS
(b) P 0 =
ks
Debt: 0% Debt: 15%
$5.00 $5.46
P0 = = $41.67 P0 = = $42.00
0.12 0.13
Debt: 30% Debt: 45%
$5.99 $6.15
P0 = = $42.79 P0 = = $38.44
0.14 0.16
Debt: 60%
$5.75
P0 = = $28.75
0.20
(c) The optimal capital structure would be 30% debt and 70% equity because this is the
debt/equity mix that maximizes the price of the common stock.
P12-23. LG 3, 4, 5, 6: Integrative–Optimal Capital Structure

(a)
% No. of Shares
Debt Total Assets $ Debt $ Equity @ $25
0 $40,000,000 $0 $40,000,000 1,600,000
10 40,000,000 4,000,000 36,000,000 1,440,000
20 40,000,000 8,000,000 32,000,000 1,280,000
30 40,000,000 12,000,000 28,000,000 1,120,000
40 40,000,000 16,000,000 24,000,000 960,000
50 40,000,000 20,000,000 20,000,000 800,000
60 40,000,000 24,000,000 16,000,000 640,000

(b)
% Before Tax Cost $ Interest
Debt $ Total Debt of Debt, kd Expense
0 $0 0.0% $0
10 4,000,000 7.5 300,000
20 8,000,000 8.0 640,000
30 12,000,000 9.0 1,080,000
40 16,000,000 11.0 1,760,000
50 20,000,000 12.5 2,500,000
60 24,000,000 15.5 3,720,000

c)
% $ Interest Taxes # of
Debt Expense EBT @40% Net Income Shares EPS
0 $0 $8,000,000 $3,200,000 $4,800,000 1,600,000 $3.00
10 300,000 7,700,000 3,080,000 4,620,000 1,440,000 3.21
20 640,000 7,360,000 2,944,000 4,416,000 1,280,000 3.45
30 1,080,000 6,920,000 2,768,000 4,152,000 1,120,000 3.71
40 1,760,000 6,240,000 2,496,000 3,744,000 960,000 3.90
50 2,500,000 5,500,000 2,200,000 3,300,000 800,000 4.13
60 3,720,000 4,280,000 1,712,000 2,568,000 640,000 4.01

(d)
% Debt EPS kS P0
0 $3.00 10.0% $30.00
10 3.21 10.3 31.17
20 3.45 10.9 31.65
30 3.71 11.4 32.54
40 3.90 12.6 30.95
50 4.13 14.8 27.91
60 4.01 17.5 22.91
(e) The optimal proportion of debt would be 30% with equity being 70%. This mix will
maximize the price per share of the firm’s common stock and thus maximize
shareholders’ wealth. Beyond the 30% level, the cost of capital increases to the point that
it offsets the gain from the lower-costing debt financing.