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Syllabus
Corporate Finance 3310
Fall 2016
Baylor University
Professor Don Cunningham
http://business.baylor.edu/Don_Cunningham

(Reading and problem assignments below will occasionally be updated after the course begins.
Therefore always clear your computer cache to access the most recent version of the syllabus.)

Professor:
Office Hrs:

Office:
E-Mail:
Telephone:

Don Cunningham, PhD

1 - 3pm Monday
1 - 2 pm Tuesday & after class at 3:20
11 2 pm Thursday & after class at 3:20
Other times by appointment
Graduate Center 4th floor
don_cunningham@baylor.edu
254-710-6152 (office)

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COURSE MATERIAL
Textbook: Principles of Corporate Finance by Brealey, Myers, and Allen Concise Edition 2 nd edition

(Syllabus refers to chapters and problems in 2nd edition, however the 1st edition or the 9th
edition of the extended/non-concise edition is essentially the same material. )

Grading and weighting of exams:

4 exams (20% each)
5 homework assingments (2% each)
Class participation
Total

80%
10%
10%
100%

Text:
Principles of Corporate Finance, Concise edition, 2nd edtion, by Richard Brealey, Stewart Myers, and
Franklin Allen, McGraw Hill.

Recommended Viewing:
Watch the movies Wall Street (I) and Other Peoples Money for their fictional depiction of marginal
investors and the role they play in corporate finance. Make a list of scenes and quotes with which you strongly
agree, disagree, or question and we can discuss your observations as we refer to these movies and their depictions
throughout the duration of the course.

Class Schedule/Assignments
On my Homepage you will find this syllabus that includes links to readings and solutions to
chapter problems. Go to http://business.baylor.edu/Don_Cunningham.
Learning Objectives
Week 1
8/23 - 25
Develop a
Framework of Corporate Finance
Construct a Framework of Corporate Finance
Study
Integrate Finance, Accounting, and Economics
Identify the Purpose for which a Firm Exists
Describe a Firms Goal(s)
Develop Fishers Model of the Firm

Differentiate between Preference and

Textbook and outside Readings,

Videos, Simulation Exercises,
Projects, and practice exercises
Chapters 1 & 2
Notes on Intertemporal Choice
Foundations of NPV
Old versus New Finance
Quotes from Old vs New Finance
The Financial System
MIT OCW Intro & PV lecutre video
LearnersTV finance lecuture videos 15
What is Corporate Finance

Rationality
Formulate Fishers Separation Principle
Resolve firm governance to adjust for SH
preferences
Formulate the best cost/benefit analysis
technique that adjusts for preferences and time

Week 2
8/30 9/1
Time value factors
Practice applying the NPV rule
Extend Fishers Model to multiple time
periods
Derive a set of Present Value (PV) Factors
Apply PV Factors to value Annuities, Lump
Sums, and extend to stocks and bonds
Week 3
9/6 8
Apply time value
factors
Apply NPV analysis in a Personal SettingRefinancing
Compare and Contrast Individuals
Refinancing
Decision with Firms Investment Decision
Formulate and synthesize the Separation
Principle in the context of the Individuals
Refinancing Decision
Complete and turn in PV Problem set
(due Friday of week 3)

Week 4
decision

9/13 15

Financial Terms
Pyramid of Corporate Finance
Principles
James Simons Life of Curiosity
(2014)
Marginal Investors (2014)
Ichans Billionaire Trait (2015)
Capitalisms Marginal Heroes (2015)
Google & watch Warren Buffet
Interviews
e.g. Charlie Rose Interviews W.
Buffet
Irving Fisher (1867 - 1947)
Are You a Born Saver or Spender?
(2013)
Money Buys Happiness (2013)
The Problem with Financial Incentives
2011)
The Meaning of Wealth around the World
(2010)

Welch Interview (1995)

Fisher Handout problems 1 & 2
attached
Chapters 3, 4, and 5
PV Factors - excel worksheet
Class Case: Should You Refinance
Refinance (1.0) - excel worksheet

Homework set #2 - Complete

and turn-in Refinancing problem
Chapter 2 Solutions
Chapter 3 Solutions
Chapter 4 Solutions
Chapter 5 Solutions
Chapter 6 Solutions
Homework set #1 - Chapter 2
Problems attached below

Firms Investment

Simulate a Firms Investment Decision

Complete and turn in Refinancing
Problem
(exact due date depends on
coverage date)

Projects - excel worksheet

Projects Analysis excel worksheet

 Formulate various Cost/Benefit analysis

tecniques (Cash Flow, Profitability, Rate of

Return, IRR, and NPV) and evaluate best
technique for managing the Firm

Ways to Measure Performance (2009)

AVG vs Geometric mean Returns sprdsheet

Exam 1 on Thursday Sept.

15th
Week 5
9/20 22
Individual
investors investment decision (portfolio
theory)

Return Exam 1
Compare and Contrast Firms Investment
Decision with Individual Investors
Investment Decision
Articulate Individual Investors
Investment Goal
Define expected return E(R)
Define Risk
Simulate an Investors investment
opportunities
Calculate E(R) and Risk for simulated
stocks
Calculate E(R) and Risk for a simulated
portfolio of stocks
Compare and contrast E(R) and Risk of
individual
stocks with E(R) and Risk of portfolios
Develop a graphical representation of a
portfolios E(R) to risk ratio
Examine the impact of weighting
proportions and
Correlations on the portfolios E(R) to risk
ratio
Examine the impact of including the Rf
security in portfolio
Examine the Impact of leverage on E(R)
and risk of portfolios
Hypothesize an Optimal Investment
Strategy
for individual investors

Chapters 7 & 8
LVN Risk and Return
LearnersTV lecture video Risk and
Return
MIT OCW leture video on Risk and
Return
MIT OCW lecture video on Portfolio
Theory
Portfolio - excel worksheet
Buffets Bet Against Hedge Funds (2016)
To Beat Index Fund, Luck is best hope
(2009)

Index Funds Win Again (2009)

The Man Your Fund Manager Loves to
Hate
(2000)
Portfolio Efficient Frontier tab
Harry Markowitz 1990 Nobel Prize
Compare gold movement to S&P500:
http://goldprice.org/gold-pricehistory.html
vs.
https://finance.yahoo.com/echarts?
s=%5EGSPC+Interactive#
Personal Leverage Diversification
Across Time

Lifecycle Investing
Warren Buffet on Personal Leveraging
(2015)
Warren Buffet Advice to LeBron
James (2015)
Alcoa Splits Apart (2015)

Chapters 7 & 8
Week 6
9/27 29
Unique risk (CAPM)

Systemtic vs

Differentiate riskless E(R) from risky E(R)

Portfolio
Differentiate unique risk from
systematic risk
Formulate a measure of Systematic Risk
Hypothesize a price for systematic risk
Compose a total E(R) model for any
individual security
Compare and Contrast E(R) of individual
securities with E(R) of well diversified
portfolios

Devise solutions to simulated investment

exercises

Week 7
10/4 - 6
Efficiency

Captial Market

Review historical perspective of EMH

Compare the characteristics of Perfect
Markets to Efficient Markets
Draw conclusions on causes for price
patterns in Perfect versus efficient
markets

Average long-run returns (nominal)

Average long-run returns (real)
Ch 7: 4, 5, 7, 8, 11, 13, 21
Ch 8: 5, 8
Chapter 7 Problem Solutions
Chapter 8 Problem Solutions

Chapter 11
An Interview with Eugene Fama
(2010)
An Interview with Robert Shiller
(2014)
Read a few articles from an internet
search of Fama wins the Nobel
Prize. You might add Bloomberg
to your search phrase. They have a
good summary article on the recent
Nobel prize recipients.
Do an Internet search of Efficient
Markets, or Eugene Fama. Also
search for Behavorial Finance and
read a few of the following articles

Visit www.ifa.com This informationpacked website is maintained by IFA

Devise three forms of the EMH
investment
Identify three security analyst types and advisory firm affiliated with DFA
relate their analysis to the three forms of mutual funds. Investments and
EMH
information are based on efficient
Conclude: What is the meaning of the
market research. David Booth, DFA
phrase Beat the Market
founder, endowed the University of
Apply EMH principle to forecasting the
Chicago business school with $300
million in 2008. He was a PhD
weather
student under Eugene Fama in the
Discuss the paradox of efficiency, legality, 1970s.
and the purpose of Insider Trading Laws
Power Lunch video on Insider Trading
at:

https://finance.yahoo.com/video/legal
ize-insider-trading-180500540.html

Practice applying the EMH

Marginal Investors (2014)

Legal Insider Trading (2015)

Why Actively Managed Funds arent

Dead (2014)

Are Stock Prices Determined by Facts

or Human Nature (2011)
Week 8
9/11 13 Application: How
Managers use CAPM and EMH

To Beat Index Funds, Luck is Best Hope

(2009)
The Dreaded Head & Shoulder (2016)
Nows the time to buy Stocks (2016)

Index Funds Win Again (2009)

Can Money Managers Beat the Market?

(2008)

Exam 2 on Tuesday Oct

18th

Week 9
10/20 Continue: How
Managers use EMH
and the CAPM WACC

Return Exam 2

Equate LHS and RHS of Firms Balance

Sheet to Portfolios
Critique GAAP-based financial statement
issues
Critique tax issues with debt versus
equity
Critique diversification issues
Evaluate the pricing efficience of LHS and
RHS of Balance sheet
Assess quality of information from LHS
versus RHS accounts
Formulate a Cost for Debt Capital
Formulate a cost for Equity Capital
Devise Cost of Capital for the Firm
WACC model

Economists Debate Market Efficiency

(2004)
Prosecution of Mike Milken (1994)
Efficient to Behavioral Finance
(2002)
The Man Your Fund Manager Hates
(1999)
How the Really Smart Money Invests
(1998)
The SEC's Fight with Itself (1987)
Ch 11: Q: 4, 6, 7, 8
PQ: 9, 10, 11, 14, 16
Chapter 11, Solutions
Chapter 9

How Firms Estimate Cost of Capital

(2011)
AVG vs Geometric mean Returns sprdsheet
Pure Play Method (2002)
Pick a publicly Traded company and
use data from Yahoo finance,
Morningstar, and Treasury.gov to
calculate its WACC
ABT Bond Yields @ Morningstar
Treasury Yields @treasury.gov
ABT Balance Sheet @ Yahoo finance
Fama and French Three Factor Model
http://www.finra.org/Investors/index.h

Revise WACC model to adjust for

accounting, taxes and diversification
issues
Apply WACC model to evaluate Abbotts
Cost of Capital
Investigate extensions of CAPM to WACC
Devise solutions to practice exercises
Complete and turn in WACC problem

Week 10 10/25 - 27 WACC & Capital

Structure Policy Debt versus Equtiy
Financing
Evaluate impact of leverage on WACC
Identify reasons that incurring debt may be
considered bad policy, (i.e. the costs)
Identify reasons that incurring debt may be
considered good policy, (i.e. the
benefits)
Identify financial variables that measure
the good (benefit) and the bad (cost)
reasons for incurring debt
Create a firm, incur debt, and evaluate the
impact on financial variables
Simulate impact of leverage on NI, NOI,
ROA, ROD, Int Exp, ROE, D, E, Shs o/s,
EPS, WACC, DIV, & g
Determine best cost/benefit analysis to
evaluate debt policy and utilize to resolve
optimal capital structure strategy
Consider arbitrage effect on debt policy
Consider the Do it yourself effect
Complete and turn in Capital Structure
problem

tm
Average long-run returns (nominal)
Average long-run returns (real)
Handout #1
Handout #2
Data link for finding industry Betas :
http://pages.stern.nyu.edu/~adamod
ar/New_Home_Page/data.html

Chapter 13
Capital Structure lecture video-LearnersTV

Personal Leverage Diversifying Across Time

Optimal Financial Leverage - Investopedia
ROE as function of D/E
Quotes from popular press articles on Debt
How Corporate Finance Got Smart (1998)
Hard Lessons from the Debt Decade (1990)
How Firms Estimate Cost of Capital (2011)
Dividend Recapitalization - Debt Markets Offer
Big Payday at HCA (2011)
Finding Balance Sheet Beauties (2002)
After the Revolution CFO Magazine (1998)
Kiplingers Way to Buy Stocks Debt Ratio

Chapter 13 problems
Ch 13: 2, 5, 9, 10, 15, 16, 19
Lecture video - solving problem 2
Chapter 13, Solutions

Chapter 12
Week 11

11/1 - 3

Begin Dividend Polcy

Define Dividend Policy

Develop Dividends are Good argument
Determine best cost/benefit analytics to
evaluate dividend policy, considering
Time Value of Money, CAPM, WACC, and
Goal of the Firm
Simulate a firm, raise dividends, and

Dividend Policy - LearnersTV lecture video

Top Ten Dividend Quotes from Famous
Investors/CEOs
Quotes from popular press on Dividends
Ichan Pushes Apple on Buyback (2013)
Buyback Craze, Firms Rush to Buy (2013)
J. P. Morgan Ups Dividend - Bank Stocks Surge
(2012)
Dividend Payouts are Climbing ( 2012)

utilize best analytics to determine if

Dividends are Good

Week 12
Policy

11/8 - 10 Finish Dividend

Consider Dividends as Signals

Investigate the impact of Stock Buybacks
Investigate the impact of Stock splits
Examine the impact of taxes on Dividend
policy
Consider the impact of corporate
governance on Dividend policy
Practice Implementing Dividend Policy

See: www.dividend.com
Apple Sets Dividend and Stock Buyback (2012)
Should Apple Pay a Dividend (2012)
Kiplingers Way to Buy Stocks Dividend
A very Bullish Development Disneys Div Hike
(2011)
Buybacks aren't always a good thing (2011)
Conoco ups Dividends and Buybacks (2011)
Why I Love Dividends (2006)

Dividend and capital gains tax rates

Stepped up basis the Angel of Death
How to Avoid Inheritance Tax
Div Policy, Div Initiations, and Governance (2006)
Dividend Policy, Agency Costs, and Earned Equity
(2004)

Dividend Conversion Game (excel worksheet)

Ch 12: 2, 14, 23, 26

Chapter 12, Solutions

Exam 3 on Friday 11/10

Chapter 14

Week 13 11/15 17 Tax Effect of

Debt on Capital Structure Policy
Demonstrate the argument for the
existence of a tax subsidy for debt
Re-examine the interest tax subsidy
argument in light of taxes paid by
bondholders
Hypothesize a shift in subsidy over time
(aka the bondholder surplus)
Simulate the tax subsidy over time and its
impact on the value of the firm
Infer impact of Mertons tax argument for
homeowners with mortgages
Formulate summary arguments for
financing with debt vs equity
Consider additional factors that might
affect with debt versus equity decision
Evaluate Agency Costs

(1978) by Merton Miller,

Journal of Finance, Presidential Address to
American Finance Association
Debt and Taxes,

Compare muni versus corporate bond

rates at:
http://finance.yahoo.com/bonds/composite_
bond_rates

Handout exercise on Debt and Taxes

In Defense of the Mortgage Interest Deduction
(1992)
When and when not a Tax Break for Borrowing
(2014)

Taking Aim at the Mortgage Tax Break (2010)

Estimating the Tax Benefits of Debt (2001)
CEO Leverage and Corporate Leverage (2012)

Marriott's Move to Shed Debt (1992)

 Evaluate Signaling
Evaluate employee behavioral issues
Consider financial slack

Ch 14: 18, 19, 20,

Chapter 14, Solutions
Chapter 16, 17

Week 14

11/22

Derivatives

Review Derivative terminology

Develop graphical presentations of long
call, long put, short call, short put
Explore investor motivations and
expected returns for each derivative
position
Compare a Call option to a levered
investment with a numerical example
Formulate a terminal Payoff matrix for
single securities and single derivatives
Combine securities and derivatives and
compare combination payoffs to single
holding payoffs
Utilize a long stock and short call (s)
combination to derive an option pricing
model

Thanksgiving Holdiday 11/23 25

Week 15

11/29 12/1
Applications

Derivative

Practice applying and pricing derivatives

Complete and turn in derivative
problem

EXAM 4 (Final) Thursday December

An excellent tutorial on derivatives

From Chicago Board of Exchange
Untangling the Derivatives Mess
(1995)
CDOs in Plain English (2004),
Option Returns (2000),
Extraco Advertisement,
The Reckoning-How the Thundering
Herd Faltered (2008)
Black Scholes Model
PQ 13,16,21,22,23,27
Ch 17 Q 6, 7
PROBLEM SOLUTIONS

Chapter 16
Chapter 17

8 th 4:30 6:30pm

Finance Terminology
The purpose of Corporate finance is to ask Why do Firms exist? And to determine What is the Goal of the firm?
The Players in Corporate Finance (aka the theory of the firm)
Firms/corporations/companies publicly traded vs. privately held their balance sheet
Shareholders average vs marginal shareholder - their balance sheet
Banks/banking what is their pupose?
Real Asset Markets vs. Capital markets - what is the difference
THE ACTIVITIES of the players
Investing (by shareholder vs. by the firm)-left hand side of the balance sheet
Saving/lending
Borrowing/leveraging-right hand side of the balance sheet
MEASURES OF PERFORMANCE (i.e. in achieving the goal of the firm)
From Economics, Accounting, Finance
Liquidity
Profitability
Return (rate of return)
Wealth creationmaximum wealth creation
Future Value vs. Present valueDiscounting
Which is more valuable: 1100 in one year or 1200 in two years?
Which has highest rate of return, which is more valuable: 1100 in one yr or 1200 in one yr?
Net present value
Stock price
WHICH MEASURE MUST DOMINATE- What does better-off mean?
Preferences(irrationality) vs Rationality
Preferences for liquidity, safety, returns, risk, profitability, others
Rationality
Irrationality

How marginal shareholders versus the averae (majority) shareholders impact the Goal of the firm?

How do Capital markets (i.e. stock and debt markets) differ from retail markets and what if impact on the
Firm achieving its Goal?

Chapter 2
Handout Problem #1
Introduction
Mr. Advisor has advised Ms. Investor to invest 2.6 million into Company ABC. If the company pays no dividends
now, Mr. Advisor projects that the company will be worth 5 million in one year, given its many investment
opportunities. The firm will make a major announcement about its investment plans very soon.
However, Ms Investor likes immediate returns. So, if she agrees to invest, then the company agrees to commence
a dividend policy immediately, paying-out 1 million in dividends immediately. When the company is liquidated in
one year, all remaining assets will be paid out as dividends.
All saving, borrowing, and investing are in the same risk class.
You are the CEO.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

What should be the strategic investment plan of the company?

What is the value of the company after it makes its investment plan announcement?
What is the expected future value of the company without dividends?
What is the expected future value of the company with dividends?
What is the value of the stock now without dividends?
What is the value of the stock now with dividends?
What would happen to the value of the stock now and the investment plan if the firm agreed to commence
with dividends of $3 million now?
Continued on next page

Chapter 2 Handout Problem #1

(continued)
All numbers are in $ millions
5

4
3.75
3

1.6

2.6

The straight line represents shareholders and firms opportunities for lending and borrowing , and the curved
line represents a firms opportunities for investment. All investments, savings, and borrowing are in the same
riskclass. Suppose a firm is created and raises 2.6 million in cash. Answer the following questions.
1.
2.
3.
4.

What is the interest rate in the economy? By what other names might we refer to this interest rate?
How much should the company invest in order to make its shareholders happiest?
How much will this investment be worth next year?
What is the average rate of return on this investment? Should the firm continue to invest, given this
average rate of return?
5. What is the marginal rate of return on this invesmtne?
6. What is the PV of the firms investment? What is another name for this PV?
7. What is the NPV of this investment? What is another name for this NPV?
8. What is the PV of the shareholders investment? What is another name of this PV.
9. How much does the shareholder want to consume today and how much tomorrow?
10. How could the firm satisfy the shareholders spending preferences in time periods today and next year?
11. If the firm has a no dividend policy, demonstrate how the shareholders preferences for spending could still
be satisfied?
12. Suppose the shareholder wanted to spend (consume) $3 million today. Demonstrate how they could
achieve this spending without the firm paying dividends ? How much will they have to spend next year?
Show this on the gaph.
13. Use Shareholder and firm balance sheets to represent the answers to questions 2, thru 11.

Chapter 2 Handout Problem #2

Draw a figure like the one in problem #1 representing the following situation:
1. A firm starts out with $10 million in cash.
2. The rate of interest is 10 percent
3. To maximize NPV the firm invests today $6 million in real assets. This leaves $4 million which can be
paid out to the shareholders.
4. The NPV of the investment is $2 million.
Answer the following questions:
1. How much cash is the firm going to receive in year 1 from its investment?
2. What is the marginal return from the firms investment?
3. Who inside the firm will calculate the marginal return on this investment? How?
4. What is the value of the shareholders investment before the investment plan is announced? What is the
value after the announcement? How long does it take for this value change to occur?
5. Suppose shareholders want to spend $6 million today. How can they do this?
6. If they spend $6 million today, how much will they have to spend next year?
7. Could they plan to spend more today (e.g. $8 million)? Would they spend more or less in total as a result?
Would one spending pattern create more or less wealth than the other? What is their wealth?

CHAPTER 1
Goals and Governance of the Firm

8.

We can imagine the financial manager doing several things on behalf of the firms stockholders. For
example, the manager might:
a Make shareholders as wealthy as possible by investing in real assets with positive NPVs.
b Modify the firms investment plan to help shareholders achieve a particular time pattern of
consumption.
c Choose high- or low-risk assets to match shareholders risk preferences.
d Help balance shareholders checkbooks.
But in well-functioning capital markets, shareholders will vote for only one of these goals. Which one?
Why?

11.

Why would one expect managers to act in shareholders interests? Give some reasons.

Chpater 2
Homework Problem Set #1
How to Caluculate Present Values
Basic
6. An investment costs $1,548 and pays $138 in perpetuity. If the interest rate is 9%, What is the NPV?
Intermediate

What is the present value (PV) of a firms investment in $ 1 million U.S. Treasury Bonds yielding 5%, with a
coupon rate also of 5%, and maturing in 30 years. What is the net present value (NPV) of these bonds? The
firms assets earn 15% (ROA), the S&P 500 is expected to earn 12%, and treasury bills yield 3%. (Hint: What is
the opportunity cost of capital? Ignore taxes.) How would your answer change if the economic conditions of
2009 occurred again?

14. A factory costs $800,000. You anticipate that it will produce a net cash inflow from operations of
$170,000 a year for 10 years, and have zero value at the end of the 10th year. If equivalent riskclass factories
earn 14% (i.e. opportunity cost of capital), what is the NPV of this factory.

17. A factory cost $400,000. It will produce an inflow after operating costs of $100,000 in year 1, $200,00 in
year 2, and $300,000 in year 3. The opportunity cost of capital is 12%. Calculate the NPV. How is the NPV
calculation for this factory different from the calculation for the the factory in the previous problem?

19. As the winner of the breakfast cereal competition, you can choose one of the following prizes. If the
interest rate is 12%, which is the most valuable prize?
a. $100,000 now.
b. $180,000 at the end of five years.
c. $11,400 a year forever.
d. $19,000 for each of 10 years.
$6,500 next year and increasing thereafter by 5% a year forever.

Norman Gerrymander has just received $1 million bequest. How should he invest it? There are four
alternatives.
a. Investment in one-year US government securities yielding 5%.
b. A loan to Normans nephew Gerald, who has for years aspired to open a big Cajun restaurant n
Duluth. Gerald had arranged a one-year bank loan for $900,000 at 10%, but wants a $1 million
loan from Norman at 9%.
c. Investment in the stock market. The expect return in 12%.
d. Investment in real estate, which Norman judges is about as risky as the stock market. The
opportunity a had would cost $1 million and is forecasted to be worth 1.1 million after one year.

21. David and Helen Zhang are saving to buy a boat at the end of five years. If the boat costs $20,000 and they
can earn 10% a year on their savings, how much do they need to put aside at the end of years 1 through 5?

27. You have just read an advertisement stating Pay us $100 a year for 10 years and we will pay you $100 a
year thereafter in perpetuity. If this is a fair deal, what is the rate of interest?

30. Several years ago The Wall Street Journal reported that the winner of the Massachusetts State Lottery prize
had the misfortune of being both bankrupt and in prison (for fraud). The prize winner was to be paid
$9,420,713 in 19 equal annual installments. (Initially, there were 20 installments, but the winner had already
received the first payment). The bankrupty court judge ruled that the prize should be sold off to the highest
bidder and the proceeds used to pay off the creditors.
a. If the interest rate was 8%, how much would you bid for the prize?
b. Enhance Reinsurance Company was reported to have offered $4.2 million. What rate of return was that
company expecting to earn if it won the bid?

31. A mortgage requires you to pay $70,000 at the end of each of the next eight years. The interest rate is 8%.
a. What is the present value of these payments?
b. Calculate for each year the loan balance that remains outstanding, the interest payment on the loan, and
the reduction in the loan balance.
c. Under what conditions would the value of the mortgage and the balance outstanding be exactly the
same?
d. If interest rates in the economy increase to 10%, is the mortgage value different for the lender than for
the borrower?
e. Who would be happier, the lender or the borrower if rate rose to 10%? Explain why.

Challenge

36. Here are two useful rules of thumb. The Rule of 72 says that with discrete compounding the time it
takes for an investment to double in value is roughly 72 interest rate (in percent). The Rule of 69.3 says
that with continuous compounding the time it takes to double is exactly 69.3 interest rate (in percent).
a. If the annually compounded interest rate is 12%, show that the Rule of 72 is roughly correct.
b. Show that the Rule of 69.3 is exactly correct.

CHAPTER 5
Net Present Value and Other Investment Criteria
Intermediate
8.

Consider the following projects:

Cash Flows($)

a.
b.
c.
d.
e.

12.

Project

C0

C1

C2

C3

C4

C5

-1000

1000

-2000

1000

1000

40000

1000

1000

-3000

1000

1000

1000

1000

If the opportunity cost of capital is 10%, which projects have a positive NPV?
Calculate the payback period for each project.
Which project(s) would a firm using the payback rule accept if the cutoff period were three years?
Calculate the discounted payback period for each project.
Which project(s) would a firm using the discounted payback rule accept if the cutoff period were three
years?

Mr. Cyrus Clops, the president of Gaint Enterprises, has to make a choice between two possible
investments:
Cash Flows ($ thousands)
Project

C0

C1

C2

IRR(%)

-400

250

300

23

-200

140

179

36

The opportunity cost of capital is 9%. Mr. Clops is tempted to take B, which has higher IRR.
a. Explain to Mr. Clops why this not the correct procedure
b. Show him how to adapt to the IRR rule to choose the best project.
c. Show him that this project also has the higher NPV.

15.

Borghia Pharmaceuticals has $1 million allocated to capital expenditures. Which of the following projects
should the company accept to stay within the $1 million budget? How much does the budget limit cost the
company in terms of its market value? The opportunity cost of capital for each project is 11%?
Project
1
2
3
4
5
6
7

Investment ($ thousands)
300
200
250
100
100
350
400

NPV ($ thousands)
66
-4
43
14
7
63
48

IRR(%)
17.2
10.7
16.6
12.1
11.8
18.0
13.5

CHAPTER 7
Introduction to Risk and Return
Basic
4.

True or False?
a. Investors prefer diversified companies because they are less risky.
b. If stocks were perfectly positively correlated, diversification would not reduce
risk.
c. Diversification over a large number of assets completely eliminates risk.
d. Diversification works only when assets are uncorrelated.
e. A stock with a high standard deviation may contribute less risk to a portfolio than a stock with a
lower standard deviation.
f. A stock with a high standard deviation may have an expected return that is less than than a stock with a
lower standard deviation.
g. The contribution of a stock to the risk of a well-diversified portfolio depends on its market risk.
h. A well-diversified portfolio with a beta of 2.0 is twice as risky as the market portfolio.
i. An undiversified portfolio with a beta of 2.0 is less than twice as risky as the market portfolio.

5.

In which of the following situations would you get the largest reduction in risk by spreading your
investment across two stocks?
a. The two shares are perfectly correlated.
b. There is no correlation.
c. There is modest negative correlation.
d. There is perfect negative correlation.

7.

Suppose the standard deviation of the market return is 20%.

a. What is the standard deviation of returns on a well-diversified portfolio with a beta of 1.3?
b. What is the standard deviation of returns on a well-diversified portfolio with a beta of 0?
c. A well-diversified portfolio has a standard deviation of 15%. What is its beta?
d. A poorly diversified portfolio has a standard deviation of 20%. What can you say about its beta?

8.

A portfolio contains equal investments in 10 stocks. Five have a beta of 1.2; the remainder have a beta of
1.4. What is the portfolio beta?
a. 1.3.
b. Greater than 1.3 because the portfolio is not completely diversified.
c. Less than 1.3 because diversification reduces beta.

Intermediate
11.

Each of the following statements is dangerous or misleading, Explain why.

a. A long-term United Staes government bond is always absolutely safe.
b. All investors should prefer stocks to bonds because stocks offer higher long-run rates of return.
c. The best practical forecast of future rates of return on the stock market is a 5- or 10-year average of
historical returns.

13.

Lonesome Gulch Mines has a standard deviation of 42% per year and a beta of +.10. Amalgamated Copper
has a standard deviation of 31% a year and a beta of +.66. Explain why Lonesome Gulch is the safer
investment for a diversified investor. Which stock has the highest expected return for the diversified
investor and for the poorly diversified investor?

Challenge
21.

Here are some historical data on the risk characteristics of Dell and McDonalds:
Dell

McDonalds

(beta)

1.41

.77

Yearly standard deviation of return (%)

30.9

17.2

Assume the standard deviation of the return on the market was 15%.
a
b
c
d

The correlation coefficient of Dells return versus McDonalds is .31. What is the standard deviation
of a portfolio invested half in Dell and half in McDonalds?
What is the standard deviation of a portfolio invested one-third in Dell, one-third in McDonalds,
and one-third in risk-free Treasury bills?
What is the standard deviation if the portfolio is split evenly between Dell and McDonald, and is
financed at 50% margin, i.e., the investor puts up only 50% of the total amount and borrows the
balance from the broker? Hint: Consider its E(R) and the source of its risk premium.
What is your expected return and risk if you own the market portfolio, and you finance it with 2/3
debt? Assume E(Rm) is 10% and Rf is 3% and m is 20%.

CHAPTER 8
Portfolio Theory and Capital Asset Pricing Model
Basic
1.
a

True or False?
The CAPM implies that if you could find an investment with a negative beta, its expected return would
be less than the interest rate.
b The expected return on an investment with a beta of 2.0 is twice as high as the expected return on the
market.
c. If a stock lies below the security market line, it is undervalued.

Intermediate
9.

True or False? Explain or qualify as necessary.

a. Investors demand higher expected rates of return on stocks with more
variable rates of return.
b. The CAPM predicts that a security with a beta of 0 will offer a zero expected return.
c. An investor who puts $10,000 in Treasury bills and $20,000 in the market portfolio will have a
beta of 2.0.
d. Investors demand higher expected rates of return from stocks with returns that are highly exposed to
macroeconomic risk.
e. Investors demand higher expected rates of return from stocks with returns that are very sensitive to
fluctuations in the stock market.

15.

The Treasury bill rate is 4%, and the expected return on the market portfolio is 12%. Using the capital asset
pricing model:
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.

Draw a graph similar to the figure 8.6 showing how the expected return varies with beta.
What is the risk premium on the market?
What is the required return on an investment with a beta 1.5?
If an investment with a beta of .8 offers an expected return of 9.8%, does it have a positive NPV?
If the market expects a return of 11.2% from stock X, what is its beta?

CHAPTER 11
Efficient Markets and Behavioral Finance
Quiz Questions
4.

True or False?
a. Financing decisions are less easily reversed than investment decisions.

.
c. The semi-strong form of the efficient-market hypothesis states that prices reflect all
publicly available information.
d. In efficient markets the expected return on each stock is the same.
6.

True or False?
a. Analysis by security analysts and investors helps keep markets efficient.
b. Psychologists have found that, once people have suffered a loss, they are
more relaxed about the possibility of incurring further losses.
c. Psychologists have observed that people tend to regard recent events as
representative of what might happen in the future.
d. If the efficient market hypothesis is correct, managers will not be able to
increase stock prices by creative accounting that boosts reported earnings.

7.

Geothermal Corporation has just received good news: its earnings increased by 20% from last years value.
Most investors are anticipating an increase of 25%. Will Geothermals stock price increase or decrease
when the announcement is made?

8.

Here again are the six lessons of market efficiency. For each lesson give an example showing the lessons
relevance to financial managers.
a. Markets have no memory.
b. Trust market prices.
c. Read the entrails
d. There are no financial illusions.
e. The do-it-yourself alternative.
f. Seen one stock, seen them all.

Intermediate
10. How would you respond to the following comments?
a. Efficient market, my eye! I know lots of investors who do crazy things.
b. Efficient market? Balderdash! I know at least a dozen people who have made
a bundle in the stock market.
c. The trouble with the efficient-market theory is that it ignores investors
psychology.
d. Despite all the limitations, the best guide to a companys value is its writtendown book value. It is much more stable than market value, which depends
on temporary fashions.

11. Respond to the following comments:

a. The random-walk theory, with its implication that investing in stocks is like
playing roulette, is a powerful indictment of our capital markets.
b. If everyone believes you can make money by charting stock prices, then
price changes wont be random.
c. The random-walk theory implies that events are random, but many events
are not random. If it rains today, theres a fair bet that it will rain again
tomorrow.
12. Which of the following observations appear to indicate market inefficiency? Explain whether the observation
appears to contradict the weak, semi-strong, or strong from of the efficient-market hypothesis.
a. Tax-exempt municipal bonds offer lower pretax returns than taxable
government bonds.
b. Managers make superior returns on their purchases of their companys stock.
c. There is a positive relationship between the return on the market in one
quarter and the change in aggregate profits in the next quarter.
d. There is disputed evidence that stocks that have appreciated unusually in the
recent past continue to do so in the future.
e. The stock of an acquired firm tends to appreciate in the period before the
merger announcement.
f. Stocks of companies with unexpectedly high earnings appear to offer high
returns for several months after the earnings announcement.
g. Very risky stocks on average give higher returns than safe stocks.
14. If the efficient-market hypothesis is true, the pension fund manager might as well
select a portfolio with a pin. Explain why this is not so.
16. What does the efficient-market hypothesis have to say about these two statements?
a. I notice that short-term interest rates are about 1% below long-term rates. We
should borrow short-term.
b. I notice that interest rates in Japan are lower than rates in the United States.
We would do better to borrow Japanese yen rather than U.S. dollars.
21.

Many commentators have blamed the subprime crisis on irrational exuberance. What is your view?
Expalin briefly.

Problems encountered when estimating a firms Cost of Capital

Accounting data Intuition might suggest that a companys audited financial statements provides the logical
source for its cost of capital. This intuition is reinforced by the fact that popular sources of financial information
such as Standard & Poors and Moodys include calculations of ROE, ROA, EPS, debt ratio, dividend yield, as
well as historical balance sheet and income statement information in their company stock reports. Three major
problems are created with this information: 1) returns are based on historical cost rather than market value, 2)
returns are short-term rather than long-term, and 3) the debt ratio and equity ratio, used as weighting proportions in
WACC calculations, are understated or overstated because their values are historical-cost-based rather than currentmarket-value based.
Leverage When firms finance with debt (i.e. lever-up), the stockholders require an ROE that is greater than the
firms cost of capital and its bondholders require an ROD that is less than the firms cost of capital. Therefore,
neither ROE nor ROD alone represent a firms cost of capital. However, the firms cost of capital can be
calculated by taking a weighted average of ROD and ROE-- the so-called WACC. Its calculation effectively
undoes the leverage of the firm. The WACC equals the firms cost of capital for its assets as if they were 100%
equity financed.
Diversification Diversification causes the firms overall ROA to reflect a mixture of risk-classes. Therefore
prospective projects returns cannot be evaluated with the firms ROA because it is a weighted average of many
different risk class projects with differing expected returns. Do not use a diversified firms WACC as the cost of
capital for a specific risk-class project. Instead, the WACC of a pure-play publicly traded firm in the same
risk-class as the project must be used as the projects cost of capital.
Estimating Risk-free rate in the CAPM ROE in the WACC is calculated with empical estimates of CAPM
[Rf + e(Rm-Rf)] variables extracted from efficient capital market data. In addition to e, we need estimates of the
risk-free rate (Rf ) and the market portfolio rate of return (Rm). These rates of return are estimated from past
returns. For example, over the 104 year period from 1900-2004, the average return on treasury bills is 4%,
treasury bonds is 5.5%, and common stocks is 11.1%. From these past returns, we could estimate the market risk
premium (Rm-Rf ) to be either 7.1% (11.1 4.0) if we use treasure bill returns (4%), or 5.6% (11.1 5.5) if we use
treasury bond rates (5.5%).
For evaluating long-term projects (capital budgeting), a long-term estimate of CAPM is better than a short-term
estimate. Disagreements about how to make CAPM a long-term estimate focus on adjustments to Rf. Some argue
that the current short-term treasury bill rate is best, others argue that the current long-term treasury bond rate is
best. Neither is exactly theoretically correct, because the equity risk premium should capture the extra return of
the market for investing long-term (extra time length) and for systematic volatility.
In practice, Rf is typically adjusted by using the current treasury bond rate. If this practice is followed then the
market risk premium (Rm-Rf ) is lower (e.g. 5.6% versus 7.1%) based on 104 years of returns from 1900 2004.
This adjustment lowers the slope of the SML and makes the CAPM a better match with historical evidence. Many
studies have shown that CAPM estimates based on treasury bill rates overstates stock returns relative to the
market.
An alternative adjustment is to subtract the long-run liquidity premium of 1.5% (historical treasury bond yield of
5.5% minus the historical treasury bill yield of 4 %) from the current treasury bond yield. This adjustment makes
Rf an estimated annualized short-term Rf return that is expected to be earned on average over a long-term period.
With this adjustment, the market risk premium should be 7.1%, not 5.6%. The slope of the SML steeper, which is
more theoretically correct; however, it is less consistent with historical evidence that shows the CAPM overstates

stock returns relative to the market.

Taxes - Stock Betas are estimated from empirical stock returns (i.e. from data on dividends and capital gains)
that accrue to shareholders from after-corporate-tax earnings. As a result, empirically estimated stock betas in the
CAPM formula generate an after-corporate-tax ROE. It is incorrect to average an after-tax ROE with a before-tax
ROD in the WACC calculation. Such averaging would generate a WACC that is some nonsensical mixture of
before-tax and after-tax returns. ROD is easily adjusted for corporate taxes. Because the firms interest expense is
tax deductible, income that would otherwise be taxed is sheltered from taxation by interest expense generated by
the firms ROD. The firm pays the interest expense, but the expense if effectively lower by the taxes that are
saved. The net after-tax cost of ROD is ROD(1-Tc). Averaging after-tax ROD with the CAPM estimated ROE
generates an after-tax WACC:
WACC = D/V (1-Tc) ROD + E/V (ROE)

where V = (D+E)

Implied tax benefits of debt - The adjustment to ROD to an after-tax rate, [ i.e. ROD (1-Tc)], causes many people
to interpret this adjustment as a valuable tax deductible benefit of debt. This interpretation suggests debt financing
creates value as compared to equity financing. Remember that this adjustment in the WACC calculation simply
equates ROD to ROE on an after-tax basis. Therefore, do not interpret this tax adjustment to ROD as a tax
advantage over equity. This implication will be investigated in greater detail in our study of Capital Structure
Policy.
Exclude interest expense in NPV analysis when project is debt financed From the separation theorem, we
know that how a project is financed is an independent and separate decision from the investment decision (i.e.
whether the project is acceptable). Using the WACC as the discount rate effectively undoes the impact of any
debt financing and generates a cost of capital for an all-equity financed project. This is consistent with the
separation theorem and correctly values the project independent of the financing decision. Interest expense should
be excluded from the estimated project cash flows.
Instability of Company Betas in the CAPM Company betas can vary considerably over time. However,
portfolio betas are more stable than individual company betas. Therefore, when estimating the cost of capital for a
project it is preferable (i.e. the confidence interval of the estimate is tighter) if industry betas of pure play
companies are used in the CAPM rather than individual company betas.
CAPM is a single factor model The CAPM implies that stock returns are only a function of the market risk
premium (Rm Rf). Research has demonstrated that at times this relationship is weak. As research continues, we
may discover other variables are useful in explaining stock returns. For example, the Fama-French three-factor
model, theorizes that stock returns are also driven by firm size (Rs RL) and undervalued status measured by
book-to-market value (RH RL). Unfortunately, in practice, it is difficult to estimate these factors because
reporting agencies such Standard & Poors and Moodys do not report values for these factors in their stock
reports.

Chapter 9

Archimedes Inc. is financed by a mixture of debt and equity. The following information has been
extracted from capital markets. Can you fill in the blanks, determine the firms cost of capital, and
explain its use and relevance in the firm strategic planning decisions?
rE = ___

rD = 12%

rA = ___

E = 1.5

D = ___

A = ___

rf = 10%

rm = 18%

D/V = .5

Handout Problem #1
Amalgamated has three operating divisions: chemical (40 % of assets), food (10% of assets), and electronics
(50% of assets). Below are industry averages of companies operating in these areas:
e

Chemicals
Food
Electronics

1.2
1.5
1.1

Debt/(Debt + Equity) ratio

.6
.4
.3

ROD
.08
.07
.06

Amalgamated's Debt/Asset ratio is .6. Treasury Bills currently yield 1% and treasury bonds currently yield 3.5%.
Research from 1900 to 2004 indicates the market liquidity premium is 1.5%, the market risk premium over
treasury bills is 7% and over treasury bonds is 5.5%. The corporate tax rate is currently 35%.
1.

What Rf and market risk premium could be used in the CAPM and what justification is used for each?

2. Calculate the appropriate discount rate to use in capital budgeting decisions for each of Amalgamated's
divisions?

Which division has the riskiest assets?

Does the cost of capital calculation use a before-tax or after-tax ROE? Why?

Does the cost of capital calculation use a before-tax or after-tax ROD? Why?

3.
Suppose a 10-year proposed Food project is expected to generate net after-tax income of $ 5 million per
year. Its proposed cost is $30 million and annual expenses include $ 1 million of depreciation. The project can be
financed with all equity or with 40% debt at an interest rate of 7%.
Assuming the projects NPV is zero, what is the projects E(ROE) if Amalgamated finances it with all equity?

Assuming the projects NPV is zero, what is the projects E(ROE) if Amalgamated finances it with 40% debt?

Explain any differences in these two E(ROEs).

What is the NPV of the project if financed with all equity?

What is the NPV of the project if financed with debt and equity?

4.

What is Amalgamated's cost of capital ? How would you use it?

Chapter 9
Handout problem #2
A pure-play company with PP&E in the same risk-class as the market is considering a 50%
expansion in its existing asset base. The executive committee wants to know if a stock issuance is an
acceptable source of financing for the expansion. The firm is currently financed with 60% debt, yielding
5%, and 40% stock with a required return of 22.5%. The capital budgeting department projects the
expansion will earn 20%. The risk-free rate is 4%, and the expected return on the market is 12%.
Should the company issue stock to finance the expansion? Assume the corporate tax rate is zero.
Prove that the required return on the stock is 22.5% and then determine the impact of expansion on the
stocks required return.

CHAPTER 12
Payout Policy
Basic
2.

Here are several facts about typical corporate dividend policies. Which are true and which false?
a Companies decide each years dividend by looking at their capital expenditure requirements and then
distributing whatever cash is left over.
b Managers and investors seem more concerned with dividend changes than with dividend levels.
c Managers often increase dividends temporarily when earnings are unexpectedly high for a year or two.
d Companies undertaking substantial share repurchases usually finance them with an offsetting
reduction in cash dividends.

Intermediate
9.

Which types of companies would you expect to distribute a relatively high or low proportion of current
earnings? Which would you expect to have a relatively high or low price-earnings ratio?
a
b
c
d

High-risk companies
Companies that have experienced an unexpected decline in profits.
Companies that expect to experience a decline in profits.
Growth companies with valuable future investment opportunities.

14. Many companies use stock repurchases to increase earnings per share. For example, suppose that a
company is in the following position:
Net profit
Number of shares before repurchase

$10 million
1 million

Earnings per share

$10

Price-earnings ratio

20

Share price

$200

The company now repurchases 200,000 shares at $200 a share. The number of shares declines to
800,000 shares and earnings per share increase to $12.50. Assuming the price-earnings ratio stays at 20,
the share price must rise to $250. Discuss.

16.

An article on stock repurchase in the Los Angeles Times noted: An increasing number of companies are
finding that the best investment they can make these days is in themselves. Discuss this view. How is the
desirability of repurchase affected by company prospects and the price of its stock?

23.

Consider the following two statements: Dividend policy is irrelevant, and Stock price is the present value
of expected future dividends. (See Chapter 5.) They sound contradictory. This question is designed to
show that they are fully consistent.
The current price of the shares of Charles River Mining Corporation is $50. Next years expected earnings
are $6 per share and the firm has a dividend polcy of 1/3 payout. The expected rate of return demanded
by investors is 12%.
We can use the perpetual-growth model to calculate stock price:

P0 =

DIV
r-g

2
.12 - .08

= 50

a) What is Charles River E(ROA) and E(ROE)?

b) Ceterus paribus, what should be next years stock price?
c) How will stockholders receive their required return?
d) Ceterus paribus, what should be next years dividend announcement?
e) What would cause next years stock price to exceed $54.
Suppose that Charles River Mining announces that it will switch to a 100% payout policy. Use the
perpetual-growth model to show that current stock price is unchanged. What would be your answers to a,
b, c, d, and e questions under the 100% payout policy?

CHAPTER 13
Does Debt Policy Matter without Taxes?

Problems
2.

Spam Corp. is financed entirely by 100,000 shares of common stock that has a beta of 1.0. The
firm is expected to generate a level, perpetual stream of earnings and dividends. The stock has a
price-earnings ratio of 8 and a cost of equity of 12.5%. The companys stock is selling for $50 a
share. The firm is considering a stock repurchase of half its shares, financed by by equal amount
of bonds. The debt is risk-free, with a 5% interest rate. The company is exempt from corporate
income taxes. Assuming MM are correct, calculate the following items before and after the debt
issuance and explain why the following financial variables increased or decreased.
a.
b.
c.
d.
e.
f.
g.
h.
i.
j.
k.
l.

E(ROA)
NOI
The risk of equity
The cost of equity
NI
Shares outstanding
EPS
Dividends Policy
Dividends
The firms overall cost of capital
The stocks price
The P/E ratio

Does it seem appropriate to assume the companys debt is risk-free when it repurchased half of
its stock with a debt issuance? How would the above items change if the debt increased
(decreased) in risk?
5.

True or false?
a. MMs financing proposition says that corporate borrowing increases earnings per share but
reduces the price-earnings ratio.
b. MMs financing proposition says that the cost of equity increases with borrowing and that the
increase is a function of the D/E ratio of the firm.
c. MMs financing proposition assumes that increased borrowing does not affect the interest rate
on the firms debt.
d. Borrowing does not increase financial risk and the cost of equity if there is no risk of
bankruptcy.
e. Borrowing increases firm value if there is a clientele of investors with a reason to prefer debt.

9.

Optional The arbitrage argurment for leverage irrelevance:

Companies A and B differ only in their capital structure. A is financed 30% debt and 70% equity; B
is financed 10% debt and 90% equity. The debt of both companies is risk-free.
Assume E(ROA) is 10% and E(ROD) is 5%. Hint, let assets equal $1000.
a. Rosencrantz owns 10% of the common stock of A. What other investment package would
produce identical cash flows for Rosencrantz?
b. Guildenstern owns 20% of the common stock of B. What other investment package would
produce identical cash flows for Guildenstern?
c. Show that neither Rosencrantz nor Guildenstern would invest in the common stock of B if the
total value of company A were 10% less than that of B.

10.

Here is a limerick: aka

You Cant Take Your Cows to Wall Street

There once was a man named Carruthers,

Who kept cows with miraculous udders.
He said, Isnt this neat?
They give cream from one teat,
And skim milk from each of the others!
What is the analogy between Mr. Carrutherss cows and firms financing decisions? What would
MMs proposition 1, suitable adapted, say about the value of Mr. Carrutherss cows? Explain.
See How Corporate Finance Got Smart (1998)
15.

Indicate whats wrong with the following arguments:

a. As the firm borrows more and debt becomes more risky, both stockholders and bondholders
demand higher rates of return. Thus by reducing the debt ratio we can reduce both the cost of
debt and the cost of equity, making everybody better off.
b. Moderate borrowing doesnt significantly affect the probability of financial distress or
bankruptcy. Consequently moderate borrowing wont increase the expected rate of return
demanded by stockholders.

16.

Each of the following statements is false or at least misleading. Exaplin why in each case.
a. A Capital investment opportunity offering a 10% DCF rate of return is an attractive project if it
can be 100% debt-financed at an 8% interest rate.
b. The more debt the firm issues, the higher the interest rate it must pay. That is one important
reason why firms should operate at conservative debt level.

24.

People often convey the idea behind MMs proposition 1 by various supermarket analogies, for
example, The value of a pie should not depend on how it is sliced, or, The cost of whole
chicken should be equal the cost of assembling one by buying two drumsticks, two wings, two
breats, and so on.

Actually proposition 1 doesnt work in the supermarket. Youll pay less for an uncut whole pie
than for a pie assembled from pieces purchased separately. Supermarkets charge more for
chickens after they cut up. Why? What costs or imperfections cause proposition 1 to fail in the
supermarket? Are these costs or imperfections likely to be important for the corporations issuing
securities on the U.S or world capital markets? Expalin.

Chapter 14
Debt with Taxes
Handout Problem
Where Have All the Gains to Leverage Gone?
Suppose the investing public consists of three investor groups with the following tax brackets:
Group
A
B
C

Tax Bracket
60%
40%
0%

These investors can invest in perpetual municipal bonds, perpetual corporate bonds, and common stock.
The corporate tax rate is 50%. Aggregate interest payments on municipal bonds totals $30 million.
Aggregate NOI of all corporations totals $300 million.
Each investor group has the same amount of money to invest and their total net worth equals the value of all
securities. In other words, all the interest income from munis as well as all corporate NOI mentioned above
must flow through securities purchased by the three investor groups listed above.
The minimum required rate of return demanded by investors after taxes in this economy is 10%.
(1) Suppose all companies are initially financed by common stock. Company X decides to mimic the
local municipality and issue bonds to raise capital. The firm will allocate $1 million of its NOI to
interest payments on the bonds. Which group of investors will buy the bonds? What will be the rate
of interest? What will be the effect of the bond issuance on the value of Company X?
(2) What will other companies do after observing the financing actions taken by Company X? Suppose
interest payments in the economy now total $150 million. At this point Company Y decides to follow
the actions of Company X and issue bonds, also allocating $1 million of its NOI to interest payments
on the bonds. Which group of investors will buy the bonds? What will be the rate of interest? What
will be the effect of the bond issuance on the value of Company X?

(3) Suppose total interest payments in the economy somehow rise to $230 million. Company Z was one
of the last firms to issue debt, also allocating $1 million of its NOI to interest payments on the bonds.
Which group of investors bought the bonds? What rate of interest did Company Z have to pay on the
bonds? What was the effect of the bond issuance on the value of Company Z? What will be the
impact of this bond issuance on interest rates and the value of firms that issue bonds in the future?
(4) Over time, suppose a few corporations have accumulated excess cash from operations and want to
purchase marketable securities to park their money. How will all the financing activity settle up?
That is, how much debt must be outstanding? What is the value of all companies? What is the
interest rate in the economy? What is the impact of leveraging for a company? Show that when all
the dust settles, an unlevered firm has no incentive to issue debt and a levered company has no
incentive to retire debt with common stock (i.e. capital markets price stock as though both capital
structures result in equal tax payments). Now, with markets in equilibrium, would any issuer or
investor group benefit from bond issuances or bond investments?

Chapter 14 Problems
1.

The present value of interest tax shields is often written as TcD, where D is the amount of debt
and Tc is the marginal corporate tax rate. Under what assumptions is this present value correct?

3.

What is the relative tax advantage of corporate debt if the corporate tax rate is T c= .35, the
personal tax rate is Tp= .35, but all equity income is received as capital gains and escapes tax
entirely (TpE= 0)? How does the relative tax rate advantage change if the company decides to pay
out all equity income as cash dividends that are taxed at 15%?

4.

The firm cant use interest tax shields unless it has (taxable) income to shield. What does this
statement imply for debt policy? Explain briefly.

5.

Millers tax adjustment model indicates that managers of non-profit hospitals should issue bonds
at what rate?

6.

In 2010, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi blasted the presidents budget deficit commission on its
suggestion to eliminate the mortgage interest tax break, saying it would force middle-class
homeowners to subsidize tax breaks for the wealthy. Apply Millers tax model and discuss.
See also: A Defense of the Mortgage Interest Deduction (1992)

7.

This question tests your understanding of financial distress

a. What are the costs of going bankrupt? Define these costs carefully.
b. A company can incur costs of financial distress without going bankrupt. Expain how this can
happen
c. Expalin how conflicts of interests between bondholders and stockholders can lead to financial
distress.

Intermediate
18..

Let us go back to circular Files market-value blance sheet

Net working capital

$20

$25

Fixed asstes

10

Total assets

$30

$30

Bonds outstanding
Common stock
Total Value

Who gains and who loses from the following maneuvers?.

a. Circular scrapes up $5 in cash and pays a cash dividend.
b. Circular halts operations, sells its fixed assets, and converts net working capital into $20 cash.
Unfortunately the fixed assets fetch only $6 on the secondhand market. The $26 cash is
invested in treasury bills.
c. Circular encounters an acceptable investment opportunity, NPV= 0, requiring an investment of
$10. The firm borrows to finance the project. The new debt has the same security, seniority,
etc as the old.

d. Suppose that the new project has NPV= $2 and is financed by an issue of preffered stock.
e. The lenders agree to extend the maturity of their loan from one year to two in order to give
Circular a chance to recover.

19.

The Salad Oil Storage(SOS) company has financed a large part of its facilties with long-term
debt. There is a significant risk of default, but the company is not on the ropes yet. Explain:
a. Why SOS stockholders could lose by investing in a positive-NPV project financed by an equity
issue.
b. Why SOS stockholders could gain by investing in a negative-NPV project financed by cash.
c. Why SOS stockholders could gain from paying out a large cash dividend.

20 .

a. Who benefits from the fine print in the bond contracts when the firm gets into financial trouble?
Give a one-sentence answer
c.

Who benefits from the fine print when the bonds are issued?

21. Summarizing What have we learned in finance? If stock price is driven by EPS then discuss
whether management can increase EPS (and thus dividends and stock price) by:
1. Increasing risk class of assets?
2. Increasing speed of cash flow from investments?
3. Increasing return for a given risk class?
4. Increasing NI by changing accounting methods?
5. Increasing DIV by increasing payout ratio?
6. Increasing DIV if payout policy is set and held at a fixed level?
7. Increasing Div if firm is poorly managed?
8.
9.
10.
11.

Increasing EPS with leverage?

Increasing the tax subsidy from the interest deduction with more leverage?
Minimizing bond covenants to extract gains from the bondholders?
Increasing leverage to make management/employees work harder?

Capstone Handout Problem

EPS, CAPM, Dividend Policy, Capital Structure Policy, BTWACC, ATWACC, and NPV Analysis
Chapter 14
A 100% equity financed firm is considering a strategic 50% expansion of its core business. For
simplicity assume 10 shares at $10 per share. The firm is a pure play and the expansion will be in the
same core business (i.e. same risk class).
If the project is financed entirely with bonds, the firms investment bankers project that the bonds will
float at a yield of 6%.
Currently, before expansion, the firms stock has a beta (e) of 2. The firms dividend policy is 30%
payout.. The risk-free rate is currently 5%. The expected return on the market is 12%. Management's
fundamental strategic question is whether financing with cheap debt (6% bonds) versus expensive
equity (stock) will create value for the shareholders.
The CFO assigns you the task of assembling a team and preparing an analysis of the proposed
expansion with debt financing. You are specifically instructed to address the impact on the firms EPS,
dividends, and stock price. To help with your analysis consider the following.
Without taxes:
a) What is E(ROA), NOI, WACC, E(ROE), EPS and dividends before expansion?
b) What is the risk class of bonds issued for expansion?
c) What is EPS after expansion?
d) What are dividends after expansion?
e) What is WACC before and after expansion?
f) What is the stock price before and after expansion?
With Taxes:
g) What woud happen to the stock price if the firm were in a 40% tax bracket, top personal tax
bracket is 40%, and municipal bonds in the same riskclass are yielding 3.6%?
h) What interest rate and interest expense is the firm willing to pay.
i) What interest rate and interest expense must they pay.
j) What is the PV of the difference
k) What is ATWACC before and after expansion
l) What is PV of ATNOI
m) What would happen to the stock price if the top corporate tax rate were 50%.