Fight Finance

Question 67  CFFA, interest tax shield

Here are the Net Income (NI) and Cash Flow From Assets (CFFA) equations:

###NI=(Rev-COGS-FC-Depr-IntExp).(1-t_c)###

###CFFA=NI+Depr-CapEx - \varDelta NWC+IntExp###

What is the formula for calculating annual interest expense (IntExp) which is used in the equations above?

Select one of the following answers. Note that D is the value of debt which is constant through time, and ##r_D## is the cost of debt.

(a) ##D(1+r_D)##

(b) ##D/(1+r_D) ##

(c) ##D.r_D ##

(d) ##D / r_D##

(e) ##NI.r_D##

Question 206  CFFA, interest expense, interest tax shield

Interest expense (IntExp) is an important part of a company's income statement (or 'profit and loss' or 'statement of financial performance').

How does an accountant calculate the annual interest expense of a fixed-coupon bond that has a liquid secondary market? Select the most correct answer:

Annual interest expense is equal to:

(a) the bond's face value multiplied by its annual yield to maturity.

(b) the bond's face value multiplied by its annual coupon rate.

(c) the bond's market price at the start of the year multiplied by its annual yield to maturity.

(d) the bond's market price at the start of the year multiplied by its annual coupon rate.

(e) the future value of the actual cash payments of the bond over the year, grown to the end of the year, and grown by the bond's yield to maturity.

Question 223  CFFA, interest tax shield

Which one of the following will increase the Cash Flow From Assets in this year for a tax-paying firm, all else remaining constant?

(a) An increase in net capital spending.

(b) A decrease in the cash flow to creditors.

(c) An increase in interest expense.

(d) An increase in net working capital.

(e) A decrease in dividends paid.

Question 296  CFFA, interest tax shield

Which one of the following will decrease net income (NI) but increase cash flow from assets (CFFA) in this year for a tax-paying firm, all else remaining constant?

Remember:

###NI=(Rev-COGS-FC-Depr-IntExp).(1-t_c )### ###CFFA=NI+Depr-CapEx - ΔNWC+IntExp###

(a) An increase in revenue (##Rev##).

(b) An decrease in revenue (##Rev##).

(c) An increase in rent expense (part of fixed costs, ##FC##).

(d) An increase in interest expense (##IntExp##).

(e) An increase in dividends.

Question 68  WACC, CFFA, capital budgeting

A manufacturing company is considering a new project in the more risky services industry. The cash flows from assets (CFFA) are estimated for the new project, with interest expense excluded from the calculations. To get the levered value of the project, what should these unlevered cash flows be discounted by?

Assume that the manufacturing firm has a target debt-to-assets ratio that it sticks to.

(a) The manufacturing firm's before-tax WACC.

(b) The manufacturing firm's after-tax WACC.

(c) A services firm's before-tax WACC, assuming that the services firm has the same debt-to-assets ratio as the manufacturing firm.

(d) A services firm's after-tax WACC, assuming that the services firm has the same debt-to-assets ratio as the manufacturing firm.

(e) The services firm's levered cost of equity.

Question 89  WACC, CFFA, interest tax shield

A retail furniture company buys furniture wholesale and distributes it through its retail stores. The owner believes that she has some good ideas for making stylish new furniture. She is considering a project to buy a factory and employ workers to manufacture the new furniture she's designed. Furniture manufacturing has more systematic risk than furniture retailing.

Her furniture retailing firm's after-tax WACC is 20%. Furniture manufacturing firms have an after-tax WACC of 30%. Both firms are optimally geared. Assume a classical tax system.

Which method(s) will give the correct valuation of the new furniture-making project? Select the most correct answer.

(a) Discount the project's unlevered CFFA by the furniture manufacturing firms' 30% WACC after tax.

(b) Discount the project's unlevered CFFA by the company's 20% WACC after tax.

(c) Discount the project's levered CFFA by the company's 20% WACC after tax.

(d) Discount the project's levered CFFA by the furniture manufacturing firms' 30% WACC after tax.

(e) The methods outlined in answers (a) and (c) will give the same valuations, both are correct.

Question 113  WACC, CFFA, capital budgeting

The US firm Google operates in the online advertising business. In 2011 Google bought Motorola Mobility which manufactures mobile phones.

Assume the following:

• Google had a 10% after-tax weighted average cost of capital (WACC) before it bought Motorola.
• Motorola had a 20% after-tax WACC before it merged with Google.
• Google and Motorola have the same level of gearing.
• Both companies operate in a classical tax system.

You are a manager at Motorola. You must value a project for making mobile phones. Which method(s) will give the correct valuation of the mobile phone manufacturing project? Select the most correct answer.

The mobile phone manufacturing project's:

(a) Unlevered CFFA should be discounted by Google's 10% WACC after tax.

(b) Unlevered CFFA should be discounted by Motorola's 20% WACC after tax.

(c) Levered CFFA should be discounted by Google's 10% WACC after tax.

(d) Levered CFFA should be discounted by Motorola's 20% WACC after tax.

(e) Unlevered CFFA by 15%, the average of Google and Motorola's WACC after tax.

Question 367  CFFA, interest tax shield

There are many ways to calculate a firm's free cash flow (FFCF), also called cash flow from assets (CFFA). Some include the annual interest tax shield in the cash flow and some do not.

Which of the below FFCF formulas include the interest tax shield in the cash flow?

###(1) \quad FFCF=NI + Depr - CapEx -ΔNWC + IntExp### ###(2) \quad FFCF=NI + Depr - CapEx -ΔNWC + IntExp.(1-t_c)### ###(3) \quad FFCF=EBIT.(1-t_c )+ Depr- CapEx -ΔNWC+IntExp.t_c### ###(4) \quad FFCF=EBIT.(1-t_c) + Depr- CapEx -ΔNWC### ###(5) \quad FFCF=EBITDA.(1-t_c )+Depr.t_c- CapEx -ΔNWC+IntExp.t_c### ###(6) \quad FFCF=EBITDA.(1-t_c )+Depr.t_c- CapEx -ΔNWC### ###(7) \quad FFCF=EBIT-Tax + Depr - CapEx -ΔNWC### ###(8) \quad FFCF=EBIT-Tax + Depr - CapEx -ΔNWC-IntExp.t_c### ###(9) \quad FFCF=EBITDA-Tax - CapEx -ΔNWC### ###(10) \quad FFCF=EBITDA-Tax - CapEx -ΔNWC-IntExp.t_c###

The formulas for net income (NI also called earnings), EBIT and EBITDA are given below. Assume that depreciation and amortisation are both represented by 'Depr' and that 'FC' represents fixed costs such as rent.

###NI=(Rev - COGS - Depr - FC - IntExp).(1-t_c )### ###EBIT=Rev - COGS - FC-Depr### ###EBITDA=Rev - COGS - FC### ###Tax =(Rev - COGS - Depr - FC - IntExp).t_c= \dfrac{NI.t_c}{1-t_c}###

(a) 1, 3, 5, 7, 9.

(b) 2, 4, 6, 8, 10.

(c) 1, 4, 6, 8, 10.

(d) 2, 3, 5, 7, 9.

(e) 1, 3, 5, 8, 10.

Question 369  interest tax shield, CFFA

One formula for calculating a levered firm's free cash flow (FFCF, or CFFA) is to use earnings before interest and tax (EBIT).

###\begin{aligned} FFCF &= (EBIT)(1-t_c) + Depr - CapEx -\Delta NWC + IntExp.t_c \\ &= (Rev - COGS - Depr - FC)(1-t_c) + Depr - CapEx -\Delta NWC + IntExp.t_c \\ \end{aligned} \\###

Does this annual FFCF or the annual interest tax shield?

Question 371  interest tax shield, CFFA

One method for calculating a firm's free cash flow (FFCF, or CFFA) is to ignore interest expense. That is, pretend that interest expense ##(IntExp)## is zero:

###\begin{aligned} FFCF &= (Rev - COGS - Depr - FC - IntExp)(1-t_c) + Depr - CapEx -\Delta NWC + IntExp \\ &= (Rev - COGS - Depr - FC - 0)(1-t_c) + Depr - CapEx -\Delta NWC - 0\\ \end{aligned}###

Does this annual FFCF with zero interest expense or the annual interest tax shield?

Question 375  interest tax shield, CFFA

One formula for calculating a levered firm's free cash flow (FFCF, or CFFA) is to use net operating profit after tax (NOPAT).

###\begin{aligned} FFCF &= NOPAT + Depr - CapEx -\Delta NWC \\ &= (Rev - COGS - Depr - FC)(1-t_c) + Depr - CapEx -\Delta NWC \\ \end{aligned} \\###

Does this annual FFCF or the annual interest tax shield?

Question 413  CFFA, interest tax shield, depreciation tax shield

There are many ways to calculate a firm's free cash flow (FFCF), also called cash flow from assets (CFFA).

One method is to use the following formulas to transform net income (NI) into FFCF including interest and depreciation tax shields:

###FFCF=NI + Depr - CapEx -ΔNWC + IntExp###

###NI=(Rev - COGS - Depr - FC - IntExp).(1-t_c )###

Another popular method is to use EBITDA rather than net income. EBITDA is defined as:

###EBITDA=Rev - COGS - FC###

One of the below formulas correctly calculates FFCF from EBITDA, including interest and depreciation tax shields, giving an identical answer to that above. Which formula is correct?

(a) ##FFCF=EBITDA+ Depr - CapEx -ΔNWC + IntExp##

(b) ##FFCF=EBITDA.(1-t_c )+Depr- CapEx -ΔNWC##

(c) ##FFCF=EBITDA.(1-t_c )+ Depr.t_c - CapEx -ΔNWC + IntExp.t_c##

(d) ##FFCF=EBITDA.(1-t_c )+Depr.(1-t_c )- CapEx -ΔNWC+IntExp.(1-t_c)##

(e) ##FFCF=EBITDA.(1-t_c )- CapEx -ΔNWC##

Question 273  CFFA, capital budgeting

Value the following business project to manufacture a new product.

Project Data
Project life	2 yrs
Initial investment in equipment	$6m
Depreciation of equipment per year	$3m
Expected sale price of equipment at end of project	$0.6m
Unit sales per year	4m
Sale price per unit	$8
Variable cost per unit	$5
Fixed costs per year, paid at the end of each year	$1m
Interest expense per year	0
Tax rate	30%
Weighted average cost of capital after tax per annum	10%

Notes

1. The firm's current assets and current liabilities are $3m and $2m respectively right now. This net working capital will not be used in this project, it will be used in other unrelated projects.
   Due to the project, current assets (mostly inventory) will grow by $2m initially (at t = 0), and then by $0.2m at the end of the first year (t=1).
   Current liabilities (mostly trade creditors) will increase by $0.1m at the end of the first year (t=1).
   At the end of the project, the net working capital accumulated due to the project can be sold for the same price that it was bought.
2. The project cost $0.5m to research which was incurred one year ago.

Assumptions

• All cash flows occur at the start or end of the year as appropriate, not in the middle or throughout the year.
• All rates and cash flows are real. The inflation rate is 3% pa.
• All rates are given as effective annual rates.
• The business considering the project is run as a 'sole tradership' (run by an individual without a company) and is therefore eligible for a 50% capital gains tax discount when the equipment is sold, as permitted by the Australian Tax Office.

What is the expected net present value (NPV) of the project?

(a) $5.2m

(b) $8.481735m

(c) $8.743802m

(d) $8.991736m

(e) $9.719008m

Question 69  interest tax shield, capital structure, leverage, WACC

Which statement about risk, required return and capital structure is the most correct?

(a) The before-tax cost of debt is less than the before-tax cost of equity. Therefore debt is a cheaper form of financing than equity so companies should try to finance their projects with debt only.

(b) Debt makes a firm's equity more risky. Therefore the higher the amount of debt, the higher the cost of equity.

(c) The more debt a firm has, the higher its tax shields. Therefore firms should seek to have as much debt and as little equity as possible.

(d) The more debt, the lower the firm's after tax WACC. The after tax WACC is the discount rate that discounts the firm's cash flows, so the lower it is the more the firm is worth. Therefore firms should try to make their after tax WACC as low as possible by using as much debt as possible.

(e) The less debt, the lower the chance of bankruptcy. Therefore firms should try to pay off all of their debt so that they are financed by equity only.

Question 121  capital structure, leverage, financial distress, interest tax shield

Fill in the missing words in the following sentence:

All things remaining equal, as a firm's amount of debt funding falls, benefits of interest tax shields __________ and the costs of financial distress __________.

(a) Fall, fall.

(b) Fall, rises.

(c) Rise, fall.

(d) Rise, rise.

(e) Remain unchanged, remain unchanged.

Question 115  capital structure, leverage, WACC

A firm has a debt-to-assets ratio of 50%. The firm then issues a large amount of debt to raise money for new projects of similar market risk to the company's existing projects. Assume a classical tax system. Which statement is correct?

(a) The debt-to-assets (D/V) ratio will decrease.

(b) The debt-to-equity ratio (D/E) will decrease.

(c) The firm's cost of equity will decrease.

(d) The company's after-tax WACC will decrease.

(e) The company's before-tax WACC will decrease.

Question 84  WACC, capital structure, capital budgeting

A firm is considering a new project of similar risk to the current risk of the firm. This project will expand its existing business. The cash flows of the project have been calculated assuming that there is no interest expense. In other words, the cash flows assume that the project is all-equity financed.

In fact the firm has a target debt-to-equity ratio of 1, so the project will be financed with 50% debt and 50% equity. To find the levered value of the firm's assets, what discount rate should be applied to the project's unlevered cash flows? Assume a classical tax system.

(a) The required return on equity, ##r_E##

(b) The required return on debt, ##r_D##

(c) The after-tax required return on debt, ##r_D.(1-t_c)##

(d) The after-tax WACC, ##\text{WACC after tax}=\frac{D}{V_L}.r_D.(1-t_c )+\frac{E_L}{V_L}.r_E##

(e) The pre-tax WACC, ##\text{WACC before tax}=\frac{D}{V_L}.r_D+\frac{E_L}{V_L}.r_E##

Question 99  capital structure, interest tax shield, Miller and Modigliani, trade off theory of capital structure

A firm changes its capital structure by issuing a large amount of debt and using the funds to repurchase shares. Its assets are unchanged.

Assume that:

• The firm and individual investors can borrow at the same rate and have the same tax rates.
• The firm's debt and shares are fairly priced and the shares are repurchased at the market price, not at a premium.
• There are no market frictions relating to debt such as asymmetric information or transaction costs.
• Shareholders wealth is measured in terms of utiliity. Shareholders are wealth-maximising and risk-averse. They have a preferred level of overall leverage. Before the firm's capital restructure all shareholders were optimally levered.

According to Miller and Modigliani's theory, which statement is correct?

(a) The firm's share price and shareholder wealth will both decrease. This is because the firm will have more debt and therefore more risk so the discount rate applied to its cash flows will be higher, decreasing the value of the firm and therefore the value of the firm's equity and share price.

(b) The firm's share price and shareholder wealth will both increase. This is because the firm will have more debt which will amplify the returns of equity investors. This will mean that returns on equity can be much higher and investors will pay a premium for this, leading to an increase in the stock price.

(c) The firm's share price and shareholder wealth will both increase since it has more debt and therefore more tax shields.

(d) The firm's share price will increase due to the higher value of tax shields. But shareholder wealth will remain unchanged because capital structure is irrelevant when investors can use home-made leverage to create tax-shields themselves.

(e) The firm's share price and shareholder wealth will both increase. This is because the cost of debt is cheaper than equity, leading to a lower (before and after tax) WACC. This lower WACC will lead to a higher value of the firm and a higher share price.

Question 559  variance, standard deviation, covariance, correlation

Which of the following statements about standard statistical mathematics notation is NOT correct?

(a) The arithmetic average of variable X is represented by ##\bar{X}##.

(b) The standard deviation of variable X is represented by ##\sigma_X##.

(c) The variance of variable X is represented by ##\sigma_X^2##.

(d) The covariance between variables X and Y is represented by ##\sigma_{X,Y}^2##.

(e) The correlation between variables X and Y is represented by ##\rho_{X,Y}##.

Question 236  diversification, correlation, risk

Diversification in a portfolio of two assets works best when the correlation between their returns is:

(a) -1

(b) -0.5

(c) 0

(d) 0.5

(e) 1

Question 81  risk, correlation, diversification

Stock A and B's returns have a correlation of 0.3. Which statement is NOT correct?

(a) If stock A's return increases, stock B's return is also expected to increase.

(b) If stock A's return decreases, stock B's return is also expected to decrease.

(c) If stock A and B were combined in a portfolio, there would be no diversification at all since they are positively correlated.

(d) Stock A and B's returns have positive covariance.

(e) a and b.

Question 284  covariance, correlation

The following table shows a sample of historical total returns of shares in two different companies A and B.

Stock Returns
Total effective annual returns
Year	##r_A##	##r_B##
2007	0.2	0.4
2008	0.04	-0.2
2009	-0.1	-0.3
2010	0.18	0.5

What is the historical sample covariance (##\hat{\sigma}_{A,B}##) and correlation (##\rho_{A,B}##) of stock A and B's total effective annual returns?

(a) 0.05696, 0.702247

(b) 0.05696, 0.238663

(c) 0.053333, 0.936329

(d) 0.040889, 0.930519

(e) 0.04, 0.930519

Question 251  NPV

You have $100,000 in the bank. The bank pays interest at 10% pa, given as an effective annual rate.

You wish to consume an equal amount now (t=0) and in one year (t=1) and have nothing left in the bank at the end (t=1).

How much can you consume at each time?

(a) $57,619.0476

(b) $55,000

(c) $53,809.5238

(d) $52,380.9524

(e) $50,000

Question 17  bond pricing

A three year bond has a face value of $100, a yield of 10% and a fixed coupon rate of 5%, paid semi-annually. What is its price?

(a) 87.31

(b) 86.92

(c) 76.37

(d) 74.62

(e) 58.63

Question 252  NPV

You have $100,000 in the bank. The bank pays interest at 10% pa, given as an effective annual rate.

You wish to consume an equal amount now (t=0), in one year (t=1) and in two years (t=2), and still have $50,000 in the bank after that (t=2).

How much can you consume at each time?

(a) $36,555.8912

(b) $23,666.6667

(c) $21,450.1511

(d) $18,277.9456

(e) $16,666.6667

Question 264  DDM

The following equation is the Dividend Discount Model, also known as the 'Gordon Growth Model' or the 'Perpetuity with growth' equation.

###P_0=\frac{d_1}{r-g}###

A stock pays dividends annually. It just paid a dividend, but the next dividend (##d_1##) will be paid in one year.

According to the DDM, what is the correct formula for the expected price of the stock in 2.5 years?

(a) ##P_{2.5}=P_0 (1+g)^{2.5} ##

(b) ##P_{2.5}=P_0 (1+r)^{2.5} ##

(c) ##P_{2.5}=P_0 (1+g)^2 (1+r)^{0.5} ##

(d) ##P_{2.5}=P_0 (1+r)^2 (1+g)^{0.5} ##

(e) ##P_{2.5}=P_0 (1+r)^3 (1+g)^{-0.5} ##

Question 536  idiom, bond pricing, capital structure, leverage

The expression 'my word is my bond' is often used in everyday language to make a serious promise.

Why do you think this expression uses the metaphor of a bond rather than a share?

(a) Because bonds are higher risk investments than shares.

(b) Because issuers must pay bond holders or face bankruptcy, while payments to shareholders are discretionary.

(c) Because bond holders are paid last in the event of bankruptcy, while shareholders are paid first.

(d) Because bonds always pay higher returns than shares.

(e) Because bonds are generally more liquid than shares.

Question 537  PE ratio, Multiples valuation, no explanation

Estimate the French bank Societe Generale's share price using a backward-looking price earnings (PE) multiples approach with the following assumptions and figures only. Note that EUR is the euro, the European monetary union's currency.

• The 4 major European banks Credit Agricole (ACA), Deutsche Bank AG (DBK), UniCredit (UCG) and Banco Santander (SAN) are comparable companies to Societe Generale (GLE);
• Societe Generale's (GLE's) historical earnings per share (EPS) is EUR 2.92;
• ACA's backward-looking PE ratio is 16.29 and historical EPS is EUR 0.84;
• DBK's backward-looking PE ratio is 25.01 and historical EPS is EUR 1.26;
• SAN's backward-looking PE ratio is 14.71 and historical EPS is EUR 0.47;
• UCG's backward-looking PE ratio is 15.78 and historical EPS is EUR 0.40;

Note: Figures sourced from Google Finance on 27 March 2015.

(a) EUR 209.6268

(b) EUR 52.4067

(c) EUR 8.6724

(d) EUR 3.9327

(e) EUR 2.1681

Question 538  bond pricing, income and capital returns, no explanation

Risk-free government bonds that have coupon rates greater than their yields:

(a) Are discount bonds.

(b) Have positive expected capital returns.

(c) Have higher expected income returns than total returns.

(d) Have prices less than their face values.

(e) Have significant credit risk.

Question 540  APR, effective rate, no explanation

Which one of the below statements about effective rates and annualised percentage rates (APR's) is NOT correct?

(a) An effective semi-annual rate could be called: "a six month rate compounding per six months".

(b) An APR compounding semi-annually could be called: "a yearly rate compounding per six months".

(c) An effective monthly rate could be called: "a monthly rate compounding every month".

(d) An APR compounding monthly could be called: "a monthly rate compounding per year".

(e) An effective daily rate could be called: "a daily rate compounding every day".

Question 541  debt terminology

Which of the following statements is NOT correct? Bond investors:

(a) Buy debt.

(b) Are debtors.

(c) Have debt assets.

(d) Provide debt funding.

(e) Are lenders.

Question 542  price gains and returns over time, IRR, NPV, income and capital returns, effective return

For an asset price to double every 10 years, what must be the expected future capital return, given as an effective annual rate?

(a) 0.2

(b) 0.116123

(c) 0.082037

(d) 0.071773

(e) 0.06054

Question 543  price gains and returns over time, IRR, NPV, income and capital returns, effective return

For an asset price to triple every 5 years, what must be the expected future capital return, given as an effective annual rate?

(a) 0.6

(b) 0.319508

(c) 0.269705

(d) 0.245731

(e) 0.219755

Question 544  bond pricing, capital raising, no explanation

A firm wishes to raise $10 million now. They will issue 6% pa semi-annual coupon bonds that will mature in 3 years and have a face value of $100 each. Bond yields are 5% pa, given as an APR compounding every 6 months, and the yield curve is flat.

How many bonds should the firm issue?

(a) 102,755

(b) 100,000

(c) 97,349

(d) 97,320

(e) 86,548

Question 550  fully amortising loan, interest only loan, APR

Many Australian home loans that are interest-only actually require payments to be made on a fully amortising basis after a number of years.

You decide to borrow $600,000 from the bank at an interest rate of 4.25% pa for 25 years. The payments will be interest-only for the first 10 years (t=0 to 10 years), then they will have to be paid on a fully amortising basis for the last 15 years (t=10 to 25 years).

Assuming that interest rates will remain constant, what will be your monthly payments over the first 10 years from now, and then the next 15 years after that? The answer options are given in the same order.

(a) $3,250.43,     $4,513.67

(b) $3,250.43,     $1,530.28

(c) $2,125,     $4,513.67

(d) $2,125,     $3,250.43

(e) $1,530.28,     $3,250.43

Question 549

An Apple iPhone 6 smart phone can be bought now for $999. An Android Samsung Galaxy 5 smart phone can be bought now for $599.

If the Samsung phone lasts for four years, approximately how long must the Apple phone last for to have the same equivalent annual cost?

Assume that both phones have equivalent features besides their lifetimes, that both are worthless once they've outlasted their life, the discount rate is 10% pa given as an effective annual rate, and there are no extra costs or benefits from either phone.

(a) 16 years

(b) 14 years

(c) 12 years

(d) 10 years

(e) 8 years

Question 546  income and capital returns, interest only loan, no explanation

Which of the following statements about the capital and income returns of an interest-only loan is correct?

Assume that the yield curve (which shows total returns over different maturities) is flat and is not expected to change.

An interest-only loan's expected:

(a) Income and capital returns both rise over time.

(b) Income and capital returns both fall over time.

(c) Income return rises and its capital return falls over time.

(d) Income return falls and its capital return rises over time.

(e) Income and capital returns are constant through time.

Question 100  market efficiency, technical analysis, joint hypothesis problem

A company selling charting and technical analysis software claims that independent academic studies have shown that its software makes significantly positive abnormal returns. Assuming the claim is true, which statement(s) are correct?

(I) Weak form market efficiency is broken.

(II) Semi-strong form market efficiency is broken.

(III) Strong form market efficiency is broken.

(IV) The asset pricing model used to measure the abnormal returns (such as the CAPM) had mis-specification error so the returns may not be abnormal but rather fair for the level of risk.

Select the most correct response:

(a) Only III is true.

(b) Only II and III are true.

(c) Only I, II and III are true.

(d) Only IV is true.

(e) Either I, II and III are true, or IV is true, or they are all true.

Question 243  fundamental analysis, market efficiency

Fundamentalists who analyse company financial reports and news announcements (but who don't have inside information) will make positive abnormal returns if:

(a) Markets are weak and semi-strong form efficient but strong-form inefficient.

(b) Markets are weak form efficient but semi-strong and strong-form inefficient.

(c) Chartists make negative excess returns.

(d) Insiders make positive excess returns.

(e) Insiders make negative excess returns.

Question 48  IRR, NPV, bond pricing, premium par and discount bonds, market efficiency

The theory of fixed interest bond pricing is an application of the theory of Net Present Value (NPV). Also, a 'fairly priced' asset is not over- or under-priced. Buying or selling a fairly priced asset has an NPV of zero.

Considering this, which of the following statements is NOT correct?

(a) The internal rate of return (IRR) of buying a fairly priced bond is equal to the bond's yield.

(b) The Present Value of a fairly priced bond's coupons and face value is equal to its price.

(c) If a fairly priced bond's required return rises, its price will fall.

(d) Fairly priced premium bonds' yields are less than their coupon rates, prices are more than their face values, and the NPV of buying them is therefore positive.

(e) The NPV of buying a fairly priced bond is zero.

Question 63  bond pricing, NPV, market efficiency

The theory of fixed interest bond pricing is an application of the theory of Net Present Value (NPV). Also, a 'fairly priced' asset is not over- or under-priced. Buying or selling a fairly priced asset has an NPV of zero.

Considering this, which of the following statements is NOT correct?

(a) The internal rate of return (IRR) of buying a bond is equal to the bond's yield.

(b) The present value of a fairly priced bond's coupons and face value is equal to its price.

(c) If the required return of a bond falls, its price will fall.

(d) Fairly priced discount bonds' yield is more than the coupon rate, price is less than face value, and the NPV of buying them is zero.

(e) The NPV of buying a fairly priced bond is zero.

Question 105  NPV, risk, market efficiency

A person is thinking about borrowing $100 from the bank at 7% pa and investing it in shares with an expected return of 10% pa. One year later the person intends to sell the shares and pay back the loan in full. Both the loan and the shares are fairly priced.

What is the Net Present Value (NPV) of this one year investment? Note that you are asked to find the present value (##V_0##), not the value in one year (##V_1##).

(a) $10

(b) $3

(c) $2.8037

(d) $2.7273

(e) $0

Question 338  market efficiency, CAPM, opportunity cost, technical analysis

A man inherits $500,000 worth of shares.

He believes that by learning the secrets of trading, keeping up with the financial news and doing complex trend analysis with charts that he can quit his job and become a self-employed day trader in the equities markets.

What is the expected gain from doing this over the first year? Measure the net gain in wealth received at the end of this first year due to the decision to become a day trader. Assume the following:

• He earns $60,000 pa in his current job, paid in a lump sum at the end of each year.
• He enjoys examining share price graphs and day trading just as much as he enjoys his current job.
• Stock markets are weak form and semi-strong form efficient.
• He has no inside information.
• He makes 1 trade every day and there are 250 trading days in the year. Trading costs are $20 per trade. His broker invoices him for the trading costs at the end of the year.
• The shares that he currently owns and the shares that he intends to trade have the same level of systematic risk as the market portfolio.
• The market portfolio's expected return is 10% pa.

Measure the net gain over the first year as an expected wealth increase at the end of the year.

(a) $110,000

(b) $50,000

(c) $45,000

(d) -$15,000

(e) -$65,000

Question 416  real estate, market efficiency, income and capital returns, DDM, CAPM

A residential real estate investor believes that house prices will grow at a rate of 5% pa and that rents will grow by 2% pa forever.

All rates are given as nominal effective annual returns. Assume that:

• His forecast is true.
• Real estate is and always will be fairly priced and the capital asset pricing model (CAPM) is true.
• Ignore all costs such as taxes, agent fees, maintenance and so on.
• All rental income cash flow is paid out to the owner, so there is no re-investment and therefore no additions or improvements made to the property.
• The non-monetary benefits of owning real estate and renting remain constant.

Which one of the following statements is NOT correct? Over time:

(a) The rental yield will fall and approach zero.

(b) The total return will fall and approach the capital return (5% pa).

(c) One or all of the following must fall: the systematic risk of real estate, the risk free rate or the market risk premium.

(d) If the country's nominal wealth growth rate is 4% pa and the nominal real estate growth rate is 5% pa then real estate will approach 100% of the country's wealth over time.

(e) If the country's nominal gross domestic production (GDP) growth rate is 4% pa and the nominal real estate rent growth rate is 2% pa then real estate rent will approach 100% of the country's GDP over time.

Question 464  mispriced asset, NPV, DDM, market efficiency

A company advertises an investment costing $1,000 which they say is underpriced. They say that it has an expected total return of 15% pa, but a required return of only 10% pa. Assume that there are no dividend payments so the entire 15% total return is all capital return.

Assuming that the company's statements are correct, what is the NPV of buying the investment if the 15% return lasts for the next 100 years (t=0 to 100), then reverts to 10% pa after that time? Also, what is the NPV of the investment if the 15% return lasts forever?

In both cases, assume that the required return of 10% remains constant. All returns are given as effective annual rates.

The answer choices below are given in the same order (15% for 100 years, and 15% forever):

(a)             $0,          $0

(b) $1,977.19,   $2,000

(c) $2,977.19,   $3,000

(d)    $499.96,      $500

(e) $84,214.9,   Infinite

Question 224  CFFA

Cash Flow From Assets (CFFA) can be defined as:

(a) Cash available to distribute to creditors and stockholders.

(b) Cash flow to creditors minus cash flow to stockholders.

(c) Net income (or earnings) plus depreciation plus interest expense.

(d) Net income minus the increase in net working capital.

(e) Net income minus net capital spending minus the increase in net working capital.

Question 226  CFFA

Find World Bar's Cash Flow From Assets (CFFA), also known as Free Cash Flow to the Firm (FCFF), over the year ending 30th June 2013.

World Bar
Income Statement for
year ending 30th June 2013
	$m
Sales	300
COGS	150
Operating expense	50
Depreciation	40
Interest expense	10
Taxable income	50
Tax at 30%	15
Net income	35

World Bar
Balance Sheet
as at 30th June	2013	2012
	$m	$m
Assets
Current assets	200	230
PPE
Cost	400	400
Accumul. depr.	75	35
Carrying amount	325	365
Total assets	525	595
Liabilities
Current liabilities	150	205
Non-current liabilities	235	250
Owners' equity
Retained earnings	100	100
Contributed equity	40	40
Total L and OE	525	595

 

Note: all figures above and below are given in millions of dollars ($m).

(a) 145

(b) 100

(c) 90

(d) 60

(e) -20

Question 310  foreign exchange rate

Is it possible for all countries' exchange rates to appreciate by 5% in the same year, including the USD? or ?

Question 311  foreign exchange rate

When someone says that they're "buying American dollars" (USD), what type of asset are they probably buying? They're probably buying:

(a) Short term debt denominated in USD, for example lending to a US bank as a USD deposit.

(b) Long term debt denominated in USD, for example lending to a US company by buying their USD bonds.

(c) Shares denominated in USD, for example buying shares in Coca-Cola which is listed on the NYSE.

(d) Real estate denominated in USD, for example buying an apartment in Chicago.

(e) Commodities with USD, for example buying gold, wheat, or coal.

Question 314  foreign exchange rate, American and European terms

If the USD appreciates against the AUD, the American terms quote of the AUD will or ?

Question 315  foreign exchange rate, American and European terms

If the current AUD exchange rate is USD 0.9686 = AUD 1, what is the European terms quote of the AUD against the USD?

(a) 0.9686 USD per AUD

(b) 0.9686 AUD per USD

(c) 1.0324 USD per AUD

(d) 1.0324 AUD per USD

(e) 1.0324 AUD per EUR

Question 323  foreign exchange rate, monetary policy, American and European terms

The market expects the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) to increase the policy rate by 25 basis points at their next meeting.

As expected, the RBA increases the policy rate by 25 basis points.

What do you expect to happen to Australia's exchange rate in the short term? The Australian dollar will:

(a) Appreciate against the USD, so the 'American terms' quote of the AUD (USD per AUD) will increase.

(b) Depreciate against the USD, so the 'American terms' quote of the AUD (USD per AUD) will decrease.

(c) Appreciate against the USD, so the 'American terms' quote of the AUD (USD per AUD) will decrease.

(d) Depreciate against the USD, so the 'American terms' quote of the AUD (USD per AUD) will increase.

(e) Be unaffected by the change in the policy rate, so the exchange rate will remain the same.

Question 316  foreign exchange rate, American and European terms

If the AUD appreciates against the USD, the European terms quote of the AUD will or ?

Question 317  foreign exchange rate, American and European terms

If the USD appreciates against the AUD, the European terms quote of the AUD will or ?

Question 318  foreign exchange rate, American and European terms

How is the AUD normally quoted in Australia? Using or terms?

Question 319  foreign exchange rate, monetary policy, American and European terms

Investors expect the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) to keep the policy rate steady at their next meeting.

Then unexpectedly, the RBA announce that they will increase the policy rate by 25 basis points due to fears that the economy is growing too fast and that inflation will be above their target rate of 2 to 3 per cent.

What do you expect to happen to Australia's exchange rate in the short term? The Australian dollar is likely to:

(a) Appreciate against the USD, so the 'European terms' quote of the AUD (AUD per USD) will increase.

(b) Depreciate against the USD, so the 'European terms' quote of the AUD (AUD per USD) will decrease.

(c) Appreciate against the USD, so the 'European terms' quote of the AUD (AUD per USD) will decrease.

(d) Depreciate against the USD, so the 'European terms' quote of the AUD (AUD per USD) will increase.

(e) Appreciate against the USD, so the 'American terms' quote of the AUD (USD per AUD) will decrease.

Question 320  foreign exchange rate, monetary policy, American and European terms

Investors expect the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) to decrease the overnight cash rate at their next meeting.

Then unexpectedly, the RBA announce that they will keep the policy rate unchanged.

What do you expect to happen to Australia's exchange rate in the short term? The Australian dollar is likely to:

(a) Appreciate against the USD, so the 'European terms' quote of the AUD (AUD per USD) will increase.

(b) Depreciate against the USD, so the 'European terms' quote of the AUD (AUD per USD) will decrease.

(c) Appreciate against the USD, so the 'European terms' quote of the AUD (AUD per USD) will decrease.

(d) Depreciate against the USD, so the 'European terms' quote of the AUD (AUD per USD) will increase.

(e) Be unaffected by the change in the policy rate, so the exchange rate will remain the same.

Question 274  derivative terminology, option

The 'option price' in an option contract is paid at the start when the option contract is agreed to. or ?

Question 276  derivative terminology, option

The 'option strike price' in an option contract, also known as the exercise price, is paid at the start when the option contract is agreed to. or ?

Question 302  WACC, CAPM

Which of the following statements about the weighted average cost of capital (WACC) is NOT correct?

(a) WACC before tax ##= r_D.\dfrac{D}{V_L} + r_{EL}.\dfrac{E_L}{V_L}##

(b) WACC before tax ##= r_f + \beta_{VL}.(r_m - r_f)##

(c) WACC after tax ##= r_D.(1-t_c).\dfrac{D}{V_L} + r_{EL}.\dfrac{E_L}{V_L}##

(d) WACC after tax ##= r_f + \beta_{VL}.(r_m - r_f) - \dfrac{r_D.D.t_c}{V_L}##

(e) WACC after tax ##= r_f + \beta_{VL}.(r_m - r_f)##

Question 303  WACC, CAPM, CFFA

There are many different ways to value a firm's assets. Which of the following will NOT give the correct market value of a levered firm's assets ##(V_L)##? Assume that:

• The firm is financed by listed common stock and vanilla annual fixed coupon bonds, which are both traded in a liquid market.
• The bonds' yield is equal to the coupon rate, so the bonds are issued at par. The yield curve is flat and yields are not expected to change. When bonds mature they will be rolled over by issuing the same number of new bonds with the same expected yield and coupon rate, and so on forever.
• Tax rates on the dividends and capital gains received by investors are equal, and capital gains tax is paid every year, even on unrealised gains regardless of when the asset is sold.
• There is no re-investment of the firm's cash back into the business. All of the firm's excess cash flow is paid out as dividends so real growth is zero.
• The firm operates in a mature industry with zero real growth.
• All cash flows and rates in the below equations are real (not nominal) and are expected to be stable forever. Therefore the perpetuity equation with no growth is suitable for valuation.

(a) ##V_L = n_\text{shares}.P_\text{share} + n_\text{bonds}.P_\text{bond}##

(b) ##V_L = n_\text{shares}.\dfrac{\text{Dividend per share}}{r_f + \beta_{EL}(r_m - r_f)} + n_\text{bonds}.\dfrac{\text{Coupon per bond}}{r_f + \beta_D(r_m - r_f)}##

(c) ##V_L = \dfrac{\text{CFFA}_{L}}{r_\text{WACC before tax}}##

(d) ##V_L = \dfrac{\text{CFFA}_{U}}{r_\text{WACC after tax}}##

(e) ##V_L = \dfrac{\text{CFFA}_{L}}{r_\text{WACC after tax}}##

Where:

###r_\text{WACC before tax} = r_D.\frac{D}{V_L} + r_{EL}.\frac{E_L}{V_L} = \text{Weighted average cost of capital before tax}### ###r_\text{WACC after tax} = r_D.(1-t_c).\frac{D}{V_L} + r_{EL}.\frac{E_L}{V_L} = \text{Weighted average cost of capital after tax}### ###NI_L=(Rev-COGS-FC-Depr-\mathbf{IntExp}).(1-t_c) = \text{Net Income Levered}### ###CFFA_L=NI_L+Depr-CapEx - \varDelta NWC+\mathbf{IntExp} = \text{Cash Flow From Assets Levered}### ###NI_U=(Rev-COGS-FC-Depr).(1-t_c) = \text{Net Income Unlevered}### ###CFFA_U=NI_U+Depr-CapEx - \varDelta NWC= \text{Cash Flow From Assets Unlevered}###

Question 301  leverage, capital structure, real estate

Your friend just bought a house for $1,000,000. He financed it using a $900,000 mortgage loan and a deposit of $100,000.

In the context of residential housing and mortgages, the 'equity' or 'net wealth' tied up in a house is the value of the house less the value of the mortgage loan. Assuming that your friend's only asset is his house, his net wealth is $100,000.

If house prices suddenly fall by 15%, what would be your friend's percentage change in net wealth?

Assume that:

• No income (rent) was received from the house during the short time over which house prices fell.
• Your friend will not declare bankruptcy, he will always pay off his debts.

(a) -1,000%

(b) -150%

(c) -100%

(d) -15%

(e) -10%

Question 377  leverage, capital structure

Issuing debt doesn't give away control of the firm because debt holders can't cast votes to determine the company's affairs, such as at the annual general meeting (AGM), and can't appoint directors to the board. or ?

Question 379  leverage, capital structure, payout policy

Companies must pay interest and principal payments to debt-holders. They're compulsory. But companies are not forced to pay dividends to share holders. or ?

Question 94  leverage, capital structure, real estate

Your friend just bought a house for $400,000. He financed it using a $320,000 mortgage loan and a deposit of $80,000.

In the context of residential housing and mortgages, the 'equity' tied up in the value of a person's house is the value of the house less the value of the mortgage. So the initial equity your friend has in his house is $80,000. Let this amount be E, let the value of the mortgage be D and the value of the house be V. So ##V=D+E##.

If house prices suddenly fall by 10%, what would be your friend's percentage change in equity (E)? Assume that the value of the mortgage is unchanged and that no income (rent) was received from the house during the short time over which house prices fell.

Remember:

### r_{0\rightarrow1}=\frac{p_1-p_0+c_1}{p_0} ###

where ##r_{0-1}## is the return (percentage change) of an asset with price ##p_0## initially, ##p_1## one period later, and paying a cash flow of ##c_1## at time ##t=1##.

(a) -100%

(b) -50%

(c) -12.5%

(d) -10%

(e) -8%

Question 407  income and capital returns, inflation, real and nominal returns and cash flows

A stock has a real expected total return of 7% pa and a real expected capital return of 2% pa.

Inflation is expected to be 2% pa. All rates are given as effective annual rates.

What is the nominal expected total return, capital return and dividend yield? The answers below are given in the same order.

(a) 11.100%, 4.000%, 7.100%.

(b) 11.140%, 4.040%, 7.100%.

(c) 4.902%, 0.000%, 4.902%.

(d) 9.140%, 4.040%, 5.100%.

(e) 9.140%, 4.040%, 7.100%.

Question 221  credit risk

You're considering making an investment in a particular company. They have preference shares, ordinary shares, senior debt and junior debt.

Which is the safest investment? Which has the highest expected returns?

(a) Junior debt is the safest. Preference shares have the highest expected returns.

(b) Preference shares are the safest. Ordinary shares have the highest expected returns.

(c) Senior debt is the safest. Ordinary shares have the highest expected returns.

(d) Junior debt is the safest. Ordinary shares have the highest expected returns.

(e) Senior debt is the safest. Junior debt have the highest expected returns.

Question 155  inflation, real and nominal returns and cash flows, Loan, effective rate conversion

You are a banker about to grant a 2 year loan to a customer. The loan's principal and interest will be repaid in a single payment at maturity, sometimes called a zero-coupon loan, discount loan or bullet loan.

You require a real return of 6% pa over the two years, given as an effective annual rate. Inflation is expected to be 2% this year and 4% next year, both given as effective annual rates.

You judge that the customer can afford to pay back $1,000,000 in 2 years, given as a nominal cash flow. How much should you lend to her right now?

(a) $838,907.00

(b) $838,986.09

(c) $841,754.97

(d) $889,996.44

(e) $944,108.22

Question 120  credit risk, payout policy

A newly floated farming company is financed with senior bonds, junior bonds, cumulative non-voting preferred stock and common stock. The new company has no retained profits and due to floods it was unable to record any revenues this year, leading to a loss. The firm is not bankrupt yet since it still has substantial contributed equity (same as paid-up capital).

On which securities must it pay interest or dividend payments in this terrible financial year?

(a) Preferred stock only.

(b) The senior and junior bonds only.

(c) Common stock only.

(d) The senior and junior bonds and the preferred stock.

(e) No payments on any security is required since the firm made a loss.

Question 466  limited liability, business structure

Which business structure or structures have the advantage of limited liability for equity investors?

(a) Sole traders.

(b) Partnerships.

(c) Corporations.

(d) All of the above.

(e) None of the above

Question 467  book and market values

Which of the following statements about book and market equity is NOT correct?

(a) The market value of equity of a listed company's common stock is equal to the number of common shares multiplied by the share price.

(b) The book value of equity is the sum of contributed equity, retained profits and reserves.

(c) A company's book value of equity is recorded in its income statement, also known as the 'profit and loss' or the 'statement of financial performance'.

(d) A new company's market value of equity equals its book value of equity the moment that its shares are first sold. From then on, the market value changes continuously but the book value is recorded at historical cost which typically only changes due to retained profits.

(e) To buy all of the firm's shares, generally a price close to the market value of equity will have to be paid.

Question 482  market capitalisation of equity

The below screenshot of Microsoft's (MSFT) details were taken from the Google Finance website on 28 Nov 2014. Some information has been deliberately blanked out.

What was MSFT's market capitalisation of equity?

(a) $395.11 million

(b) $21.01 billion

(c) $121.92 billion

(d) $393.95 billion

(e) $1.02935 trillion

Question 446  working capital decision, corporate financial decision theory

The working capital decision primarily affects which part of a business?

(a) Assets.

(b) Liabilities and owner's equity.

(c) Current assets and current liabilities.

(d) Dividends and buy backs.

(e) Net income, also known as earnings or net profit after tax.

Question 445  financing decision, corporate financial decision theory

The financing decision primarily affects which part of a business?

(a) Assets.

(b) Liabilities and owner's equity.

(c) Current assets and current liabilities.

(d) Dividends and buy backs.

(e) Net income, also known as earnings or net profit after tax.

Question 447  payout policy, corporate financial decision theory

Payout policy is most closely related to which part of a business?

(a) Assets.

(b) Liabilities and owner's equity.

(c) Current assets and current liabilities.

(d) Dividends and buy backs.

(e) Net income, also known as earnings or net profit after tax.

Question 366  opportunity cost, NPV, CFFA

Your friend is trying to find the net present value of an investment which:

• Costs $1 million initially (t=0); and
• Pays a single positive cash flow of $1.1 million in one year (t=1).

The investment has a total required return of 10% pa due to its moderate level of undiversifiable risk.

Your friend is aware of the importance of opportunity costs and the time value of money, but he is unsure of how to find the NPV of the project.

He knows that the opportunity cost of investing the $1m in the project is the expected gain from investing the money in shares instead. Like the project, shares also have an expected return of 10% since they have moderate undiversifiable risk. This opportunity cost is $0.1m ##(=1m \times 10\%)## which occurs in one year (t=1).

He knows that the time value of money should be accounted for, and this can be done by finding the present value of the cash flows in one year.

Your friend has listed a few different ways to find the NPV which are written down below.

Method 1: ##-1m + \dfrac{1.1m}{(1+0.1)^1} ##

Method 2: ##-1m + 1.1m - 1m \times 0.1 ##

Method 3: ##-1m + \dfrac{1.1m}{(1+0.1)^1} - 1m \times 0.1 ##

Which of the above calculations give the correct NPV? Select the most correct answer.

(a) Method 1 only.

(b) Method 2 only.

(c) Method 3 only.

(d) Methods 1 and 2 only.

(e) Methods 1 and 3 only.

Question 485  capital budgeting, opportunity cost, sunk cost

A young lady is trying to decide if she should attend university or not.

The young lady's parents say that she must attend university because otherwise all of her hard work studying and attending school during her childhood was a waste.

What's the correct way to classify this item from a capital budgeting perspective when trying to decide whether to attend university?

The hard work studying at school in her childhood should be classified as:

(a) A sunk cost.

(b) An opportunity cost.

(c) A negative side effect.

(d) A positive side effect.

(e) A depreciation expense.

Question 486  capital budgeting, opportunity cost, sunk cost

A young lady is trying to decide if she should attend university. Her friends say that she should go to university because she is more likely to meet a clever young man than if she begins full time work straight away.

What's the correct way to classify this item from a capital budgeting perspective when trying to find the Net Present Value of going to university rather than working?

The opportunity to meet a desirable future spouse should be classified as:

(a) A sunk cost.

(b) An opportunity cost.

(c) A negative side effect.

(d) A positive side effect.

(e) A depreciation expense.

Question 491  capital budgeting, opportunity cost, sunk cost

A man is thinking about taking a day off from his casual painting job to relax.

He just woke up early in the morning and he's about to call his boss to say that he won't be coming in to work.

But he's thinking about the hours that he could work today (in the future) which are:

(a) A sunk cost.

(b) An opportunity cost.

(c) A negative side effect.

(d) A capital expense.

(e) A depreciation expense.

Question 492  capital budgeting, opportunity cost, sunk cost

A man has taken a day off from his casual painting job to relax.

It's the end of the day and he's thinking about the hours that he could have spent working (in the past) which are now:

(a) A sunk cost.

(b) An opportunity cost.

(c) A negative side effect.

(d) A capital expense.

(e) A depreciation expense.

Question 173  CFFA

Find Candys Corporation's Cash Flow From Assets (CFFA), also known as Free Cash Flow to the Firm (FCFF), over the year ending 30th June 2013.

Candys Corp
Income Statement for
year ending 30th June 2013
	$m
Sales	200
COGS	50
Operating expense	10
Depreciation	20
Interest expense	10
Income before tax	110
Tax at 30%	33
Net income	77

Candys Corp
Balance Sheet
as at 30th June	2013	2012
	$m	$m
Assets
Current assets	220	180
PPE
Cost	300	340
Accumul. depr.	60	40
Carrying amount	240	300
Total assets	460	480
Liabilities
Current liabilities	175	190
Non-current liabilities	135	130
Owners' equity
Retained earnings	50	60
Contributed equity	100	100
Total L and OE	460	480

 

Note: all figures are given in millions of dollars ($m).

(a) 242

(b) 182

(c) 112

(d) 92

(e) 52

Question 176  CFFA

Why is Capital Expenditure (CapEx) subtracted in the Cash Flow From Assets (CFFA) formula?

###CFFA=NI+Depr-CapEx - \Delta NWC+IntExp###

(a) CapEx is added in the Net Income (NI) equation so it needs subtracting in the CFFA equation.

(b) CapEx is a financing cash flow that needs to be ignored. Therefore it should be subtracted.

(c) CapEx is not a cash flow, it's a non-cash expense made up by accountants that needs to be subtracted.

(d) CapEx is subtracted to account for the net cash spent on capital assets.

(e) CapEx is subtracted because it's too hard to predict, therefore we exclude it.

Question 225  CFFA

A firm has forecast its Cash Flow From Assets (CFFA) for this year and management is worried that it is too low. Which one of the following actions will lead to a higher CFFA for this year (t=0 to 1)? Only consider cash flows this year. Do not consider cash flows after one year, or the change in the NPV of the firm. Consider each action in isolation.

(a) Buy less land, buildings and trucks than what was planned. Assume that this has no impact on revenue.

(b) Pay off more debt than was planned, to reduce the firm’s interest expense.

(c) Change the depreciation method used for tax purposes from diminishing value to straight line, so less depreciation occurs this year and more occurs in later years. Assume that the government’s tax department allow this.

(d) Buying more inventory than was planned, so there is an increase in net working capital. Assume that there is no increase in sales.

(e) Raising new equity through a rights issue. Assume that all of the money raised is spent on new capital assets such as land and trucks, but they will be fitted out and delivered in one year so no new cash will be earned from them.

Question 349  CFFA, depreciation tax shield

Which one of the following will decrease net income (NI) but increase cash flow from assets (CFFA) in this year for a tax-paying firm, all else remaining constant?

Remember:

###NI = (Rev-COGS-FC-Depr-IntExp).(1-t_c )### ###CFFA=NI+Depr-CapEx - \Delta NWC+IntExp###

(a) An increase in revenue (Rev).

(b) An increase in rent expense (part of fixed costs, FC).

(c) An increase in depreciation expense (Depr).

(d) An decrease in net working capital (ΔNWC).

(e) An increase in dividends.

Question 350  CFFA

Find Sidebar Corporation's Cash Flow From Assets (CFFA), also known as Free Cash Flow to the Firm (FCFF), over the year ending 30th June 2013.

Sidebar Corp
Income Statement for
year ending 30th June 2013
	$m
Sales	405
COGS	100
Depreciation	34
Rent expense	22
Interest expense	39
Taxable Income	210
Taxes at 30%	63
Net income	147

Sidebar Corp
Balance Sheet
as at 30th June	2013	2012
	$m	$m
Cash	0	0
Inventory	70	50
Trade debtors	11	16
Rent paid in advance	4	3
PPE	700	680
Total assets	785	749
Trade creditors	11	19
Bond liabilities	400	390
Contributed equity	220	220
Retained profits	154	120
Total L and OE	785	749

 

Note: All figures are given in millions of dollars ($m).

The cash flow from assets was:

(a) $138m

(b) $142m

(c) $143m

(d) $172m

(e) $176m

Question 351  CFFA

Over the next year, the management of an unlevered company plans to:

• Achieve firm free cash flow (FFCF or CFFA) of $1m.
• Pay dividends of $1.8m
• Complete a $1.3m share buy-back.
• Spend $0.8m on new buildings without buying or selling any other fixed assets. This capital expenditure is included in the CFFA figure quoted above.

Assume that:

• All amounts are received and paid at the end of the year so you can ignore the time value of money.
• The firm has sufficient retained profits to pay the dividend and complete the buy back.
• The firm plans to run a very tight ship, with no excess cash above operating requirements currently or over the next year.

How much new equity financing will the company need? In other words, what is the value of new shares that will need to be issued?

(a) $2.1m

(b) $1.3m

(c) $0.8m

(d) $0.3m

(e) No new shares need to be issued, the firm will be sufficiently financed.

Question 359  CFFA

Which one of the following will have no effect on net income (NI) but decrease cash flow from assets (CFFA or FFCF) in this year for a tax-paying firm, all else remaining constant?

Remember:

###NI=(Rev-COGS-FC-Depr-IntExp).(1-t_c )### ###CFFA=NI+Depr-CapEx - ΔNWC+IntExp###

(a) An increase in revenue (Rev).

(b) An increase in rent expense (a type of recurring fixed cost, FC).

(c) An increase in depreciation expense (Depr).

(d) An increase in inventories (a current asset).

(e) An decrease in interest expense (IntExp).

Question 504  CFFA

Read the following financial statements and calculate the firm's free cash flow over the 2014 financial year.

UBar Corp
Income Statement for
year ending 30th June 2014
	$m
Sales	293
COGS	200
Rent expense	15
Gas expense	8
Depreciation	10
EBIT	60
Interest expense	0
Taxable income	60
Taxes	18
Net income	42

UBar Corp
Balance Sheet
as at 30th June	2014	2013
	$m	$m
Assets
Cash	30	29
Accounts receivable	5	7
Pre-paid rent expense	1	0
Inventory	50	46
PPE	290	300
Total assets	376	382
Liabilities
Trade payables	20	18
Accrued gas expense	3	2
Non-current liabilities	0	0
Contributed equity	212	212
Retained profits	136	150
Asset revaluation reserve	5	0
Total L and OE	376	382

 

Note: all figures are given in millions of dollars ($m).

The firm's free cash flow over the 2014 financial year was:

(a) $51

(b) $52

(c) $58

(d) $61

(e) $62

Question 83  portfolio risk, standard deviation

Portfolio Details
Stock	Expected return	Standard deviation	Correlation ##(\rho_{A,B})##	Dollars invested
A	0.1	0.4	0.5	60
B	0.2	0.6		140

What is the standard deviation (not variance) of returns of the above portfolio?

(a) 0.4368

(b) 0.4911

(c) 0.6331

(d) 0.6564

(e) 0.7348

Question 73  portfolio risk, standard deviation

Portfolio Details
Stock	Expected return	Standard deviation	Covariance ##(\sigma_{A,B})##	Beta	Dollars invested
A	0.2	0.4	0.12	0.5	40
B	0.3	0.8		1.5	80

What is the standard deviation (not variance) of the above portfolio? Note that the stocks' covariance is given, not correlation.

(a) 0.5497

(b) 0.5651

(c) 0.5963

(d) 0.6156

(e) 0.8165

Question 282  expected and historical returns, income and capital returns

You're the boss of an investment bank's equities research team. Your five analysts are each trying to find the expected total return over the next year of shares in a mining company. The mining firm:

• Is regarded as a mature company since it's quite stable in size and was floated around 30 years ago. It is not a high-growth company;
• Share price is very sensitive to changes in the price of the market portfolio, economic growth, the exchange rate and commodities prices. Due to this, its standard deviation of total returns is much higher than that of the market index;
• Experienced tough times in the last 10 years due to unexpected falls in commodity prices.
• Shares are traded in an active liquid market.

Your team of analysts present their findings, and everyone has different views. While there's no definitive true answer, whose calculation of the expected total return is the most plausible? Assume that:

• The analysts' source data is correct and true, but their inferences might be wrong;
• All returns and yields are given as effective annual nominal rates.

(a) Alice says 5% pa since she calculated that this was the average total yield on government bonds over the last 10 years. She says that this is also the expected total yield implied by current prices on one year government bonds.

(b) Bob says 4% pa since he calculated that this was the average total return on the mining stock over the last 10 years.

(c) Cate says 3% pa since she calculated that this was the average growth rate of the share price over the last 10 years.

(d) Dave says 6% pa since he calculated that this was the average growth rate of the share market price index (not the accumulation index) over the last 10 years.

(e) Eve says 15% pa since she calculated that this was the discount rate implied by the dividend discount model using the current share price, forecast dividend in one year and a 3% growth rate in dividends thereafter, which is the expected long term inflation rate.

Question 279  diversification

Do you think that the following statement is or ? “Buying a single company stock usually provides a safer return than a stock mutual fund.”

Question 294  short selling, portfolio weights

Which of the following statements about short-selling is NOT true?

(a) Short sellers benefit from price falls.

(b) To short sell, you must borrow the asset from person A and sell it to person B, then later on buy an identical asset from person C and return it to person A.

(c) Short selling only works for assets that are 'fungible' which means that there are many that are identical and substitutable, such as shares and bonds and unlike real estate.

(d) An investor who short-sells an asset has a negative weight in that asset.

(e) An investor who short-sells an asset is said to be 'long' that asset.

Question 557  portfolio weights, portfolio return

An investor wants to make a portfolio of two stocks A and B with a target expected portfolio return of 6% pa.

• Stock A has an expected return of 5% pa.
• Stock B has an expected return of 10% pa.

What portfolio weights should the investor have in stocks A and B respectively?

(a) 80%, 20%

(b) 60%, 40%

(c) 40%, 60%

(d) 20%, 80%

(e) 20%, 20%

Question 558  portfolio weights, portfolio return, short selling

An investor wants to make a portfolio of two stocks A and B with a target expected portfolio return of 16% pa.

• Stock A has an expected return of 8% pa.
• Stock B has an expected return of 12% pa.

What portfolio weights should the investor have in stocks A and B respectively?

(a) 200%, -100%

(b) 200%, 100%

(c) -100%, 200%

(d) 100%, 200%

(e) -100%, 100%

Question 306  risk, standard deviation

Let the standard deviation of returns for a share per month be ##\sigma_\text{monthly}##.

What is the formula for the standard deviation of the share's returns per year ##(\sigma_\text{yearly})##?

Assume that returns are independently and identically distributed (iid) so they have zero auto correlation, meaning that if the return was higher than average today, it does not indicate that the return tomorrow will be higher or lower than average.

(a) ##\sigma_\text{yearly} = \sigma_\text{monthly}##

(b) ##\sigma_\text{yearly} = \sigma_\text{monthly} \times 12##

(c) ##\sigma_\text{yearly} = \sigma_\text{monthly} \times 144##

(d) ##\sigma_\text{yearly} = \sigma_\text{monthly} \times \sqrt{12}##

(e) ##\sigma_\text{yearly} = \sigma_\text{monthly} \times {12}^{1/3}##

Question 556  portfolio risk, portfolio return, standard deviation

An investor wants to make a portfolio of two stocks A and B with a target expected portfolio return of 12% pa.

• Stock A has an expected return of 10% pa and a standard deviation of 20% pa.
• Stock B has an expected return of 15% pa and a standard deviation of 30% pa.

The correlation coefficient between stock A and B's expected returns is 70%.

What will be the annual standard deviation of the portfolio with this 12% pa target return?

(a) 24.28168% pa

(b) 24% pa

(c) 22.126907% pa

(d) 19.697716% pa

(e) 16.970563% pa

Question 565  correlation

What is the correlation of a variable X with a constant C?

The corr(X, C) or ##\rho_{X,C}## equals:

(a) var(X) or ##\sigma_X^2##

(b) sd(X) or ##\sigma_X##

(c) 1

(d) 0

(e) Mathematically undefined

Question 564  covariance

What is the covariance of a variable X with a constant C?

The cov(X, C) or ##\sigma_{X,C}## equals:

(a) var(X) or ##\sigma_X^2##

(b) sd(X) or ##\sigma_X##

(c) 1

(d) 0

(e) Mathematically undefined

Question 563  correlation

What is the correlation of a variable X with itself?

The corr(X, X) or ##\rho_{X,X}## equals:

(a) var(X) or ##\sigma_X^2##

(b) sd(X) or ##\sigma_X##

(c) 1

(d) 0

(e) Mathematically undefined

Question 562  covariance

What is the covariance of a variable X with itself?

The cov(X, X) or ##\sigma_{X,X}## equals:

(a) var(X) or ##\sigma_X^2##

(b) sd(X) or ##\sigma_X##

(c) 1

(d) 0

(e) Mathematically undefined

Question 90  CAPM, risk

According to the theory of the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), total variance can be broken into two components, systematic variance and idiosyncratic variance. Which of the following events would be considered the most diversifiable according to the theory of the CAPM?

(a) Global economic recession.

(b) A major terrorist attack, grounding all commercial aircraft in the US and Europe.

(c) An increase in corporate tax rates.

(d) The outbreak of world war.

(e) A company's poor earnings announcement.

Question 112  CAPM, risk

According to the theory of the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), total risk can be broken into two components, systematic risk and idiosyncratic risk. Which of the following events would be considered a systematic, undiversifiable event according to the theory of the CAPM?

(a) A decrease in house prices in one city.

(b) An increase in mining industry tax rates.

(c) An increase in corporate tax rates.

(d) A case of fraud at a major retailer.

(e) A poor earnings announcement from a major firm.

Question 86  CAPM

Treasury bonds currently have a return of 5% pa. A stock has a beta of 0.5 and the market return is 10% pa. What is the expected return of the stock?

(a) 5% pa

(b) 7.5% pa

(c) 10% pa

(d) 12.5% pa

(e) 20% pa

Question 326  CAPM

A fairly priced stock has an expected return equal to the market's. Treasury bonds yield 5% pa and the market portfolio's expected return is 10% pa. What is the stock's beta?

(a) 0

(b) 0.5

(c) 1

(d) 1.5

(e) 2

Question 232  CAPM, DDM

A stock has a beta of 0.5. Its next dividend is expected to be $3, paid one year from now. Dividends are expected to be paid annually and grow by 2% pa forever. Treasury bonds yield 5% pa and the market portfolio's expected return is 10% pa. All returns are effective annual rates.

What is the price of the stock now?

(a) $55.6364

(b) $54.5455

(c) $40.8

(d) $40

(e) $37.5

Question 244  CAPM, SML, NPV, risk

Examine the following graph which shows stocks' betas ##(\beta)## and expected returns ##(\mu)##:

Assume that the CAPM holds and that future expectations of stocks' returns and betas are correctly measured. Which statement is NOT correct?

(a) Asset A is underpriced.

(b) Asset B has a negative alpha (a negative excess return or abnormal return).

(c) Buying asset C would be a positive NPV investment.

(d) Asset D has less systematic variance than the market portfolio (M).

(e) Asset E is fairly priced.

Question 235  SML, NPV, CAPM, risk

The security market line (SML) shows the relationship between beta and expected return.

Investment projects that plot on the SML would have:

(a) A positive NPV and should be accepted.

(b) A zero NPV.

(c) A negative NPV and should be rejected.

(d) A large amount of diversifiable risk.

(e) Zero diversifiable risk.

Question 110  CAPM, SML, NPV

The security market line (SML) shows the relationship between beta and expected return.

Buying investment projects that plot above the SML would lead to:

(a) A positive NPV.

(b) A zero NPV.

(c) A negative NPV.

(d) A large amount of diversifiable risk.

(e) Zero diversifiable risk.

Question 71  CAPM, risk

Stock A has a beta of 0.5 and stock B has a beta of 1. Which statement is NOT correct?

(a) Stock A has less systematic risk than stock B, so stock A's return should be less than stock B's.

(b) Stock B has the same systematic risk as the market, so its return should be the same as the market's.

(c) Stock B has the same beta as the market, so it also has the same total risk as the market.

(d) If stock A and B were combined in a portfolio with weights of 50% each, the beta of the portfolio would be 0.75.

(e) Stocks A and B have more systematic risk than the risk free security (government bonds) so their return should be greater than the risk free rate.

Question 79  CAPM, risk

Which statement is the most correct?

(a) The risk free rate has zero systematic risk and zero idiosyncratic risk.

(b) The market portfolio has zero idiosyncratic risk.

(c) The market portfolio has zero systematic risk.

(d) a and b are true.

(e) a and c are true.

Question 92  CAPM, SML, CML

Which statement(s) are correct?

(i) All stocks that plot on the Security Market Line (SML) are fairly priced.

(ii) All stocks that plot above the Security Market Line (SML) are overpriced.

(iii) All fairly priced stocks that plot on the Capital Market Line (CML) have zero idiosyncratic risk.

Select the most correct response:

(a) Only (i) is true.

(b) Only (ii) is true.

(c) Only (iii) is true.

(d) All statements (i), (ii) and (iii) are true.

(e) Only statements (i) and (iii) are true.

Question 98  capital structure, CAPM

A firm changes its capital structure by issuing a large amount of debt and using the funds to repurchase shares. Its assets are unchanged. Ignore interest tax shields.

According to the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), which statement is correct?

(a) The beta of the firm's assets will increase.

(b) The beta of the firm's assets will decrease.

(c) The beta of the firm's equity will increase.

(d) The beta of the firm's equity will decrease.

(e) The beta of the firm's equity will be unchanged.

Question 116  capital structure, CAPM

A firm changes its capital structure by issuing a large amount of equity and using the funds to repay debt. Its assets are unchanged. Ignore interest tax shields.

According to the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), which statement is correct?

(a) The beta of the firm's assets will increase.

(b) The beta of the firm's assets will decrease.

(c) The beta of the firm's equity will increase.

(d) The beta of the firm's equity will decrease.

(e) The beta of the firm's equity will be unchanged.