BEC 3 Capital management Flashcards
(114 cards)
Operational leverage
- the degree to which a firm uses fixed operating costs, as opposed to variable operating costs.
- A firm that has HIGH operating leverage has HIGH fixed operating costs and relatively LOW variable operating costs.
- A firm that has LOW operating leverage has LOW fixed operating costs and HIGH variable operating costs
High operating leverage
must produce sufficient sales revenue to cover its high fixed costs, but when they are covered, additional revenue goes straight to operating income
Low operating leverage
new sales dollars can only be achieved with additional variable costs
Operational Leverage computation
Degree of operating leverage = % change in Earnings Before Interest & Tax / % change in Sales
Financial leverage
- The degree to which a firm’s use of debt to finance the firm magnifies the effects of a given % change in earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) on the percentage change in its earnings per share (EPS)
- When making financing decisions, a firm can choose to issue debt or equity.
- When debt is issued, the firm must pay fixed interest costs.
- When equity is issued, it does not result in increase in fixed cost, because dividend payments are not required.
Debt issuance
a company that issues debt must produce sufficient operating income (EBIT) to cover its fixed interest costs. When they are covered, additional EBIT goes to to net income
Financial leverage computation
Degree of financial leverage = % change in Earnings per share / % change in EBIT
Applying financial leverage to risk/return decision
- Firms with HIGHER % of fixed financial costs will have a HIGHER degree of financial leverage.
- Small change in earnings before interest and taxes will have a greater effect on profits and shareholders value.
- Higher = more profitability and risk
Combined leverage
results from the use of fixed operating costs and fixed financing costs to magnify returns to the firm’s owners
Combined leverage computation
degree of combined leverage = % change in EPS / % change in sales= DOL x DFL
Combined leverage - implications
HIGH DCL = a greater portion of sales goes to the bottom line
Applying combined leverage to Risk/Return decisions
Firms with a higher % of fixed operating leverage in addition to fixed financing costs will have a higher degree of combined leverage.
The weighted average cost of capital and optimal capital structure
seves as a major link between the long term investment decisions associated with a corporation’s capital structure and the wealth of a corporation’s owners.
Capital structure and firm value
the value of a firm can be computed as the present value of the cash flow it produces, discounted by the costs of capital used to finance it. The lower the overall cost of capital, the higher value of the firm.
Computing the weighted average cost of capital
the average cost of debt and equity financing associated wit ha firm’s existing assets and operations.
WACC = (Cost of equity x % equity in capital structure) / (Weighted average cost of debt x % debt in capital structure)
Weighted average cost of debt
debt costs are stated as the interest rate of the various debt instruments.
Weighted average interest rate = (Effective annual interest payments/Debt cash available)
Individual capital components
- Long term elements - long term debt, preferred stock, common stock, retained earnings
- Short term elements - short term interest bearing debt, current liabilities
- After tax cash flows - the most relevant
Optimal capital structure
the lowest WACC
The optimal cost of capital
the ratio of debt to equity that produces the lowest WAAC
Application of capital budgeting
the historic WACC may be not appropriate for all projects unless it has the same risks
Cost of capital components
- cost of borrowing - interest rates on debt
2. cost of equity - return required by investors in exchange for assumed risk
Cost of long term debt kdx
after tax cost of raising long term funds by borrowing
Pre tax cost of debt kdt
cost of debt before considering the tax shielding effects of the debt
after tax cost of debt kdx
interest on debt is deductible
avoided taxes reduce the cost of debt
Pre tax cost of debt x (1-Tax rate)
or kdt x (1-Tax rate)