CFA Flashcards
(1027 cards)
6 components of the Code of Ethics:
+Act with integrity, competence, diligence, respect and in an ethical manner wit the public, clients, prospective clients, employers, employees, colleagues, and all participants in global markets
+Place integrity of profession and interest of clients above all else
+Use reasonable care and independent professional judgement when conducting investment analysis, making investment recommendations, taking investment action, and engaging in professional activities
+Practice and encourage others to practice in a professional and ethical manner that will reflect credit on themselves and the profession
+Promote the integrity, and uphold the rules of, the capital markets
+Maintain and improve their professional competence of themselves and others
7 Standards of Professional
Conduct:
+Professionalism
+Integrity of Capital Markets
+Duties to Clients
+Duties to Employers
+Investment Analysis, Recommendation
and Action
+Conflicts of Interest
+Responsibilities of a CFA
Member/Candidate
A Priori Probability
Comes from a formal reasoning
and inspection process; an
objective probability
Absolute Yield Spread
The difference between yields on two bonds;
= Higher Bond Yield - Lower Bond Yield;
Most commonly used;
Shortcoming is it may always remain constant even as yield rise or fall
A change in accounting
estimates…
Is a change due to new
information and does not require
old statements to reflect it
Accelerated Depreciation
Applies depreciation more at the
beginning of an assets life
A change in accounting
principles…
Requires restatement of prior
financial statements
Accelerated Sinking Fund
Allows the issuer the choice of
retiring more than the amount of
bonds specified in the sinking fund
requirement
Accounting Information Flow
- Journal record every transaction by order of date
in the general journal - The general ledger sorts the entries in the
general journal by account - An initial trade balance is prepared at the end of
the period to show the balance of each account
and adjustments are then made - Financial statements are made from the
adjusted trial balances
Action lag
Time it takes governments to vote
on and enact policy
Accounting Warning Signs
+Aggressive revenue recognition
+Different growth rates of operating cash flow and earnings
+Abnormal sales growth as compared to the economy, industry or peers
+Abnormal inventory growth compared to sales growth
*Could be signs of obsolete products
+Boosting revenue with nonoperating income and nonrecurring gains
+Delaying expense recognition
+Abnormal use of operating leases by lessees
+Hiding expenses by classifying them as extraordinary or nonrecurring
+LIFO liquidations
+Abnormal gross margin and operating margin as compared to industry peers
+Extending the useful lives of long-term assets
+Aggressive pension assumptions
+Year-end surprises
+Equity method investments and off-balance-sheet special purpose entities
+Other off-balance-sheet financing arrangements including debt guarantees
Active crawling peg
When the adjustments are
periodic, announced and
implemented
Acquisition Method of Accounting
for Business Combinations
When the purchase price is
allocated to the identifiable assets
and liabilities of the acquired firm
based on fair value and the rest is
recorded as goodwill
Addition of Probability
P(A or B) = P(A) + P(B) - P(AB)
Adjustments to Compare Firms’
Financial Statements
+Accounting of investment
securities
+Inventory cost methods
+Depreciation schedules
+Off-balance-sheet financing
+Treatment of goodwill and other
intangible assets
Adverse auditor’s opinion
The statements are not presented
fairly or don’t conform to
standards
Administrative Steps to Capital
Budgeting
*Idea generation
*Analyzing project proposals
*Create firm-wide capital budget
*Monitoring decisions and
conducting a post-audit
Affirmative Covenants
When the borrower promises to do
certain things
After-Tax Nominal Return
The return after tax liability is
deducted
Advantages of ETFs
+Efficient diversification
+Traded like a stock
+Better risk management by having options and
futures markets
+Investors know the exact composition of the fund
throughout the day
+Low expense ratios
+No worry about trading a a premium or discount
to NAV
+Dividends can be reinvested immediately
+Low capital gains tax liability
After-Tax Yield =
Taxable Yield * (1 - Marginal Tax
Rate)
Advantages of NPV and IRR
NPV: A direct measure of the
expected increase in the value of a
firm
IRR: A percentage and shows
return on each dollar invested
Agency Bonds
Securities issued by various agencies and
organizations of the Federal government;
Most aren’t guaranteed by US Government
explicitly, but it is implicit;
Federally related institutions are owned by the US
Government and are exempt from SEC rules and
are guaranteed by US Gov’t;
Government sponsored enterprises are privately
owned but publicly chartered organizations and
were created by Congress but not guaranteed by
US Gov’t
American Option
Exercisable at any time;
Will never have a smaller
premium than a European option;
More flexible