...FIN425 Futures Project 2 In regards to price of the futures contracts over time, both the contracts we chose seemed to fluctuate between positive and negative price changes. The crude oil contract changed at a smaller ratio compared to the e-mini. As with the price of the futures contract, the price of the underlying assets changed at a similar rate. However, because of the dates we chose, the crude oil underlying asset increased at every interval. The underlying asset for the S&P 500 did not. The basis for the crude oil future is increasing at the end of the interval. This is a negative indicator because we are selling this future. The basis for the e-mini is a negative number that is fluctuating. The negative number is a positive indicator in this case because we are buying this contract. The margin account balance for E-mini S&P 500 future was $26,300. That was found by multiplying the initial maintenance fee of $5,060 by the number of E-mini contracts purchased, which is 5. The account balance experienced rise and fall trends, with four separate occasions that required a margin call in order to keep our maintenance margin above $23,000 ($4,600 marginal maintenance per contract times five contracts). We had to invest an additional $2.8 million in order to meet our margins. The Crude oil futures margin account balance began at $38,500, found by multiply the initial maintenance $3,850 per contract, and we signed on for 10 contracts of the crude oil futures. As for...
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...Future of Educational Finance Grand Canyon University: EDA-535 October 1, 2014 Gary Marx stated “identifying, monitoring and considering the implications of trends is one of the most basic processes for creating the future” (Stevenson, 2010 p. 1). The world of education is forever changing at a pace that gets more rapid as the years go on. The decisions made in the past have laid the foundation of education today, as will recent changes affect the future. Programs such as choice schooling and No Child Left Behind will impact school funding. Rulings such as the Lemon Test and separation of church and state will impact decisions that can potentially result in litigation and court rulings dictating educational decisions. In his work regarding educational trends, Kenneth Stevenson (2010) stated, “a continuing recession, escalating political polarization, rising racial/ethnic tensions, a growing national debt, and a widening divide between the haves and the have nots portend a future fraught with unprecedented challenges to and clashes over the form and substance of public education in America” (p.1). Analysis of the Lemon Test The Lemon Test was created by Chief Justice Warren Berger as a result of the court case Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971) and is based on the principles stated in Everson v. Board of Education. The case of Lemon v. Kurtzman (1971) centered on Rhode Island’s Salary Supplement Act. This act approved a salary supplement of up to fifteen percent for teachers...
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...value of money Is the idea that money available at a present time is worth a lot more then the amount that its is in the future due to the “potential earning capacity”. The core principle of finance is provided money is able to earn interest and any money received sooner is worth more. Investopedia - Time Value of Money - TVM. (2014). Retrieved from http://www.investopedia.com/terms/t/timevalueofmoney.asp Efficient market Is a market that prices will quicky respond when there is an announcement of any kind of new information. Textbook. Primary versus secondary market Risk-return tradeoff Agency (principal and agent problems) Market information and security prices and information asymmetry Agile and lean principles Return on investment Cash flow and a source of value Project management Outsourcing and offshoring Inventory turnover Just-in-time inventory (JIT) Vender managed inventory (VMI) Forecasting and demand management University of Phoenix Material Definitions Define the following terms using your text or other resources. Cite all resources consistent with APA guidelines. Term Definition Resource you used Time value of money Is the idea that money available at a present time is worth a lot more then the amount that its is in the future due to the “potential earning capacity”. The core principle of finance is provided money is able to earn interest and any money received sooner is worth more. Investopedia - Time Value of...
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...Diploma Finance HOTS Self-Evaluation Report For: Mr Coy Module: Hospitality Finance 2 Student Name: Nick Le HOTS Team Name: N2A Date: 14th, May, 2012 Abstract. The assignment is self-evaluation report which assesses and analyse individual performance after running HOTs program. Besides that, this report also show the discuss about personal strengths and weaknesses and given the recommendations on how to improve the performance in future. Introduction HOTs is a practice program which it used for running and manage the finance system of the hotel. During the program running me and my team had learned a lot experience. Its help us understand more about finance and how to create the budget as well as how to run the system. After the result came out, it was under our expectation. That make me felt there still a lot of think that me and my team need to improvement. This report will show what we did during the program running, also give the recommendation of what I have to improve in the future. Self-Evaluation Report The Finance class of this course was given me and my team a chance to manage the hotel business by HOTs program. Which we have to create the budgets for our hotel in 3 years. Budgets are always importance step for the whole system of HOTs. After the result of first year came out was under what we plan on budgets. I realised that me and my team had made some mistake, that we were expenses too much to Staff Salary, Refurbishment and Advertisement...
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...function has no problems Control: The control function itself is missing, as the planning is faulty Organizational levels The main problem is at the superiors as they lack the vision of future planning and budget allocation. The superiors are only looking for generating more profit regardless the infrastructure itself, which has no maintenance, or replacing the old equipments which reflects on the quality of service and this impacts our accountability Business Functions The problem is mainly related to the IT, Operation, Finance and Knowledge functions as the infrastructure failures are related to the IT and operation departments while budget allocation relates to the financial department and finally the lack of future planning vision is related to the Experience and knowledge. The operation team is trying not to report all the problems to the management as to export the image that they work around each problem or failure in an unprofessional way The finance team on the other hand is always placing obstacles in allowing us to invest in new equipments as long as the old ones are still working even if its performance is falling also to export their image as the ones who saves the company’s cash. Finally the planning team whom are responsible for conducting the future plans are only focusing on sales expansion plans even that they know that the infrastructure is collapsing...
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...budgetary expectations and reasons for possible variances will be presented. Benchmarking techniques that may improve budget accuracy in future forecasts will also be concentrated on within the body of information presented Managing a Budget within the Forecasts According to Finkler, Kovner, and Jones, (2007), organizations exercise control over operations through the use of a management control system. The determination of whether a business is able to appropriately budget for future expenses, economic downturns, and risks is critical in today’s economic crisis. The methods by which a budget is created are specific and take into consideration several factors that provide target, actual, and variance results. The strategies used to create a budget vary among industry, organization, department, and/or manager just to name a few. Budget variances, strategies, and benchmarking techniques are critical to the final budget formulated for a business. A budget is a way to assist managers to follow a set strategic plan to ensure resources are used to efficiently to achieve the goals and follow the mission of the organization. A budget provides estimates of revenue, expenditures and financial performance of an organization for a designated time period. A budget may have projections that are monthly, quarterly, semi-annually, or annually. Estimates of future financial conditions can be obtained through a number of benchmarking techniques. A budget can assist an organization to assess...
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...applications to meet the increased demand and to ship and market the products. The strategies that will be used will consist of forecasting, staffing, competition, finance, and advertising. All of these are used for a successful business. Forecasting is a decision-making tool that aids in budgeting, planning, and estimating future growth. Forecasting helps to plan for the worst but project for the best outcome. To be prepared to at least break even in tough times, but also be ready for growth, don’t ever let your annual forecast go stale. You also need to keep your customer terms updated, and plan for discounts ahead of time if you can. All of this a part of forecasting. This will aid in the decision for the company to be able to add on a warehouse for storage as well hiring more employees. An important aspect of forecasting is the relationship it holds with planning. Forecasting can be described as predicting what the future will look like, whereas planning predicts what the future should look like. As part of the implementation of policies and strategies, the forecasting method develops a reliable picture of the company's future environment. A SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats) looks at both current and future situations. The company analyzes current strengths and weaknesses while looking for future opportunities and threats. Staffing is another important strategy in a successful business plan. Staffing is the process of acquiring, deploying, and retaining...
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...good forecasting tool in order to meet the demand in an uncertain world and with the key elements of the forecasting process that lead to improving forecast accuracy and operational performance. Besides, the theory about the different forecasting techniques will also have a central role in this analysis. I used 3 articles to support what I will say. The references are indicated in the footnote of this page. Who is responsible in the failures of forecast in 2002 and 2004? In 2002, the sales forecasting process was ill-designed. At Leitax, each functional group made its own forecast using its own assumptions of the future trend of the market. Each forecast was made for a single purpose: * Each director of sales made a forecast for its own scope of sales. This forecast was used as a guide for controlling operations within the supply chain and was used by the finance department in order to build a financial...
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...DHL FINANCE Academy – REFLECTIVE JOURNAL Delegate Name: | Registration number: | Introduction “Reflective practice is a sorting out and clarifying process, giving you new perspectives on yourself and your work”. (Moon 2004). How to use Your Reflective Journal This Reflective Journal has been designed to provide you with a structured space to reflect upon your learning journey, and to review the changes and improvements you have made to your performance and practice since you started on the DHL Finance Academy. It is designed for you to record personal notes and ideas as you apply the techniques and develop the skills you have learnt on the training workshop. You will also find it useful to refer to when completing your assignment, and importantly, it will be a record you can submit to the Assessor to support CMI accreditation and certification. As you complete your Reflective Journal, think about how you will use what you’ve written to continue to develop, analyse and evaluate your work, your performance and your progress. During post programme assessment the Assessor will ask probing questions like: “What did you discover about this?” or: “What do you think would be the best way to deal with this?” or: “How can use this experience in the future”? To add structure to the log and to make it easy to follow we recommend you reflect on the following points: What critical incidents have there been during the Finance Academy Programme? (Critical incidents are experiences...
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...The business world is an ever-changing and evolving environment that affects companies on a daily basis. Forecasting allows managers to plan according to future events and be prepared to use the system accordingly. With a prediction of the future managers reduce uncertainty and develop plans. The historical data is put together and analyzed to determine forecast events. All large companies use forecasting to make important strategic business decision. This helps them save costs and manage their resources effectively. A firm that is prepared for future occurences will have a healthy financial position. Forecast is of great use to a company because it affects several departments throughout the company. Some of the departments affected are: accounting and finance, marketing, operations, human resources, and information systems. Budgeting, sales, production, inventory control, capacity planning, and purchasing make use of forecasting. Accounting and finance use the data collected to estimate future costs, predict profit or loss, and identify resources available. The marketing department uses forecasting to predict prices and create promotions. The operations of a company is able to run smoothly because job schedules, production schedules, capacity planning, inventory planning, and detecting outsourcing needs are predicted ahead of time. Human resources also benefits from forecasting because seasonal or cyclical hiring is scheduled ahead of time. The company’s information systems...
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...store for relaxing or studying. Imagine that you come to a store and buy a cup of your favorite drinks, then, you sit at the corner and pick one of your favorite books from the bookshelf, and enjoy both of them in your remaining time. Will it sound amazing? That is what I want to do during the rest of my life. If you do not put your dream into action, the dream would only be a dream, it will not become a reality. For achieving my dream, I have to complete my Bachelor’s degree first. My major in my university is finance, and this is relevant to my future job. I can take some major courses about finance first cause manage finances is the basic skill to start my own business. And I can also take some management and marketing courses to prepare for my future job. During my university life, I have to study hard and try my best to obtain scholarships or I can do some part-time jobs in the school to earn some money because I can deposit this money as my capital in the future. When I graduated from university, I have to look for a work. I will first find a job in a coffee store, this will make me learn a lot of skills and knowledge about how to make drinks and also can help me know what kinds of drinks are popular among customers. I can also learn something...
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... Forecasting is a tool business use to help plan for the future. Businesses forecast, revenue, overhead, needed inventory, consumers demands, as well as other factors. Forecasting helps to determine the future market value of a company or organization. Forecasting is important because the curse of action business take today often depends on what is going to happen in the future. The winter historical data for the University of Phoenix covers four years of demand in actual units. Each year has been broken down to 12 months of data. The data is presented in figure 1.1 Typical Seasonal Demand for Winter Highs Actual Demands (in units) Month Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Forecast 1 55,200 39,800 32,180 62,300 2 57,350 64,100 38,600 66,500 3 15,400 47,600 25,020 31,400 4 27,700 43,050 51,300 36,500 5 21,400 39,300 31,790 16,800 6 17,100 10,300 31,100 18,900 7 18,000 45,100 59,800 35,500 8 19,800 46,530 30,740 51,250 9 15,700 22,100 47,800 34,400 10 53,600 41,350 73,890 68,000 11 83,200 46,000 60,200 68,100 12 72,900 41,800 55,200 61,100 Avg. Figure 1.1 (University of Phoenix, 2011). The Time-Series Method is an example of quantitative forecasting. This forecasting model uses historical data to try to predict future events .Knowing the data from the last four years, will help to predict how long the demand in units bases on the past (Encyclopedia of Business and Finance, 2006). The data has been used in creating a scatter chart...
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...The Thoughtful Forecaster Case 5 A Summary Submitted to Dr. Roy Patin, Professor of Finance Submitted by Faye d’Hamecourt In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for Financial Administration FINC 5713-170 Midwestern State University Dillard College of Business Administration Fall 2011 Date Submitted August 31, 2011 Forecasting is an important aspect in today's business world. Every day businesses strive or lose, depending on the successfulness and accurateness of their forecasting. For successful forecasting, the forecaster needs to have a clear understanding of the current business activities, past trends, and the company’s business strategy. Case 5 exhibits key principles on the way financial forecasting is done. Understanding the Financial Relationships of the Business Enterprise Forecasters use current information to predict the future business activities of the company. This information is found on the financial statements of the company. For example, the balance sheet provides a snapshot of the business’ assets, liabilities and equity at a specific point in time, whereas the incomes statement provides a view of the flow of costs during a specific time frame. Financial ratios measure the relationships between various items on the financial statements. By comparing various ratios with those of previous years, trends can be identified. Because many financial ratios tend to be preserved over time, these ratios are very valuable for the forecaster...
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...LOOKING TOWARDS THE FUTURE Looking Towards the Future LaTasha Boyd Ashford University: PSY 202 9/9/2014 LOOKING TOWARDS THE FUTURE Looking Towards the Future In this essay I will be discussing my personal, professional, and academic goals for my major field of study in my online environment. I will also discuss how I will apply the SMART goal process to each of my goals. I will create an accountability plan for meeting my goals and discuss how will overcome any obstacles. Lastly, I will predict my success in achieving my goals, my individual personality, and my major field of study. My SMART Goals At the age of thirty-four and two kids later I am looking over my future to see what I need and/or want to be doing with my life in the next six years. My personal goal is to be financially stable, although my kids will be in college themselves. I want to be able to help them with tuition, housing, food, and any other things they may need. I am going to complete my four years of college to obtain my accounting degree so that I can complete my personal goal. I have tried online schooling once before and I stopped going because I got a little discouraged. I think I was being a little selfish. I not only have myself to think about but two other people that I am responsible for. I try to lead by example when it comes to my kids. Completing my personal goal is one way that I can teach them. My professional goal is to have my own accounting/finance business within the...
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...financial group, each group did its own forecasts => lack of cooperation and coordination. These departments should be held responsible largely for the planning problems because they did not perform their job well enough: -Marketing Department: This department should study and evaluate the market trend. -Sales Department: This department is very close to the customers. So, they know the feedback and customer behavior towards the products and can carry on information to another relevant departments to project the sales forecast. -Production Department: When the market trend and sales projection have been estimated, this department would work out and manage the potent of its supply chain. -Finance Department: To consider the possibility of the activity planned and to estimate future cash flow. We can also blame McMillan, head of the Demand Management Services and Kevin Fowler, senior director of planning and fulfilment because we...
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