...Using Microsoft Corporation to Demonstrate the Optimal Capital Structure Trade-off Theory John C. Gardner, Carl B. McGowan Jr., and Susan E. Moeller1 ABSTRACT In this paper, we apply the trade-off theory of capital structure to Microsoft. We use data for bond ratings, bond risk premiums, and levered CAPM betas to compute the cost of equity and the weighted average cost of capital for Microsoft at different debt levels. This study shows the impact of increasing financial leverage on WACC. As financial leverage increases, the WACC decreases until the optimal debt ratio is reached, after which, the WACC begins to rise. At this debt ratio, the value of Microsoft will be maximized. Our results indicate the optimal debt ratio for Microsoft is 37.5 percent. Introduction One of the most difficult concepts for finance students to learn and for faculty to teach is how a firm determines its optimal capital structure. While most corporate finance textbooks stress the importance of maximizing the value of the firm by minimizing its opportunity cost of capital, how a firm can actually achieve the appropriate debt–to–capital ratio is often a mystery. Brigham and Ehrhardt (2008) in Financial Management: Theory and Practice outline a framework that can be used by financial practitioners to determine a firm’s optimal capital structure. Modigliani and Miller (1958 and 1963) provide the basis for the trade-off theory which is how firms can conceptually determine their optimal capital structure...
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...educational institutions, enterprises, and government agencies. The company’s operations are based in the Americas, Europe, Greater China, Japan, and retail. In 2014, the company’s direct and indirect distribution sales channels accounted for 28% and 72% of total net sales (Apple Inc., 2015a). The unit sales, which consisted of the iPhone, iPad, Mac, and iPod products, was 270,446 million units total within the company’s fiscal year (Apple Inc., 2015a). Board of Directors The 2015 proxy statement of Apple stated that the company annually selects its board of directors, which currently has 10 board members (Apple Inc., 2015a). Shareholders elect board of directors and the Board periodically reviews the structure of leadership (Apple Inc., 2015a; Ross, Westerfield & Jaffe, 2013). The Apple proxy includes the biographical details including qualifying skills, qualities, attributes, and experience of each nominee (Apple Inc., 2015a). The proxy also contains information regarding how the Board member selection takes place (Apple Inc., 2015a). Monitoring Potential of the Firm's...
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...Microsoft Corporation (NASDAQ: MSFT) --A Review of Capital Structure and Internal/External Analysis Introduction Bill Gates and Paul Allen had founded Microsoft in 1975 to develop and sell computer languages and microcomputers in Redmond, Washington State. The company had pioneered in operating system business and had been able to invent new technology and acquiring subsidiaries in order to produce a large range of personal computer solutions. Microsoft is currently reporting a rate of return on book assets of 13.41% last year. IPO of the company started in 1986 and has been trading on NASDAQ. Internal Financial Analysis The capital structure of Microsoft Corporation in the past 5 years have been selected and shown as in Appendix figure 1. With regards to the company’s current financial performance, the debt ratio has been reducing in the past 5 years and currently at 45.28%. That indicate a reducing risk associated with Microsoft’s operation. Compare to its competitor Apple Inc, which have a ratio of 32.86 with a similar rate of reduction, this may also indicating Microsoft have a lower borrowing capacity, which will affect the corporation’s financial flexibility. On the investor’s side, currently the stock price is $28.15, which expected return is at 3.1%. Weighted Average Cost of Capital is 11.49%. WACC considers Debt (taxable), Preferred stock and Common stock (Equity). If Microsoft’s borrowing increases, the lenders would demand a higher rate of interest on the...
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...Microsoft Corporation Future Business and Economic Prospects Analysis by Team 4 Group Members: Lewis Bullock Daniel Fuller Erica Jaume Tim Trenkle Rebekah Vandegrift Date of Submission: April 21, 2013 Table of Contents 1. Executive Summary 5 2. Company Introduction 6 3. Financial Analysis 7 3.1. Statement of Cash Flow Analysis 7 3.2. Liquidity Ratios 12 3.3. Asset Management Ratios 13 3.4. Debt Management Ratio 14 3.5. Profitability Ratios 15 3.6. Market Value Ratios 17 3.7. Du Pont Equation 18 3.8. Microsoft to Industry Analysis 18 4. Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC) 19 5. Future Cash Flows 22 Net Income before Extraordinaries 25 Net Income Growth 25 Depreciation, Depletion & Amortization 25 Depreciation and Depletion 25 Deferred Taxes & Investment Tax Credit 25 Deferred Taxes 25 Other Funds 25 Funds from Operations 25 Extraordinaries 25 Changes in Working Capital 25 Receivables 25 Accounts Payable 25 Other Assets/Liabilities 25 Net Operating Cash Flow 26 Net Operating Cash Flow Growth 26 Net Operating Cash Flow / Sales 26 2010 – 2012 Investing Activities 26 Capital Expenditures 26 Capital Expenditures (Fixed Assets) 26 Capital Expenditures (Other Assets) 26 Capital Expenditures Growth 26 Capital Expenditures / Sales 26 Net Assets from Acquisitions 26 Sale of Fixed Assets & Businesses 26 Purchase/Sale of Investments 26 Purchase of Investments 26 Sale/Maturity...
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...2016 Introduction to Business in a Technology World Heather Montgomery Argosy University Types of Legal Ownership Ownership Structures | Sole Proprietor | General Partnership | Limited Liability Company (LLC) | Corporation | Number of Owners | One | Two or more | One or more | Multiple | Formation Difficulty | Low | Low | Medium | Medium/High | Liability | Sole proprietor has unlimited liability. | Partners have unlimited liability. | Members aren’t typically liable for the debts of the LLC. | Officers/shareholders are not typically responsible for the debts of the corporation. | Operational Requirements | Relatively few legal requirements. | There are relatively few legal requirements. | Some formal requirements, but less formal than corporations. | Formal board of directors, annual meetings, and annual reporting required. | Management | Sole proprietor has full control of management and operations. | Typically each partner has an equal voice unless otherwise arranged. | Members have an operating agreement that outlines management. | Managed by the directors, who are elected by the shareholders. | Federal Taxation | Not a taxable entity. The sole proprietor pays all taxes. | It is not a taxable entity. Each partner pays tax on his/her share of income and can deduct losses against other sources of income. | Depending on structure, there is no tax at the entity level. Income/loss is passed through to members. | It is taxed at the entity level. If dividends are...
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...organisation has an individual structure that provides coordination and control of the organisation’s activities. Organisational structures are complex and specific to the variables of the organisation such as strategy, industry, geographical location, government legislation, access to technology and funds for growth as well as many other variables of the organisation. They also need to be flexible and innovative to remain profitable in a competitive and globalised market, involving continual monitoring and change to the structure of the organisation. As an organisation’s components vary from one to another there can be no ideal or perfect organisational structure. An ideal or perfect organisational structure is theoretical and designed based upon the goals and demands of the business at the time (Kroon, 1995). Goals of a business are derived from the organisation’s strategies which can be highly differentiated between different types of organisations from stock-exchange listed corporations to non-profit organisations. Microsoft is a listed corporation in a highly innovative field which today is managed as eight independent divisions, all with different strategies. In separating Microsoft to eight different divisions this allows for specialisation while also providing eight different structures with eight different sets of policies, procedures and management structures (Legerer et al, 2009). This shows that even within the one organisation a set structure is not suitable for all aspects...
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... |School of Business | | |FIN/419 Version 2 | | |Finance for Decision Making | Copyright © 2010, 2009, 2006 by University of Phoenix. All rights reserved. Course Description This course addresses advanced principles in financial management and decision making. Emphasis is placed on providing relevant theory, best practices, and skills to effectively manage risk, time value of money, working capital, capital structure, the regulatory environment, and evolving issues in financial management. Policies Faculty and students/learners will be held responsible for understanding and adhering to all policies contained within the following two documents: • University policies: You must be logged into the student website to view this document. • Instructor policies: This document is posted in the Course Materials forum. University policies are subject to change. Be sure to read the policies at the beginning of each class. Policies may be slightly different depending on the modality in which you attend class. If you have recently changed modalities, read the policies governing your current class modality. Course Materials Gitman,...
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...submitting for assessment contains no sections in copied in whole or part from any other source, unless it is explicitly identified by means of quotation mark or by means of wholly indented paragraphs. I declare that I have also acknowledged such quotations by providing detailed references in an approved format. I understand that unidentified and un-referenced copying both constitutes plagiarism which is an offence. I give my consent for my work being scanned by Turnitin formatively and summatively for the purposes of assessment. Student Signature: Received by: Date: Date: T +44 (0)20 8795 5509 ǀ info@csbm.co.uk ǀ www.csbm.co.uk Capital House ǀ 388 High Road ǀ Wembley ǀ Middlesex ǀ HA9 6AR ǀ Registered in Cardiff. 7027500 EDEXCEL HND Level 5 Business Unit 15: Managing Business Activities to Achieve Results Scenario: Microsoft Corporation the software giant headed by Bill Gates has been one of the finest Organizations of the Modern World. You can get more information at http://www.microsoft.com/about/en/us/default.aspx Royal Mail...
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...Kettering University Department of Business MGMT 659 - Strategy Summer 2013 Prof. Irish BUS Project – Microsoft Rakan Mogaddam Contents 1 Current Situation Analysis 3 1.1 Past Performance Indexes 3 1.1.1 Ratios 3 1.1.2 Industry Competitor Comparison 4 1.2 Strategic Posture 4 1.2.1 Mission Statement 5 1.2.2 Vision Statement 5 1.2.3 Strategies and Policies 5 2 Corporate Governance 6 2.1 Board of Directors 6 2.2 Top Management 7 2.3 Stakeholders 8 3 External Environment 9 4 Internal Environment 10 5 Analysis of Strategic Factors 14 6 Alternatives & Recommendations 15 7 Implementation and Control 17 8 Evaluation Scorecard (Kaplan) 18 References: 20 Current Situation Analysis 1 Past Performance Indexes 1 Ratios The ratios of Microsoft can be used to analyze how well the company is performing according to its investments and recent profits. The following are a few ratios for the year ended June 30, 2013: 1 Credit Ratios 1. Current Ratio: 271% This ratio tells us the relation between the current assets and liabilities of the company. 2. Quick Ratio 266% This ratio tells us how liquid our assets are. This means how quickly we can change our assets into cash. 2 Profitability Ratios 1. Return on Assets 12.69% It tells about...
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...investors to hedge particular sources of risk more efficiently. 2. Securitization requires access to a large number of potential investors. To attract these investors, the capital market needs: 1. a safe system of business laws and low probability of confiscatory taxation/regulation; 2. a well-developed investment banking industry; 3. a well-developed system of brokerage and financial transactions, and; 4. well-developed media, particularly financial reporting. These characteristics are found in (indeed make for) a well-developed financial market. 3. Securitization leads to disintermediation; that is, securitization provides a means for market participants to bypass intermediaries. For example, mortgage-backed securities channel funds to the housing market without requiring that banks or thrift institutions make loans from their own portfolios. As securitization progresses, financial intermediaries must increase other activities such as providing short-term liquidity to consumers and small business, and financial services. 4. Financial assets make it easy for large firms to raise the capital needed to finance their investments in real assets. If Ford, for example, could not issue stocks or bonds to the general public, it would have a far more difficult time raising capital. Contraction of the supply of financial assets would make financing more...
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...1. What are the four major types of firm in the U.S, how are they defined, and what are the key differences between them? I understand from the course text that within the context of corporate finance the four types of firms in the U.S. are sole proprietorship, limited liability companies, partnerships and corporations (Berk & DeMarzo, 2011). These four firms are fundamentally different in their makeup and operations. To begin with a corporation is a legally defined artificial being with legal powers such as the ability to enter into contracts, acquire assets and incur obligations amongst others. I believe that corporations are one of the most recognizable business structures today as their span is wide spread and various corporations are in the news at any given point in time. Essentially they have a separate identity from the owners of the company and there may be many owners who participate as shareholders of a corporation. From the very name, a sole proprietorship is a business in which there is a single owner who is solely responsible for making business decisions and a partnership consists of two or more individuals who share the responsibility of running the company. A sole proprietorship is the most common form of business organization as it is easy to form and offers the owner complete control. Within a partnership each partner contributes money, property or skill with the expectation to share in the profits and losses of the business. From a corporate context the...
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...Legal Forms of Business Legal Forms of Business Entrepreneurs face a difficult decision in choosing a legal form of business. The preferred form of entity is dependent on many relative factors, such as the type of organization and business environment. Different forms of legal businesses have different tax, investment, and financial implications. The best-suited business calls for a thorough analysis of pertinent facts before making a decision – requiring some careful planning and strategy. This study provides an analysis of seven forms of legal business. Sole Proprietorship Sole proprietorships are fairly simple and inexpensive to create and operate. Legally, a sole proprietorship is inseparable from its owner, and therefore the owner is personally liable for business debts (Cheeseman, 2010). The tax implications for a sole proprietorship are simple. The business owner reports profits and losses on their personal tax returns. Sole Proprietorship is the preferred form of business in establishing or operating a small business where personal liability is not a big concern. Sole proprietors own businesses in many industries. Some of the more common sole proprietorships are landscaping services, housecleaning services, independent writing services, and tutoring services. * Landscapers tend to work alone or hire a small team of employees, providing landscaping services to homeowners and businesses. Sole proprietor may take on independent contracts and projects...
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...History, Mission, Growth The beginnings of Microsoft started when Bill Gates and Paul Allen formed a partnership to produce the programming language, BASIC. The rest is history. In 1976, the two formed a partnership and registered the trade name “Microsoft”. As most of us know, Microsoft has become the largest and most well known name associated with software and computers in general. The Windows operating system (OS) is the most used operating system in the world. In 1991, the “grassroots” OS named Linux was created by a student in Finland. His name is Linus Torvalds and his motivation behind creating this software came from the lack of hardware support with the current operating system the school was using, UNIX. Thus, the name Linux came to be. The rise of this software was unexpected. Since Torvalds was using GNU’s free public software to create his Linux operating system, he felt that the operating system as a whole should be free to the public. In 1991, Torvalds posted the source code of Linux on his school’s File Transfer Protocol (FTP) server for all students to view, use, and reformat to their liking. Unknowingly, Torvalds had created “a new paradigm for designing software” called open-source software. Essentially, open-source software was software that could be downloaded from the school’s FTP server and be re-programmed by anyone who so chooses. With this came an influx of computer hobbyists and software programmers who downloaded and updated the...
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...used in dividend policy decision in an organization. The feasibility of the concept had been further exemplified with the case study of City Lodge Hotels Limited and Microsoft vs Berkshire Hathaway which depicts two companies that do not believe in using a dividend policy and a lodging company that believes in keeping dividends. Keywords Dividend Policy, Residual Dividend Policy, Shareholders, Walter Model, MM Model, Dividend Irrelevancy. INTRODUCTION Dividend policy is the policy used by a company to decide how much it will pay out to shareholders in dividends. In financial accounting course, it is said that after deducting expense from the revenue, a company generates profit. Part of the profit is kept in the company as retained earnings and the other part is distributed as dividends to shareholders. From the share valuation model, the value of a share depends very much on the amount of dividend distributed to shareholders. Deciding on the amount of earnings to pay out as dividends is one of the major financial decisions that a firm’s managers face. U.S. corporations pay out about 50% of their net income as cash dividends, whereas the lodging industry pays out about 7% of its net income as dividends. In addition, both in the overall market and in the lodging industry, a significant number of corporations pay no cash dividends, and many pay more dividends than their net income. The dividend decision is not obvious. In practice,...
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...Financial Times/Prentice Hall PTR Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458 Prentice Hall books are widely used by corporations and government agencies for training, marketing, and resale. The publisher offers discounts on this book when ordered in bulk quantities. For more information, contact: Corporate Sales Department, Phone: 800-382-3419; Fax: 201-236-7141; E-mail: corpsales@prenhall.com; or write: Prentice Hall PTR, Corp. Sales Dept., One Lake Street, Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, in any form or by any means, without permission in writing from the publisher. Printed in the United States of America 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 ISBN 0-13-008754-8 Pearson Education LTD. Pearson Education Australia PTY, Limited Pearson Education Singapore, Pte. Ltd. Pearson Education North Asia Ltd. Pearson Education Canada, Ltd. Pearson Educación de Mexico, S.A. de C.V. Pearson Education—Japan Pearson Education Malaysia, Pte. Ltd. Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey A D V I S O R Y C O M M I T T E E Arnold H. Kaplan (Chairman) Chief Financial Officer UnitedHealth Group Peter G. M. Cox Chief Financial Officer United Grain Growers Limited Gracie F. Hemphill Director—Research Financial Executives Research Foundation, Inc. Karl A. Primm General Auditor Unocal Corporation William M. Sinnett Project Manager Financial Executives Research Foundation, Inc. III...
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