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Capital Budgeting Definition and Process

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Corporate Finance ­FIN 622
VU
Lesson 08
CAPITAL BUDGETING
The following topics will be discussed in this hand out.
Fundamental Analysis
Capital Budgeting Definition and Process
Relevant costs
Non-relevant cost
Fundamental Analysis:
Fundamental Analysis is a security or stock valuation method that uses financial and economic analysis to
evaluate businesses or to predict the movement of security prices such as stock prices or bond prices. The
fundamental information that is analyzed can include a company's financial reports, and non-financial
information such as estimates of the growth of demand for competing products, industry comparisons,
analysis of the effects of new regulations or demographic changes, and economy-wide changes. It is
commonly contrasted with so-called technical analysis which analyzes security price movements without
reference to factors outside of the market itself.
A potential (or current) investor uses fundamental analysis to examine a company's financial results, its
operations and the market(s) in which the company is competing to understand the stability and growth
potential of that company. Company factors to consider might include dividends paid, the way a company
manages its cash, the amount of debt a company has, and the growth of a company's revenues, expenses
and earnings. A fundamental analyst may enter long or short positions based on the result of fundamental
analysis.
Three step process:
In large organizations fundamental analysis is usually performed in three steps:
·  Analysis of the macroeconomic situation, usually including both international and national economic
indicators, such as GDP growth rates, inflation, interest rates, exchange rates, productivity, and energy
prices.
·  Industry analysis of total sales, price levels, the effects of competing products, foreign competition, and
entry or exit from the industry.
·  Individual firm analysis of unit sales, prices, new products, earnings, and the possibilities of new debt or
equity issues.
Often the procedure stresses the effects of the overall economic situation on industry and firm analysis and
is known as top down analysis. If instead the procedure stresses firm analysis and uses it to build its industry
analysis, which it uses to build its macroeconomic analysis, it is known as bottom up analysis.
Criticisms:
·  Some economists such as Burton Malkiel suggest that neither fundamental analysis nor technical
analysis is useful in outperforming the markets.
Capital budgeting:
Capital Budgeting is the planning process used to determine a firm's long term investments such as new
machinery, replacement machinery, new plants, new products, and research and development projects.
Capital budgeting process is carried out for projects involving heavy initial upfront cost.
These projects can take any of the following forms:
·
New project
·
Expansion project
·
Modernization / Replacement
·
Research & development
·
Exploration
·
Other / social responsibility ­ Pollution control etc.
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Corporate Finance ­FIN 622
VU
Capital Budgeting Process:
­  Investment Opportunity (ies) is/are identified.
­  Different alternatives are considered.
­  Every alternative is evaluated
­  The best option(s) are undertaken
Many formal methods are used in capital budgeting, including discounted cash flow techniques such as net
present value, internal rate of return, Modified Internal Rate of Return and equivalent annuity method,
using the incremental cash flows from each potential investment, or project. Techniques based on
accounting earnings and accounting rules are sometimes used - though economists consider this to be
improper - such as the accounting rate of return, and "return on investment." Simplified and hybrid
methods are used as well, such as payback period and discounted payback period.
Capital budgeting versus current expenditures:
frA capital investment project can be distinguished from current expenditures by two features:
a) Such projects are relatively large
b) A significant period of time (more than one year) elapses between the investment outlay and the receipt
of the benefits..
As a result, most medium-sized and large organizations have developed special procedures and methods for
dealing with these decisions. A systematic approach to capital budgeting implies:
a) The formulation of long-term goals
b) The creative search for and identification of new investment opportunities
c) Classification of projects and recognition of economically and/or statistically dependent proposals
d) The estimation and forecasting of current and future cash flows
e) A suitable administrative framework capable of transferring the required information to the decision level
f) The controlling of expenditures and careful monitoring of crucial aspects of project execution
g) A set of decision rules which can differentiate acceptable from unacceptable alternatives is required.
The last point (g) is crucial and this is the subject of later sections of the chapter.
The classification of investment projects
a) By project size
Small projects may be approved by departmental managers. More careful analysis and Board of Directors'
approval is needed for large projects of, say, half a million dollars or more.
b) By type of benefit to the firm
·  an increase in cash flow
·  a decrease in risk
·  an indirect benefit (showers for workers, etc).
c) By degree of dependence
·  Mutually exclusive projects (can execute project A or B, but not both)
·  Complementary projects: taking project A increases the cash flow of project B.
·  Substitute projects: taking project A decreases the cash flow of project B.
d) By degree of statistical dependence
·  Positive dependence
·  Negative dependence
·  Statistical independence.
e) By type of cash flow
·  Conventional cash flow: only one change in the cash flow sign
e.g. -/++++ or +/----, etc
·  Non-conventional cash flows: more than one change in the cash flow sign,
e.g. +/-/+++ or -/+/-/++++, etc.
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Corporate Finance ­FIN 622
VU
Relevant Costs:
These are costs that are relevant with respect to a particular decision. A relevant cost for a particular
decision is one that changes if an alternative course of action is taken. Relevant costs are also called
differential costs.
Making correct decisions is one of the most important tasks of a successful manager. Every decision
involves a choice between at least two alternatives. The decision process may be complicated by volumes
of data, irrelevant data, incomplete information, an unlimited array of alternatives, etc. The role of the
managerial accountant in this process is often that of a gatherer and summarizer of relevant information
rather than the ultimate decision maker.
The costs and benefits of the alternatives need to be compared and contrasted before making a decision.
The decision should be based only on RELEVANT information. Relevant information includes the
predicted future costs and revenues that differ among the alternatives. Any cost or benefit that does not
differ between alternatives is irrelevant and can be ignored in a decision. All future revenues and/or costs
that do not differ between the alternatives are irrelevant. Sunk costs (costs already irrevocably incurred) are
always irrelevant since they will be the same for any alternative.
To identify which costs are relevant in a particular situation, take this three step approach:
1.  Eliminate sunk costs and committed costs
2.  Eliminate costs and benefits that do not differ between alternatives
3.  Compare the remaining costs and benefits that do differ between alternatives to make the proper
decision.
4.  Take care of opportunity cost.
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Table of Contents:
  1. INTRODUCTION TO SUBJECT
  2. COMPARISON OF FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
  3. TIME VALUE OF MONEY
  4. Discounted Cash Flow, Effective Annual Interest Bond Valuation - introduction
  5. Features of Bond, Coupon Interest, Face value, Coupon rate, Duration or maturity date
  6. TERM STRUCTURE OF INTEREST RATES
  7. COMMON STOCK VALUATION
  8. Capital Budgeting Definition and Process
  9. METHODS OF PROJECT EVALUATIONS, Net present value, Weighted Average Cost of Capital
  10. METHODS OF PROJECT EVALUATIONS 2
  11. METHODS OF PROJECT EVALUATIONS 3
  12. ADVANCE EVALUATION METHODS: Sensitivity analysis, Profitability analysis, Break even accounting, Break even - economic
  13. Economic Break Even, Operating Leverage, Capital Rationing, Hard & Soft Rationing, Single & Multi Period Rationing
  14. Single period, Multi-period capital rationing, Linear programming
  15. Risk and Uncertainty, Measuring risk, Variability of return–Historical Return, Variance of return, Standard Deviation
  16. Portfolio and Diversification, Portfolio and Variance, Risk–Systematic & Unsystematic, Beta – Measure of systematic risk, Aggressive & defensive stocks
  17. Security Market Line, Capital Asset Pricing Model – CAPM Calculating Over, Under valued stocks
  18. Cost of Capital & Capital Structure, Components of Capital, Cost of Equity, Estimating g or growth rate, Dividend growth model, Cost of Debt, Bonds, Cost of Preferred Stocks
  19. Venture Capital, Cost of Debt & Bond, Weighted average cost of debt, Tax and cost of debt, Cost of Loans & Leases, Overall cost of capital – WACC, WACC & Capital Budgeting
  20. When to use WACC, Pure Play, Capital Structure and Financial Leverage
  21. Home made leverage, Modigliani & Miller Model, How WACC remains constant, Business & Financial Risk, M & M model with taxes
  22. Problems associated with high gearing, Bankruptcy costs, Optimal capital structure, Dividend policy
  23. Dividend and value of firm, Dividend relevance, Residual dividend policy, Financial planning process and control
  24. Budgeting process, Purpose, functions of budgets, Cash budgets–Preparation & interpretation
  25. Cash flow statement Direct method Indirect method, Working capital management, Cash and operating cycle
  26. Working capital management, Risk, Profitability and Liquidity - Working capital policies, Conservative, Aggressive, Moderate
  27. Classification of working capital, Current Assets Financing – Hedging approach, Short term Vs long term financing
  28. Overtrading – Indications & remedies, Cash management, Motives for Cash holding, Cash flow problems and remedies, Investing surplus cash
  29. Miller-Orr Model of cash management, Inventory management, Inventory costs, Economic order quantity, Reorder level, Discounts and EOQ
  30. Inventory cost – Stock out cost, Economic Order Point, Just in time (JIT), Debtors Management, Credit Control Policy
  31. Cash discounts, Cost of discount, Shortening average collection period, Credit instrument, Analyzing credit policy, Revenue effect, Cost effect, Cost of debt o Probability of default
  32. Effects of discounts–Not effecting volume, Extension of credit, Factoring, Management of creditors, Mergers & Acquisitions
  33. Synergies, Types of mergers, Why mergers fail, Merger process, Acquisition consideration
  34. Acquisition Consideration, Valuation of shares
  35. Assets Based Share Valuations, Hybrid Valuation methods, Procedure for public, private takeover
  36. Corporate Restructuring, Divestment, Purpose of divestment, Buyouts, Types of buyouts, Financial distress
  37. Sources of financial distress, Effects of financial distress, Reorganization
  38. Currency Risks, Transaction exposure, Translation exposure, Economic exposure
  39. Future payment situation – hedging, Currency futures – features, CF – future payment in FCY
  40. CF–future receipt in FCY, Forward contract vs. currency futures, Interest rate risk, Hedging against interest rate, Forward rate agreements, Decision rule
  41. Interest rate future, Prices in futures, Hedging–short term interest rate (STIR), Scenario–Borrowing in ST and risk of rising interest, Scenario–deposit and risk of lowering interest rates on deposits, Options and Swaps, Features of opti
  42. FOREIGN EXCHANGE MARKET’S OPTIONS
  43. Calculating financial benefit–Interest rate Option, Interest rate caps and floor, Swaps, Interest rate swaps, Currency swaps
  44. Exchange rate determination, Purchasing power parity theory, PPP model, International fisher effect, Exchange rate system, Fixed, Floating
  45. FOREIGN INVESTMENT: Motives, International operations, Export, Branch, Subsidiary, Joint venture, Licensing agreements, Political risk