Suppose that a firm is facing an upward-sloping yield curve and needs to borrow money to invest in production. Does this mean that the firm should consider borrowing only at short-term rates? No, the firm needs to take the volatility of short-term rates into account. Yes, using short-term financing will give the firm the lowest possible interest rate over the life of the project. No, an upward-sloping yield curve means that the firm will get a lower interest rate if it uses long-term financing.
Net Present Value
Net present value is the most important concept of finance. It is used to evaluate the investment and financing decisions that involve cash flows occurring over multiple periods. The difference between the present value of cash inflow and cash outflow is termed as net present value (NPV). It is used for capital budgeting and investment planning. It is also used to compare similar investment alternatives.
Investment Decision
The term investment refers to allocating money with the intention of getting positive returns in the future period. For example, an asset would be acquired with the motive of generating income by selling the asset when there is a price increase.
Factors That Complicate Capital Investment Analysis
Capital investment analysis is a way of the budgeting process that companies and the government use to evaluate the profitability of the investment that has been done for the long term. This can include the evaluation of fixed assets such as machinery, equipment, etc.
Capital Budgeting
Capital budgeting is a decision-making process whereby long-term investments is evaluated and selected based on whether such investment is worth pursuing in future or not. It plays an important role in financial decision-making as it impacts the profitability of the business in the long term. The benefits of capital budgeting may be in the form of increased revenue or reduction in cost. The capital budgeting decisions include replacing or rebuilding of the fixed assets, addition of an asset. These long-term investment decisions involve a large number of funds and are irreversible because the market for the second-hand asset may be difficult to find and will have an effect over long-time spam. A right decision can yield favorable returns on the other hand a wrong decision may have an effect on the sustainability of the firm. Capital budgeting helps businesses to understand risks that are involved in undertaking capital investment. It also enables them to choose the option which generates the best return by applying the various capital budgeting techniques.
9. Interest rates and decisions
Scenario
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Impact on Yield
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Cost of Borrowing Money from Bond Markets
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ABC Real Estate is a commercial real estate firm that primarily uses short-term financing, while its competitors primarily use long-term financing. Interest rates have recently increased dramatically. | ||
Ziffy Corp.’s credit rating was downgraded from AAA to A. | ||
Bellgotts Inc. has increased its market share from 15% to 37% over the last year while maintaining a profit margin greater than the industry average. | ||
Previously, Ferro Co. had only used short-term debt financing. The company now finances its current assets such as inventories and receivables with short-term debt, and it finances its fixed assets such as buildings and equipment with long-term debt. |
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