Corporate Finance

This course presents an introduction to the principles of corporate finance and its applications. These principles are critical to understanding the nature of how corporations and many government entities present their financial condition, finance themselves and manage their financial risks. We will examine corporate structure, evaluation of new projects, financial planning and governance. There will be considerable attention to the analysis of financial statements and understanding free cash flow. The role of interest rates and the time value of money will be presented with many applications project evaluation and financing alternatives. The Modigliani and Miller theorems will be presented with their application to common corporate finance problems. The role of equity, bonds and loans in the capital structure will then be discussed. Finally, we will introduce the role of corporate governance regarding financial matters. Perspectives will include those of the debt the shareholders and key management members, including the Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer. Additional material relating to the public policy issues that certain corporate decisions create will be considered. There will be problem sets, graded and ungraded, to support most areas.