Finance

General Instructions;  1. Form groups of 2 students Max. (Individual submissions will not be accepted). 2. Submit a soft copy of your report via ITC – The word files sent via ITC should be named with the group member names as follows: AHMED.DANA.docx or RIAD.BARA.docx – Files without proper names will not be graded 3. Font Size and type 12-pt. Times New Roman 4. No spacing in the paragraphs, 1 line between paragraphs. 5. plagiarism and academic integrity are seriously considered. Don’t put yourself in an embarrassing situation.  USE your OWN LANGUAGE 6. Referencing format: APA style  (You can find a lot of auto referencing websites on the internet) 7. You need to include all the references you use

Select an IPO that occurred in the last five years and research it using credible financial publications (e.g., Bloomberg, The Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Economist). Referring to your research and analysis of the company’s financial statements prior to the IPO (found via the SEC EDGAR Company Filings), determine whether you think the IPO was a success. In your post, address the following questions with appropriate support for your answers: Did the company value the IPO correctly? Was the company able to generate additional value for shareholders via the IPO? What economic and market factors potentially influenced the results of the IPO? Do you think the IPO was a success based on your analysis? In your responses to your peers, explain whether you agree or disagree with the assessments of their selected IPOs. Can you identify additional economic and market factors that may have influenced the results of the IPO?

The budgeting problem – Lack of budget and the impact that has on your team / department Within Sky the incentives department are responsible for creating a incentive scheme for the sales department. The budget for the incentive is 24% of the departmental salary of all agents. The incentive scheme changes throughout the year depending on how much of the budget is spent. This can sometimes change so that the agents do not earn the same amount of bonus in 1 quarter to another, negatively effecting the agents moral. There is no communication from the incentives team to the agents regarding the bonus and the agents have no impact on how the incentive changes. I need a introduction writing including the following: Clearly defined your organisation and your role in it? – I am a sales advisor with Sky we have 300 advisors in the whole department. Clearly stated what the problem is? Clearly defined if it is a budget information or a cost­ driver problem? Shown how this issue impacts you and others in or outside of your organisation Please use week 11 and 12 and apply 2 concepts from the text book to the introduction

International Fund: Written Assignment 3   Please select an international ETF or Mutual Fund. The holdings should not include stocks are bonds from US companies or governments. You should locate the fund prospectus but other sources of information are certainly applicable.   Provide a two-three page document, single to 1.5 spaced with size 12 font.  You may use bullet points when appropriate.  The document should include an overview with a paragraph explaining characteristics.  The document should include two tables (one table of the fund’s holdings and one table of the fund’s performance) and one figure.  Please provide a brief explanation of each when appropriate.  The document should conclude with an analysis of the fund.    Overview: What is the fund family (e.g. iShares)? What are the fund objectives? The fund might be designed to mimic the performance of a small-cap MSCI index. What country or region does the fund focus on? Do you consider it to be a developed or an emerging market? Identify the funds underlying benchmark index.  The benchmark may be straight-forward. However, the index might be more obscure.   Identify the following: ·      Price ·      Assets Under Management ·      Expense Ratio   Performance: (You may present the performance in a standalone table or combine it with the data above). What have been the funds returns over the past 1 yr. and 5 yrs.? How does the fund perform relative to the S&P 500 (1 yr. 5 yrs.)?   Figure: Provide a figure of the returns relative to the S&P 500 SPDR ETF: SPY.    Holdings: Identify the top holdings (10 if stocks) in Table 2.   Company Weight (%) Industry Other                                 Analysis: Provide an analysis of the fund addressing the questions below with additional insight. Do you consider the fund to be risky? Is it risky relative to the S&P 500? Explain how the fund might fit into the strategy of a broader portfolio? Would you buy the fund?   Other: Some funds provide a vehicle for foreign currencies.      Sources of Data: Etf.com is one possible way to identify the ETF. Database and Search Criteria   CRSP Data   iShares                                                                                                https://www.ishares.com/us/products/etf-investments#!type=ishares&style=All&view=keyFacts   Markets & Regions (Developed, Emerging, Frontier)   iShares Broad Region Examples:  AAXJ iShares MSCI All Country Asia ex Japan ETF IEUS iShares MSCI Europe Small-Cap ETF ILF iShares Ltin America 40 ETF     Vanguard https://investor.vanguard.com/etf/list#/etf/asset-class/month-end-returns   VWO Vanguard FTSE Emerging Markets ETF https://investor.vanguard.com/etf/profile/VWO Goal is to closely track the return of the FTSE Emerging Markets All Cap China A Inclusion Index.

1.     Visit finance.yahoo.com, do some research and choose any company that is paying dividends, has P/E and EPS. For the discount rate choose a rate between 2% and 10% and for growth rate choose a rate between: 1% and 6%.  Then answer the following:   a)     Name of the company chosen, indicate stock quote price, stock quote symbol, EPS, Dividend amount and P/E. b)     Explain why you chose that discount rate and growth rate for your stock.   c)     Calculate the company’s value according to any of the two methods that we learned in class (Dividend growth model or P/E multiple). Pick only one method d)     Compare the value that you have reached versus the quoted price of the stock, should you buy the stock or not? Why?

IMPORTANT: Minimum 4 scholarly journal article sources in APA (including in-text parenthetical citations) needed. No title page, no abstract, nor running header needed. INSTRUCTIONS: (for full article: https://www.cnn.com/2020/02/21/business/zillow-rich-barton-risk-takers/index.html) Zillow is Losing Millions on Selling Homes. But Its Risk-Taking CEO Isn’t Worried 14 days ago 7 replies Melanie Baker Charles Benedict Dare Abiola Last 18 hours ago Key words and Definitions Risk – the possibility of financial loss. Risk aversion – an individual’s tolerance for taking risks. Risk/return tradeoff – the financial principle that states you must be compensated with the possibility of higher returns before you are willing to accept higher levels of risk. Summary: Key Points in the Article. The online real estate matchmaking site Zillow recently launched a new initiative. In 2018 Zillow moved from being just an online advertising platform to a firm that buys properties directly from sellers. Interested sellers can contact Zillow, receive an offer, and close within a week or two. Zillow does light cosmetic work and resells the homes. Zillow CEO Rich Barton calls the model, dubbed iBuying, a “new frontier in real estate.” Barton’s vision is to make selling a home as easy as selling a car. Zillow wants to remain the best-known site for real estate and smaller competitors were beginning to offer iBuying, essentially forcing Zillow into this market. Zillow charges sellers a 7.5% fee if they decide to sell directly to Zillow. Comparable real estate sales commissions are about 6% but it can takes months, or even years, to sell a home. The venture is not without risk. Zillow loses an average of $1,512 plus interest expenses and holding costs on each home it buys, or a total of $312 million in before tax losses for this division in 2019. However, Barton believes the venture will generate $20 billion in revenue in the next three to five years. Zillow intends for the program to be profitable and serve as a gateway into other revenue sources including providing title insurance and earning referral fees. Thinking Critically Questions Regarding the Financial Manager’s Primary Goal from the Lecture Note: 1. Is Zillow CEO Rich Barton willingness to lose money on iBuying consistent or inconsistent with “Selecting value creating projects” 2. What are the risks Zillow faces with their strategy? Is it a smart financing decision? 3. What are some synergistic benefits that might emerge from iBuying?

You are a newly hired financial analyst for a mutual fund called Wealth Grower. Your fund manager wants to invest in a stock from the S&P500 Index but needs you to do some research and then ultimately make a recommendation on whether this stock is appropriate to invest in or not. Write a report to your fund manager answering Sections A to D, which includes a final recommendation.

A payday loan is a small, unsecured, short-term loan ranging from $100 to $1,000 (depending on the state). Borrowers simply write a personal post-dated check for the amount they want to borrow. A flat fee of $15 for every $100 borrowed is usually charged. The fees on such loans can equate to an annual interest rate of over 390%. Some argue this is an outrageous rate. On the other hand, the costs of these loans can be less expensive than the other costs the borrowed funds are being used to avoid. For example, the $15 fee might be used to get $100 to avoid a $30 check overdraft charge, a $40 late credit card payment fee, or a $90 charge to reconnect electricity service, which will be disconnected without the money to make the electric payment. A manager at a payday loan and check cashing business defends his company’s business practice as simply “charging what the market will bear.” “After all,” says the manager, “we don’t force people to come in the door.” How would you respond to this ethical defense of the payday-advance business?

Final Assignment: Budgeting Project Each year in your role as a manager, you are asked to provide input for your company’s budget. You just received a memo from your supervisor asking you to prepare a plan to update the following items:  • Equipment  • Software  • Furniture  • Supplies  The new items should enhance the effectiveness and productivity within the company. You know that your supervisor loves it when the company increases profits and decreases expenses.  You have been given a target budget of $25,000.  Your company requires that you get quotes from at least two vendors for any item that costs more than $500.  TASK: Prepare a list of the equipment, software, furniture, and supplies you think the company needs to be successful in the coming years.  1. Review catalogues, advertisements, the Internet, or other sources to identify vendors and prices for each item.  2. Prepare a proposed budget for your supervisor. Attach vendor, price, and description of the quality of the items you selected. Keep in mind what you have learned about budgeting and finance throughout the course and incorporate it into your proposed budget and presentation.  3. Present your budget to the class via PowerPoint, and provide justifications for the items you selected and explain how your budget will help the company be successful.  EVALUATION This project will be evaluated on how thorough and accurate your budget is in relation to the company you work for, the quality of items selected in relation to the cost, and the creativity of your presentation. You will decide what company you work for. Be creative and have fun with this project!

Take any blog entry and write a reaction or commentary. In addition to your commentary you should address the discussion question(s), which appear in the rectangular box. Please indicate the name and date of the blog entry at the top of your paper. Your paper should reference the sources you relied upon to answer the discussion questions. Your paper does not have to be lengthy. A paper of 500 words is enough in most cases. However, if you have very little to say about a blog entry, then you should find another blog entry. The marking of your reaction paper is as follows: ·         Originality ·         Clarity ·         Proper written English ·         Accurate answer or response to discussion question ·         Insightful or thoughtful response (your reaction should not be simply to summarise the blog).