In this graduate-level course, explore the financial decisions made in personal and business contexts, including credit card interest rates, home mortgages, investment allocation, and creating shareholder value by emphasizing financial principles and theories and their practical application in day-to-day operations for effective decision-making.
This is a graduate-level course. Making financial decisions is something that we do in our personal lives, as well as in the business environment. On a personal basis, we may consider the interest rates charged by various credit cards or the best terms we can receive on a home mortgage. A business is also involved in regular financial analysis and uses that analysis to make business decisions. Companies face decisions on allocating funds to invest in plant and equipment needs, new product introductions, research and design activities, staffing levels, market expansion plans, and so much more. A good understanding of financial principles is the basis for making sound decisions in any of these areas. Management is charged with the responsibility to create value for its shareholders. That value results from making good decisions on investing the firm's capital in such a way as to realize a positive return. It is also critically important that management not only understand the basic financial principles and theories but also how to apply them in the firm's day-to-day operations.
- Unit 1: Managerial Accounting
- Unit 2: Financial Statement Analysis
- Unit 3: Financial Management
- Unit 4: Risk and Return
- Unit 5: Managing Capital
- Unit 6: Valuation
- Unit 7: Financial Planning and Forecasting
- Demonstrate a degree of accounting and financial literacy;
- Explain a firm's financial package, including the income statement, statement of retained earnings, balance sheet, and statement of cash flows;
- Apply the results of financial analysis to the decision-making process;
- Evaluate a firm's performance through an analysis of its financial package;
- Explain the steps in developing a capital budget, determining the cost of capital, and how to calculate cash flows for projects;
- Recognize the importance of free cash flow as a measure of firm performance;
- Calculate the time value of money (TVM), and apply the results to investment decisions; and
- Calculate the cost of a firm's debt and equity, and recognize the impact on the cost of capital.