读趣百科

KFP Co, a company listed on a major stock market, is looking at its cost of capital as it prepares to make a bid to buy a rival unlisted company, NGN. Both companies are in the same business sector. Financial information on KFP Co and NGN is as follows:

NGN has a cost of equity of 12% per year and has maintained a dividend payout ratio of 45% for several years. The current earnings per share of the company is 80c per share and its earnings have grown at an average rate of 4·5% per year in recent years.

The ex div share price of KFP Co is $4·20 per share and it has an equity beta of 1·2. The 7% bonds of the company are trading on an ex interest basis at $94·74 per $100 bond. The price/earnings ratio of KFP Co is eight times.

The directors of KFP Co believe a cash offer for the shares of NGN would have the best chance of success. It has been suggested that a cash offer could be financed by debt.

Required:

(a) Calculate the weighted average cost of capital of KFP Co on a market value weighted basis. (10 marks)

(b) Calculate the total value of the target company, NGN, using the following valuation methods:

(i) Price/earnings ratio method, using the price/earnings ratio of KFP Co; and

(ii) Dividend growth model. (6 marks)

(c) Discuss the relationship between capital structure and weighted average cost of capital, and comment on

the suggestion that debt could be used to finance a cash offer for NGN. (9 marks)

A manufacturing company, Man Co, has two divisions: Division L and Division M. Both divisions make a single standardised product. Division L makes component L, which is supplied to both Division M and external customers.

Division M makes product M using one unit of component L and other materials. It then sells the completed

product M to external customers. To date, Division M has always bought component L from Division L.

The following information is available:

Division L charges the same price for component L to both Division M and external customers. However, it does not incur the selling and distribution costs when transferring internally.

Division M has just been approached by a new supplier who has offered to supply it with component L for $37 per unit. Prior to this offer, the cheapest price which Division M could have bought component L for from outside the group was $42 per unit.

It is head office policy to let the divisions operate autonomously without interference at all.

Required:

(a) Calculate the incremental profit/(loss) per component for the group if Division M accepts the new supplier’s

offer and recommend how many components Division L should sell to Division M if group profits are to be

maximised. (3 marks)

(b) Using the quantities calculated in (a) and the current transfer price, calculate the total annual profits of each division and the group as a whole. (6 marks)

(c) Discuss the problems which will arise if the transfer price remains unchanged and advise the divisions on a suitable alternative transfer price for component L. (6 marks)

Glove Co makes high quality, hand-made gloves which it sells for an average of $180 per pair. The standard cost of labour for each pair is $42 and the standard labour time for each pair is three hours. In the last quarter, Glove Co had budgeted production of 12,000 pairs, although actual production was 12,600 pairs in order to meet demand.

37,000 hours were used to complete the work and there was no idle time. The total labour cost for the quarter was $531,930.

At the beginning of the last quarter, the design of the gloves was changed slightly. The new design required workers to sew the company’s logo on to the back of every glove made and the estimated time to do this was 15 minutes for each pair. However, no-one told the accountant responsible for updating standard costs that the standard time per pair of gloves needed to be changed. Similarly, although all workers were given a 2% pay rise at the beginning of the last quarter, the accountant was not told about this either. Consequently, the standard was not updated to reflect these changes.

When overtime is required, workers are paid 25% more than their usual hourly rate.

Required:

(a) Calculate the total labour rate and total labour efficiency variances for the last quarter. (2 marks)

(b) Analyse the above total variances into component parts for planning and operational variances in as much detail as the information allows. (6 marks)

(c) Assess the performance of the production manager for the last quarter. (7 marks)

(a) The following information relates to Crosswire a publicly listed company.

Summarised statements of financial position as at:

The following information is available:

(i) During the year to 30 September 2009, Crosswire embarked on a replacement and expansion programme for its non-current assets. The details of this programme are:

On 1 October 2008 Crosswire acquired a platinum mine at a cost of $5 million. A condition of mining the

platinum is a requirement to landscape the mining site at the end of its estimated life of ten years. The

present value of this cost at the date of the purchase was calculated at $3 million (in addition to the

purchase price of the mine of $5 million).

Also on 1 October 2008 Crosswire revalued its freehold land for the first time. The credit in the revaluation

reserve is the net amount of the revaluation after a transfer to deferred tax on the gain. The tax rate applicable to Crosswire for deferred tax is 20% per annum.

On 1 April 2009 Crosswire took out a finance lease for some new plant. The fair value of the plant was

$10 million. The lease agreement provided for an initial payment on 1 April 2009 of $2·4 million followed

by eight six-monthly payments of $1·2 million commencing 30 September 2009.

Plant disposed of during the year had a carrying amount of $500,000 and was sold for $1·2 million. The

remaining movement on the property, plant and equipment, after charging depreciation of $3 million, was

the cost of replacing plant.

(ii) From 1 October 2008 to 31 March 2009 a further $500,000 was spent completing the development

project at which date marketing and production started. The sales of the new product proved disappointing

and on 30 September 2009 the development costs were written down to $1 million via an impairment

charge.

(iii) During the year ended 30 September 2009, $4 million of the 10% convertible loan notes matured. The

loan note holders had the option of redemption at par in cash or to exchange them for equity shares on the

basis of 20 new shares for each $100 of loan notes. 75% of the loan-note holders chose the equity option.

Ignore any effect of this on the other equity reserve.

All the above items have been treated correctly according to International Financial Reporting Standards.

(iv) The finance costs are made up of:

Required:

(i) Prepare a statement of the movements in the carrying amount of Crosswire’s non-current assets for the

year ended 30 September 2009; (9 marks)

(ii) Calculate the amounts that would appear under the headings of ‘cash flows from investing activities’

and ‘cash flows from financing activities’ in the statement of cash flows for Crosswire for the year ended

30 September 2009.

Note: Crosswire includes finance costs paid as a financing activity. (8 marks)

(b) A substantial shareholder has written to the directors of Crosswire expressing particular concern over the

deterioration of the company’s return on capital employed (ROCE)

Required:

Calculate Crosswire’s ROCE for the two years ended 30 September 2008 and 2009 and comment on the

apparent cause of its deterioration.

Note: ROCE should be taken as profit before interest on long-term borrowings and tax as a percentage of equity plus loan notes and finance lease obligations (at the year end). (8 marks)

(b) Calculate the value of the closing stocks of finished goods at the end of the three-month period, and the value

of cost of sales for the period. (3 marks)