CHAPTER 1 Complete Solutions ✅
INTRODUCTION TO CORPORATE FINANCE Mini Cases Solutions ✅
Learning Objectives: Excel Solutions ✅
LO1 The basic types of financial management decisions and the role of the financial manager.
LO2 The financial implications of the different forms of business organization.
LO3 The goal of financial management.
LO4 The conflicts of interests that can arise between managers and owners.
LO5 The roles of financial institutions and markets.
LO6 Types of financial institutions.
LO7 Trends in financial markets.
Answers to Concepts Review and Critical Thinking Questions:
1. (LO1) Capital budgeting (deciding on whether to expand a manufacturing plant), capital structure
(deciding whether to issue new equity and use the proceeds to retire outstanding debt), and working
capital management (modifying the firm’s credit collection policy with its customers). (LO1)
2. (LO2) Disadvantages: unlimited liability, limited life, difficulty in transferring ownership, hard to raise
capital funds. Some advantages: simpler, less regulation, the owners are also the managers.
3. (LO2) The primary disadvantage of the corporate form is the double taxation to shareholders of
distributed earnings and dividends. Some advantages include: limited liability, ease of transferability,
ability to raise capital, unlimited life, and so forth.
4. (LO4) The treasurer’s office and the controller’s office are the two primary organizational groups that
report directly to the chief financial officer. The controller’s office handles cost and financial
accounting, tax management, and management information systems, while the treasurer’s office is
responsible for cash and credit management, capital budgeting, and financial planning. Therefore, the
study of corporate finance is concentrated within the treasury group’s functions.
5. (LO3) To maximize the current market value (share price) of the equity of the firm (whether it’s
publicly-traded or not).
6. (LO4) In the corporate form of ownership, the shareholders are the owners of the firm. The shareholders
elect the directors of the corporation, who in turn appoint the firm’s management. This separation of
ownership from control in the corporate form of organization is what causes agency problems to exist.
Management may act in its own or someone else’s best interests, rather than those of the shareholders.
If such events occur, they may contradict the goal of maximizing the share price of the equity of the
firm.
7. (LO5) A primary market transaction. The primary market works with securities being sold for the first
time. IPO refers to when a company sells stock to the general public for the first time and therefore the
securities are traded in the primary market. A secondary market transaction would entail the sale
between two 3rd parties (i.e. not the corporation).
8. (LO5) In auction markets like the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX), brokers and agents meet at a central
location (the exchange) to match buyers and sellers of assets. Physical locations for stock markets are
disappearing as trading becomes more electronic. Dealer markets like Nasdaq consist of dealers
operating at dispersed locales who buy and sell assets themselves, communicating with other dealers
either electronically or literally over-the-counter. Dealer markets are less transparent than auction
markets where trades are reported publicly almost immediately. The auction market run by the TSX is
Ross et al., Fundamentals of Corporate Finance 12th Canadian Edition Solutions Manual
© 2025
1-1
, where the stocks of larger Canadian companies are traded; the TSX also operates a dealer market called
the Venture Exchange for companies too small to qualify for the TSX auction exchange.
9. (LO3) Such organizations frequently pursue social or political missions, so many different goals are
conceivable. One goal that is often cited is revenue minimization; i.e., provide whatever goods and
services are offered at the lowest possible cost to society. Another would be to best serve the maximum
possible number of stakeholders at the lowest cost. A better approach might be to observe that even a
not-for-profit business has equity. Thus, one answer is that the appropriate goal is to maximize the value
of the equity.
10. (LO3) Presumably, the current stock value reflects the risk, timing, and magnitude of all future cash
flows, both short-term and long-term. If this is correct, then the statement is false.
11. (LO3) An argument can be made either way. At the one extreme, we could argue that in a market
economy, all of these things are priced. There is thus an optimal level of, for example, ethical and/or
illegal behavior, and the framework of stock valuation explicitly includes these. At the other extreme,
we could argue that these are non-economic phenomena and are best handled through the political
process. A classic (and highly relevant) thought question that illustrates this debate goes something like
this: “A firm has estimated that the cost of improving the safety of one of its products is $30 million.
However, the firm believes that improving the safety of the product will only save $20 million in
product liability claims and lost customer goodwill. What should the firm do?”
12. (LO3) The goal will be the same, but the best course of action toward that goal may be different because
of differing social, political, and economic institutions.
13. (LO4) The goal of management should be to maximize the share price for the current shareholders. If
management believes that it can improve the profitability of the firm so that the share price will exceed
$35, then they should fight the offer from the outside company. If management believes that this bidder
or other unidentified bidders will actually pay more than $35 per share to acquire the company, then
they should still fight the offer. However, if the current management cannot increase the value of the
firm beyond the bid price, and no other higher bids come in, then management is not acting in the
interests of the shareholders by fighting the offer. Since current managers often lose their jobs when the
corporation is acquired, poorly monitored managers have an incentive to fight corporate takeovers in
situations such as this.
14. (LO4) We would expect agency problems to be less severe in other countries, primarily due to the
relatively small percentage of individual ownership. Fewer individual owners means that each
individual owner has a greater incentive to monitor and control the firm—i.e. there is less free-riding.
The high percentage of institutional ownership might lead to a higher degree of agreement between
owners and managers on decisions concerning risky projects. In addition, institutions may be better able
to implement effective monitoring mechanisms on managers than can individual owners, based on the
institutions’ deeper resources and experiences with their own management. The increase in institutional
ownership of stock in Canada and in the United States and the growing activism of these large
shareholder groups may lead to a reduction in agency problems for Canadian and U.S. corporations and
a more efficient market for corporate control.
15. (LO5) Major institutions:
Chartered banks -accept deposits and issue commercial loans, corporate loans, personal loans and
mortgages.
Trust companies-accept deposits and make loans, but also engage in fiduciary activities such as
managing assets for estates, registered retirement savings plans, etc.
Investment dealers -non-depository institutions that assist firms in issuing new securities.
Insurance companies -engage in indirect financing by accepting funds in a form similar to a deposit and
making loans.
Ross et al., Fundamentals of Corporate Finance 12th Canadian Edition Solutions Manual
© 2025
1-2
, Pension funds -invest contributions from employers and employees in securities offered by financial
markets.
Mutual funds -pool individual investments to purchase a diversified portfolio.
Hedge funds -cater to sophisticated investors and seek high returns by using aggressive financial
strategies prohibited by mutual funds.
Note that larger financial institutions may embody many of these different institution. For example,
CIBC is a chartered bank that owns an investment dealer and mutual funds. Furthermore, it has an
insurance arm “CIBC Insurance”
Major markets:
Money market -financial markets where short-term debt instruments are bought and sold.
Capital markets -financial markets where long-term debt and equity securities are bought and sold.
Derivatives markets – where options and futures are traded on financial instruments and commodities
Primary markets are where securities are sold for the first time; secondary markets are where
outstanding securities trade.
16. (LO5) Spread versus Fee Income:
Banks earn spread or interest income by borrowing from depositors and lending to borrowers (at a
higher yield). An example is a retail deposit and a mortgage. Banks make non-interest or fee income
when they charge commissions or fees for services. An example is an overdraft fee or ATM fee, or the
example in the text, the stamping fee on a banker’s acceptance (which is a form of insurance and
arranging fee).
17. (LO5) Trends:
Financial engineering -the creation of new securities or financial processes. This engineering could be
used to package and sell risky assets to investors; for example, banks can package and sell mortgages
into mortgage backed securities and sell these on to other investors.
Derivative securities -options, futures, forwards, and other securities whose value is derived from the
price of another, underlying asset. For example, a futures contract to purchase oil sets a fixed
purchase/selling price for a future date, but its value depends on the price of oil. These derivatives can
help businesses divest risks that are not core to their business, such as foreign exchange and input price
(like oil) risk.
Regulatory dialectic -the pressures that financial institutions and regulatory bodies exert on each other.
For example, when restrictions are removed, growth opportunities may increase. However, the absence
of regulatory restrictions may also lead to problems such as the global financial crisis starting in 2007
caused by excessive financial leverage, so it is important that there be an appropriate level of regulatory
oversight.
ESG –Investors and corporations (and their many stakeholders) are increasingly focused on
Environmental, Societal, and Governance issues. This includes employee and customer welfare as well
as climate change and pollution.
These trends have made financial management a much more complex and technical activity.
Ross et al., Fundamentals of Corporate Finance 12th Canadian Edition Solutions Manual
© 2025
1-3
INTRODUCTION TO CORPORATE FINANCE Mini Cases Solutions ✅
Learning Objectives: Excel Solutions ✅
LO1 The basic types of financial management decisions and the role of the financial manager.
LO2 The financial implications of the different forms of business organization.
LO3 The goal of financial management.
LO4 The conflicts of interests that can arise between managers and owners.
LO5 The roles of financial institutions and markets.
LO6 Types of financial institutions.
LO7 Trends in financial markets.
Answers to Concepts Review and Critical Thinking Questions:
1. (LO1) Capital budgeting (deciding on whether to expand a manufacturing plant), capital structure
(deciding whether to issue new equity and use the proceeds to retire outstanding debt), and working
capital management (modifying the firm’s credit collection policy with its customers). (LO1)
2. (LO2) Disadvantages: unlimited liability, limited life, difficulty in transferring ownership, hard to raise
capital funds. Some advantages: simpler, less regulation, the owners are also the managers.
3. (LO2) The primary disadvantage of the corporate form is the double taxation to shareholders of
distributed earnings and dividends. Some advantages include: limited liability, ease of transferability,
ability to raise capital, unlimited life, and so forth.
4. (LO4) The treasurer’s office and the controller’s office are the two primary organizational groups that
report directly to the chief financial officer. The controller’s office handles cost and financial
accounting, tax management, and management information systems, while the treasurer’s office is
responsible for cash and credit management, capital budgeting, and financial planning. Therefore, the
study of corporate finance is concentrated within the treasury group’s functions.
5. (LO3) To maximize the current market value (share price) of the equity of the firm (whether it’s
publicly-traded or not).
6. (LO4) In the corporate form of ownership, the shareholders are the owners of the firm. The shareholders
elect the directors of the corporation, who in turn appoint the firm’s management. This separation of
ownership from control in the corporate form of organization is what causes agency problems to exist.
Management may act in its own or someone else’s best interests, rather than those of the shareholders.
If such events occur, they may contradict the goal of maximizing the share price of the equity of the
firm.
7. (LO5) A primary market transaction. The primary market works with securities being sold for the first
time. IPO refers to when a company sells stock to the general public for the first time and therefore the
securities are traded in the primary market. A secondary market transaction would entail the sale
between two 3rd parties (i.e. not the corporation).
8. (LO5) In auction markets like the Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX), brokers and agents meet at a central
location (the exchange) to match buyers and sellers of assets. Physical locations for stock markets are
disappearing as trading becomes more electronic. Dealer markets like Nasdaq consist of dealers
operating at dispersed locales who buy and sell assets themselves, communicating with other dealers
either electronically or literally over-the-counter. Dealer markets are less transparent than auction
markets where trades are reported publicly almost immediately. The auction market run by the TSX is
Ross et al., Fundamentals of Corporate Finance 12th Canadian Edition Solutions Manual
© 2025
1-1
, where the stocks of larger Canadian companies are traded; the TSX also operates a dealer market called
the Venture Exchange for companies too small to qualify for the TSX auction exchange.
9. (LO3) Such organizations frequently pursue social or political missions, so many different goals are
conceivable. One goal that is often cited is revenue minimization; i.e., provide whatever goods and
services are offered at the lowest possible cost to society. Another would be to best serve the maximum
possible number of stakeholders at the lowest cost. A better approach might be to observe that even a
not-for-profit business has equity. Thus, one answer is that the appropriate goal is to maximize the value
of the equity.
10. (LO3) Presumably, the current stock value reflects the risk, timing, and magnitude of all future cash
flows, both short-term and long-term. If this is correct, then the statement is false.
11. (LO3) An argument can be made either way. At the one extreme, we could argue that in a market
economy, all of these things are priced. There is thus an optimal level of, for example, ethical and/or
illegal behavior, and the framework of stock valuation explicitly includes these. At the other extreme,
we could argue that these are non-economic phenomena and are best handled through the political
process. A classic (and highly relevant) thought question that illustrates this debate goes something like
this: “A firm has estimated that the cost of improving the safety of one of its products is $30 million.
However, the firm believes that improving the safety of the product will only save $20 million in
product liability claims and lost customer goodwill. What should the firm do?”
12. (LO3) The goal will be the same, but the best course of action toward that goal may be different because
of differing social, political, and economic institutions.
13. (LO4) The goal of management should be to maximize the share price for the current shareholders. If
management believes that it can improve the profitability of the firm so that the share price will exceed
$35, then they should fight the offer from the outside company. If management believes that this bidder
or other unidentified bidders will actually pay more than $35 per share to acquire the company, then
they should still fight the offer. However, if the current management cannot increase the value of the
firm beyond the bid price, and no other higher bids come in, then management is not acting in the
interests of the shareholders by fighting the offer. Since current managers often lose their jobs when the
corporation is acquired, poorly monitored managers have an incentive to fight corporate takeovers in
situations such as this.
14. (LO4) We would expect agency problems to be less severe in other countries, primarily due to the
relatively small percentage of individual ownership. Fewer individual owners means that each
individual owner has a greater incentive to monitor and control the firm—i.e. there is less free-riding.
The high percentage of institutional ownership might lead to a higher degree of agreement between
owners and managers on decisions concerning risky projects. In addition, institutions may be better able
to implement effective monitoring mechanisms on managers than can individual owners, based on the
institutions’ deeper resources and experiences with their own management. The increase in institutional
ownership of stock in Canada and in the United States and the growing activism of these large
shareholder groups may lead to a reduction in agency problems for Canadian and U.S. corporations and
a more efficient market for corporate control.
15. (LO5) Major institutions:
Chartered banks -accept deposits and issue commercial loans, corporate loans, personal loans and
mortgages.
Trust companies-accept deposits and make loans, but also engage in fiduciary activities such as
managing assets for estates, registered retirement savings plans, etc.
Investment dealers -non-depository institutions that assist firms in issuing new securities.
Insurance companies -engage in indirect financing by accepting funds in a form similar to a deposit and
making loans.
Ross et al., Fundamentals of Corporate Finance 12th Canadian Edition Solutions Manual
© 2025
1-2
, Pension funds -invest contributions from employers and employees in securities offered by financial
markets.
Mutual funds -pool individual investments to purchase a diversified portfolio.
Hedge funds -cater to sophisticated investors and seek high returns by using aggressive financial
strategies prohibited by mutual funds.
Note that larger financial institutions may embody many of these different institution. For example,
CIBC is a chartered bank that owns an investment dealer and mutual funds. Furthermore, it has an
insurance arm “CIBC Insurance”
Major markets:
Money market -financial markets where short-term debt instruments are bought and sold.
Capital markets -financial markets where long-term debt and equity securities are bought and sold.
Derivatives markets – where options and futures are traded on financial instruments and commodities
Primary markets are where securities are sold for the first time; secondary markets are where
outstanding securities trade.
16. (LO5) Spread versus Fee Income:
Banks earn spread or interest income by borrowing from depositors and lending to borrowers (at a
higher yield). An example is a retail deposit and a mortgage. Banks make non-interest or fee income
when they charge commissions or fees for services. An example is an overdraft fee or ATM fee, or the
example in the text, the stamping fee on a banker’s acceptance (which is a form of insurance and
arranging fee).
17. (LO5) Trends:
Financial engineering -the creation of new securities or financial processes. This engineering could be
used to package and sell risky assets to investors; for example, banks can package and sell mortgages
into mortgage backed securities and sell these on to other investors.
Derivative securities -options, futures, forwards, and other securities whose value is derived from the
price of another, underlying asset. For example, a futures contract to purchase oil sets a fixed
purchase/selling price for a future date, but its value depends on the price of oil. These derivatives can
help businesses divest risks that are not core to their business, such as foreign exchange and input price
(like oil) risk.
Regulatory dialectic -the pressures that financial institutions and regulatory bodies exert on each other.
For example, when restrictions are removed, growth opportunities may increase. However, the absence
of regulatory restrictions may also lead to problems such as the global financial crisis starting in 2007
caused by excessive financial leverage, so it is important that there be an appropriate level of regulatory
oversight.
ESG –Investors and corporations (and their many stakeholders) are increasingly focused on
Environmental, Societal, and Governance issues. This includes employee and customer welfare as well
as climate change and pollution.
These trends have made financial management a much more complex and technical activity.
Ross et al., Fundamentals of Corporate Finance 12th Canadian Edition Solutions Manual
© 2025
1-3
