CHAPTER 14 B-27Answers to Concepts Review and Critical Thinking Questions1. Assumptions of the Modigliani-Miller theory in a world without taxes: 1) Individuals can borrow at the same interest rate at which the firm borrows. Since investors can purchase securities on margin, an individual’s effective interest rate is probably no higher than that for a firm. Therefore, this assumption is reasonable when applying MM’s theory to the real world. If a firm were able to borrow at a rate lower than individuals, the firm’s value would increase through corporate leverage. As MM Proposition I states, this is not the case in a world with no taxes. 2) There are no taxes. In the real world, firms do pay taxes. In the presence of corporate taxes, the value of a firm is positively related to its debt level. Since interest payments are deductible, increasing debt reduces taxes and raises the value of the firm. 3) There are no costs of financial distress. In the real world, costs of financial distress can be substantial. Since stockholders eventually bear these costs, there are incentives for a firm to lower the amount of debt in its capital structure. This topic will be discussed in more detail in later chapters.2. False. A reduction in leverage will decrease both the risk of the stock and its expected return. Modigliani and Miller state that, in the absence of taxes, these two effects exactly cancel each other out and leave the price of the stock and the overall value of the firm unchanged.3. False. Modigliani-Miller Proposition II (No Taxes) states that the required return on a firm’s equity is positively related to the firm’s debt-equity ratio [RS = R0 + (B/S)(R0 – RB)]. Therefore, any increase in the amount of debt in a firm’s capital structure will increase the required return on the firm’s equity.4. Interest payments are tax deductible, where payments to shareholders (dividends) are not tax deductible. 5. Business risk is the equity risk arising from the nature of the firm’s operating activity, and is directly related to the systematic risk of the firm’s assets. Financial risk is the equity risk that is due entirely to the firm’s chosen capital structure. As financial leverage, or the use of debt financing, increases, so does financial risk and, hence, the overall risk of the equity. Thus, Firm B could have a higher cost of equity if it uses greater leverage.6. No, it doesn’t follow. While it is true that the equity and debt costs are rising, the key thing to remember is that the cost of debt is still less than the cost of equity. Since we are using more and more debt, the WACC does not necessarily rise.7. Because many relevant factors such as bankruptcy costs, tax asymmetries, and agency costs cannot easily be identified or quantified, it’s practically impossible to determine the precise debt/equity ratio that maximizes the value of the firm. However, if the firm’s cost of new debt suddenly becomes much more expensive, it’s probably true that the firm is too highly leveraged.8. It’s called leverage (or “gearing” in the UK) because it magnifies gains or losses.9. Homemade leverage refers to the use of borrowing on the personal level as opposed to the corporate level. 10. The basic goal is to minimize the value of non-marketed claims.Solutions to Questions and ProblemsNOTE: All end-of-chapter problems were solved using a spreadsheet. Many problems require multiple steps. Due to space and readability constraints, when these intermediate steps are included in this solutions manual, rounding may appear to have occurred. However, the final answer for each problem is found without rounding during any step in the problem. Basic1. a. A table outlining the income statement for the three possible states of the economy is shown below. The EPS is the net income divided by the 2,500 shares outstanding. The last row shows the percentage change in EPS the company will experience in a recession or an expansion economy. RecessionNormalExpansionEBIT£5,600£14,000£18,200Interest 0 0 0NI£5,600£14,000£18,200EPS£ 2.24£ 5.60£ 7.284%DEPS–60–––+30 b. If the company undergoes the proposed recapitalization, it will repurchase: Share price = Equity / Shares outstanding Share price = £150,000/2,500 Share price = £60 Shares repurchased = Debt issued / Share price Shares repurchased =£60,000/£60 Shares repurchased = 1,000 The interest payment each year under all three scenarios will be: Interest payment = £60,000(.05) = £3,000 The last row shows the percentage change in EPS the company will experience in a recession or an expansion economy under the proposed recapitalization. RecessionNormalExpansionEBIT£5,600£14,000£18,200Interest 3,000 3,000 3,000NI£2,600£11,000£15,200EPS£1.73£ 。