No Growth Incorporated Had Operating Income Before Interest and Taxes

question 57

Essay

No Growth Incorporated had operating income before interest and taxes in 2011 of $220 million. The firm was expected to generate this level of operating income indefinitely. The firm had depreciation expense of $10 million that same year. Capital spending totaled $20 million during 2011. At the end of 2010 and 2011, working capital totaled $70 and $80 million, respectively. The firm's combined marginal state, local, and federal tax rate was 40% and its debt outstanding had a market value of $1.2 billion. The 10-year Treasury bond rate is 5% and the borrowing rate for companies exhibiting levels of creditworthiness similar to No Growth is 7%. The historical risk premium for stocks over the risk free rate of return is 5.5%. No Growth's beta was estimated to be 1.0. The firm had 2,500,000 common shares outstanding at the end of 2011. No Growth's target debt to total capital ratio is 30%.
a. Estimate free cash flow to the firm in 2011.
b. Estimate the firm's cost of capital.
c. Estimate the value of the firm (i.e., includes the value of equity and debt) at the end of 2011, assuming that it will generate the value of free cash flow estimated in (a) indefinitely.
d. Estimate the value of the equity of the firm at the end of 2011.
e. Estimate the value per share at the end of 2011.

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Definitions:

Always Expressed

refers to genes or traits that are continually active or manifest in an organism, regardless of environmental conditions.

Cell

The smallest structural and functional unit of an organism, typically microscopic and consisting of cytoplasm and a nucleus enclosed in a membrane.

Activator Protein

A positive regulatory protein that stimulates transcription when bound to DNA. Compare with repressor protein.

Positive Control

A genetic control system in which a regulatory protein binds to DNA, turning on transcription of a gene. Compare with negative control.