A New Firm Is Developing Its Business Plan

question 66

Multiple Choice

A new firm is developing its business plan. It will require $565,000 of assets, and it projects $452,800 of sales and $354,300 of operating costs for the first year. Management is quite sure of these numbers because of contracts with its customers and suppliers. It can borrow at a rate of 7.5%, but the bank requires it to have a TIE of at least 4.0, and if the TIE falls below this level the bank will call in the loan and the firm will go bankrupt. What is the maximum debt ratio the firm can use? (Hint: Find the maximum dollars of interest, then the debt that produces that interest, and then the related debt ratio.)

• A) 47.33%
• B) 49.82%
• C) 52.45%
• D) 55.21%
• E) 58.11%

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Definitions:

Trial Balance

A financial worksheet that gathers the balances from all ledgers into columns for debits and credits, ensuring both totals match.

Debit Totals

The sum of all debit entries made in a company's accounting records during a specific period.

Credit Totals

The aggregate amount of credit entries recorded in a financial system or ledger.

Trial Balance

A spreadsheet where the totals of all ledger balances are gathered into equal totals in debit and credit columns for accounts.