What Happens to a Firm That Reinvests Its Earnings at a Rate

question 61

Multiple Choice

What happens to a firm that reinvests its earnings at a rate equal to the firm's required return?

• A) Its stock price will remain constant.
• B) Its stock price will increase by the sustainable growth rate.
• C) Its stock price will decline unless the dividend payout ratio is zero.
• D) Its stock price will decline unless the plowback rate exceeds the required return.

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Definitions:

Retained Earnings

The portion of net earnings not paid out as dividends but retained by the company to be reinvested in its core business or to pay debt.

Dividends Payable

Dividends payable are a liability on a company's balance sheet representing the amount of dividends that the company has declared but has not yet paid out to its shareholders.

Dividends Expense

The sum distributed from a portion of a company's earnings to its shareholders; often associated with preference shares.

Common Stock Dividend Distributable

Stockholders’ equity account that accumulates a stock dividend that has been declared but not yet issued and distributed.