Introduction to Finance Course Syllabus, Lecture notes of Investment Management and Portfolio Theory

Download Introduction to Finance Course Syllabus and more Lecture notes Investment Management and Portfolio Theory in PDF only on Docsity! Syllabus EWMBA 203: Introduction to Finance Spring-B 2020 Instructor: Veselina Dinova, Office hours: Saturday, 1 pm – 2 pm and by appointment at any time Class time: Saturday, 9 am – 1 pm and 2 pm – 6 pm in Chou Hall N300 *no classes on Saturday, March 28 (Spring Break) GSIs: Ada Johnson: Office hours: by appointment (please include EWMBA 203 in the subject for timely response) Discussions: TBA (via Zoom, recorded) Course Objective The main objectives of this course are to explain the key concepts in finance and illustrate how to apply them to real world situations. The topics covered are:  Time value of money  Investment decision rules, Evaluating projects  Basics of bond and stock valuation  Risk and return, Portfolio management  Capital Asset Pricing Model, Cost of capital  Capital structure, Working capital management, Payout policy The learnings from this course are crucial for any business professional regardless of their specific career objectives. The course requires no prior knowledge of finance and is designed as such. The course has been designed so that the median student will spend 6-8 hours per week outside of class studying. Those of you with little background in finance may need more time to prepare. All students are encouraged to request one-on-one time with Veselina and Ada if they need it. Course Structure: A combination of lectures, in-class exercises and case studies will be used throughout the course. In- class discussions, simulations, debates and team assignments are designed to provide a real-world view of the key financial concepts and enhance the learning experience. Please note there is significant dependence among topics. Therefore, it is critical that you are prepared for each class and that you do not fall behind. Course Website We will use bCourses for most course materials (lecture slides and exercises, prerecorded videos, summary notes, articles, discussion section materials, homework, practice quizzes) and Study.net for protected materials (case studies). We will also use bCourses for the graded quizzes, the final exam and other communication. Excel / Financial calculators: We will use excel extensively in class, for the team assignments and other exercises. Even though the use of electronic devices during lectures and class discussions is not permitted, the students should bring a laptop with excel to class and use it when asked. Performing calculations with excel during the quizzes and the final exam is allowed and encouraged. However, students who prefer to use a financial calculator are allowed to do that too and use a calculator of their choice. Recommended Textbook Corporate Finance by Johnathan Berk and Peter DeMarzo, 5th Edition, Pearson Using the textbook is recommended, especially for those students without prior knowledge in finance, but it is not required; prior editions of the textbook are also OK to use. Other course materials:  Class slides – on bCourses (Modules) prior to each class  Summary notes – on bCourses (Modules) prior to each class – the summary notes are a more detailed version of the class slides and are in a narrative format  Excel solutions and pre-recorded short videos for all in-class exercises  Excel solutions for the team assignments  Homework solutions – on bCourses (Assignments) after the homework’s deadline  Practice quizzes – on bCourses (Assignments) after each class  Other relevant articles and materials – on bCourses (Modules) when applicable Class schedule Class 1, March 21 Topic: Course Introduction; Time value of money  Textbook: chapters 3, 4 and 5  Team assignment: trade-off between buying and renting a home in San Francisco (on bCourses): due 9 am on April 4  Homework 1: due 9 am on April 4 Class 2, April 4 Topic: Investment decision rules and Capital budgeting  Textbook: chapters 7 and 8  Team assignment: Case study New Heritage Doll Company (on study.net): due 9 am on April 11  Homework 2 – capital budgeting simulation: due 9 am on April 11 Class 3, April 11 Topic: Capital budgeting simulation debrief, Bonds and Stocks  Textbook: chapter 6 and 9  Team assignment: Optimists versus sceptics Uber and Peloton (to be debriefed on April 18): due 9 am on April 18  Homework 3: due 9 am on April 18 Quiz 1: the topics from weeks 1 through 3, due 9 am on April 18 Class 4, April 18 Topic: Risk and return; Portfolio management  Textbook: chapters 10 and 11 (11.1 - 11.5)  Team assignment: Case study Investments: delineating and efficient portfolio (on study.net): due 9 am on April 25  Homework 4: due 9 am on April 25 Class 5, April 25 Topic: Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM); Cost of capital  Textbook: chapters 11 (11.7-11.8) and 12  Team assignment: Estimate the cost of capital of AirBnB (on bCourses): due 9 am on May 2  Homework 5: due 9 am on May 2 Quiz 2: the topics from weeks 4 and 5, due 9 am on May 2 Class 6, May 2 Topic: Capital structure; Working capital management  Textbook: chapters 14, 15 and 16  Team assignment: Recommend an efficient capital structure for Lululemon (on bCourses): due 9 am on May 9  Homework Final: Simulation on financing working capital and growth (HBS): due 9 am on May 9 Class 7, May 9 Topic: Simulation on financing working capital and growth debrief; Payout policy; Course wrap-up  Textbook: none  Team assignment - COMPETITION: three team challenges to review the course topics Final exam (take-home): May 16