Course Syllabus  MBA 604

St. Bonaventure University

“Fall” 2006

Instructor: Jim Mahar, 231 Murphy Building, 375-2359, jimmahar@FinanceProfessor.com, jimmahar@yahoo.com, or jmahar@sbu.edu  

AIM: FinanceProfessor

Class time: Wednesday 6:00 PM Murphy 103

Office hours: Monday 2:00-3:30, Wed 1:00 to 3:30, Thurs. 4:00-5:00.  And obviously by appt.

Text:   Fundamentals of Corporate Finance, Ross, Westerfield, and Jordan 7^th edition..(BTW any revenue I get from this will be totally donated to BonaResponds)

 MBA 604 is the introductory graduate class in corporate finance.  Its purpose is to develop an understanding of some of the tools used in the financial world.  We will study the financial system, compound interest, time value of money techniques, capital budgeting, an introduction to capital structure theory, and use the theory underlying corporate financial decisions.  This will involve ratio analysis, cash flow calculations, as well as forecasting business activity.  There will also be a brief introduction into derivative securities.  The student is expected to apply these concepts and techniques to make intelligent analyses and well-reasoned decisions.

Course Objectives

Finance is crucial to any business dealing and as such is one of the most important things you can learn if you plan on entering the business world. This course will introduce you to the world of finance and expand your knowledge of finance in general and corporate finance in particular.  The class will introduce you to firms and how they interact with the capital markets, we will discuss the goals of organizations and how the goals of different stakeholders vary. We will learn the time value of money, stock and bond valuation models, and the basic risk-return relationship.

More specific objectives:

• Describe the model of the financial system
• Apply Time Value of Money techniques in both personal and corporate decisions
• Understand the relative risks and returns for various investments
• Use ratio analysis to evaluate financial position of firms
• Correctly use various valuation techniques
• Explain the implications and limitations of the Market Efficiency Hypothesis
• Identify the different types of business organizations and the relative importance of corporations.
• Explain the nexus of contracts model and discuss its importance
• Discuss intelligently differing capital structure theories
• Understand and be able to calculate weighted average cost of capital  
• Discuss common trends in the finance
• Identify opportunities to use finance theory

Prerequisites  As per catalog

Class website: http://financeprofessor.com/mba604/MBA604mainpage.html

            IMPORTANT NOTICE: The site is meant as a means of assistance to you and not as a replacement for text or coming to class.  For some chapters there will be much online coverage, for others there will not be as much coverage.  Remember this is not meant to replace your other means of learning but ratehr as an additional supplement.

Class lectures will be recorded and provided in an audio format.  

 
Required Texts and other Materials

1. Fundamentals of Corporate Finance, Stephen A. Ross, Randolph W. Westerfield, and  Jordan 
2. Access to FinanceProfessor.com  and FinanceClass Blog
3. E-instruction (CPS) clicker and registration 
   

Supplemental Texts and Websites

Text Website: http://highered.mcgraw-hill.com/sites/0072991593/information_center_view0/

Technology Requirements

• Proficiency in Excel, an internet browser, and ideally the use of a RSS reader
• You will need a calculator that can do exponents. You may want a financial calculator but it is not required.

Evaluation Procedures

Students will be evaluated based on their performances on exams, quizzes, projects, and class projects. 

• Exams will assess your comprehension of the covered topics as well as your ability to apply the concepts and theories to new and different situations.  One exam will be given during the course of the semester as well as a comprehensive final exam.  The dates for the exams are tentative.  The date of the final is determined by the university calendar.  Students who are absent from an exam without prior permission from the instructor will receive a “0” on that exam.
•  Quizzes will be given in class more or less every class to assess your understanding of the material and to provide you with more timely feedback than is possible with exams.  These quizzes will be in class and will be done with the einstruction system.  Failure to attend class the day of an in-class quiz will result in a zero for that quiz.  There will be no make-up quizzes.
•  Cases will occasionally be assigned and will be done as a group project.  Each group will have approximately 3 members. Students will form their own groups.  Failure to hand in projects on time will result in a zero for that project.

 Grades

            Class participation, attendance (50:50)              20%

            Homework/cases/quizzes                                  20%

            Midterm                                                           25%

            Final                                                                 35%    

Grading Scale

Due to the difficulty of the class, I reserve the right to grade on a curve, however, in the absence of that eventuality, the schedule of grades will be as follows:

            A         90 – 100%

            B+       83 – 90%

            B          70 – 82.9%

            C         Below 70

 
Description of Instructional Methodology

We will cover a great deal of material. I make no qualms about this not being a "cake" course. It is imperative that you "keep up" with the  material.                   

You are expected to attend class AND to participate.  Sitting quietly is not sufficient. I would HIGHLY recommend reading the book prior to class, but minimally reading the chapter introduction and summaries prior to class.  You will be amazed at how much better (and easier!) class is when you make this small investment.  The course will be centered on lectures and text readings but will also incorporate financial events as they occur throughout the semester.

University Policies

Academic Honesty Policy at St. Bonaventure University:

I am committed to St. Bonaventure University’s academic environment for students, supporting and rewarding only the highest standards of ethical behavior.  That said, academic dishonesty, in any form, will not be tolerated.  Please consult the St. Bonaventure University Student Handbook for a list of unacceptable practices, penalties to be assigned and procedures to be followed in prosecuting cases of alleged academic dishonesty.  Further, the St. Bonaventure University Undergraduate Catalog may be consulted for specific details on all academic policies at St. Bonaventure.
 
Short version:  don’t cheat.  If you do and I catch you, you lose.

 Students with Disabilities

Students with disabilities who believe that they may need accommodations in this class are encouraged to contact the Disability Support Services Office, Doyle Room 26, at 375-2065 as soon as possible to better ensure that such accommodations are implemented in a timely fashion.  Documentation from this office is required before accommodations can be made.

             Short Version: Let me know and I will help you or help you find help.

 Instructor Policies

Attendance

As you can see from the schedule, we will be investigating a new topic at nearly every class.  It is critical that you come to class.  With permission you can attend the other class if you have a conflict with your scheduled class time.  Students who aren’t in class on a regular basis will not do well.  Students are also expected to be on time for class and to be prepared. 

   Short Version: come to class

 Participation

Students are expected to actively participate in class by asking and answering questions.  NOTE: attending class should not be confused with participation!

    Short Version: Participate

 Preparation

Students are expected to have the reading assignment completed when they arrive at class.  While some material is difficult and may need additional explanation, students should have a basic understanding of the concepts that are to be covered that day.  Minimally please read the introductions and summaries of each chapter we plan on covering that day in class.

   Short Version: Come to class prepared

Courtesy

Students are expected to arrive on time and prepared for each class meeting and to refrain from behavior that distracts other students (answering cell phones, text messaging, etc.).  

   Short version: remember the golden rule.

 Collaboration

There will be occasions during this course when students will be given the opportunity to work collaboratively with one other student or in a larger group.  Collaborative work allows students to learn from each other.  Individual participation is key to the success of any collaboration.

     Short version: work well with others 

DON’T CHEAT!!!

            Exemplary academic integrity is expected and assumed.  Violating this assumption to any degree is not tolerated and carries severe consequences. 

Be sure to give credit (cite) work in homeworks, papers, cases etc.  For instance, much of this syllabi (the various policies) and the format are a product of an email from Barb Russell and Mike Fischer.  So if it looks familiar, that is why.  J

Optional Math Review

Because many students have either not had math within the last few years or would benefit from an opportunity to refresh their memories, this year we will be having an optional math/stats review class.  This is scheduled for Friday September 8^th at 12:30 pm.  Attendance is optional but recommended.

Study Groups

 Study Groups are a tradition at many larger MBA schools as a means of improving learning.  These peer-based study groups help students who struggling with the material by improving their problem solving skills, providing an incentive to stay current with the work, and reducing the workload on projects.  For these reasons, the formation of study groups is recommended and encouraged.   Additionally the use any online collaboration tools to facilitate these study groups is highly recommended. 

Other

Now that the legal and administrative parts of the class are out of the way it should be noted that this will also be a very fun class. You will be challenged, but you will learn a great deal. This will help you in other finance classes as well as in both your personal financial life as well as in your business life.

Please let me know of any problem you are having--Preferably early in the semester. Tell me in advance of the problem when we can still solve it, not afterwards when it is too late.