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Spreadsheet Supplement for case 204022

In 1997, the U.S. Treasury was deciding whether to proceed with a proposal to issue inflation-indexed bonds. This case explores the challenges facing innovation in the financial markets as the Treasury tries to determine whether to introduce Treasury Inflation-Protection Securities.

Employees, officers, and directors of Texas Gulf Sulphur acquired or tipped off others to acquire common stock or options before and concurrent with the announcement of a major discovery of ore. The question is whether any of these acquisitions violated either federal securities law, state fiduciary law, or ethical standards.

Examines Mondavi Winery's struggle to communicate its value proposition to the market following an apparently successful IPO. The Mondavi Winery had a strong reputation for innovation in the wine industry and had undertaken an IPO to secure the funding needed to continue to build on this tradition. Although the IPO was an initial success, the stock price soon began to fall. Places students in the role of the company founder, Robert Mondavi, as he considers how to communicate the vision of his family's company to investors. Beyond the primary issue of developing a communication strategy, this case allows students to consider the demands for communication created by an IPO and the impact on the management of the company.

Spreadsheet Supplement for case 104056.

In 1997, the U.S. Treasury was deciding whether to proceed with a proposal to issue inflation-indexed bonds. This case explores the challenges facing innovation in the financial markets as the Treasury tries to determine whether to introduce Treasury Inflation-Protection Securities.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is responsible for the country's monetary policy, and its decisions are intended to support the country's overall strategy for sustainable economic growth with price stability. MAS has been very successful in managing exchange rates using a managed float system, which allows more flexibility than a fixed exchange rate but less volatility than freely floating exchange rates. Following the Asian financial crisis, Dr. Khor Hoe Ee and his colleagues must decide whether to continue to manage exchange rates through the managed float or whether alternative monetary policies would be more effective in supporting Singapore's economic goals.

Spreadsheet Supplement for case 204037

Spreadsheet Supplement for case 804098

Paul Kennedy, executive director of Fleet's Managed Asset Division, must decide whether to extend further credit to Polaroid Corp. in the fall of 2001. Polaroid's credit rating had been declining rapidly, but it was a major employer in the Boston area with many employees who were Fleet Bank customers.

West Teleservice, a telemarketing firm, is considering going public at the end of 1996. Asks students to price the IPO. During the previous 18 months, seven other telemarketing firms have gone public. Prior to this, there were no publicly traded telemarketing firms. The industry is in flux. Historically, wholly owned subsidiaries of telephone companies, banks, and insurance companies conducted telemarketing. However, cost cutting caused many of these firms to outsource the business. Thus, although total telemarketing business isn't growing very quickly, the outsourced portion is growing 50% per year.

Neverfail Computing, a high-potential start-up, links 4F (founders, family, friends, and foolhardy) funding and formal venture capital. Neverfail Computing has a proven team with a proven lead entrepreneur. The company is in an exciting market niche in a rapidly growing technology--RAID (Redundant Arrays of Independent Disks) hot-pluggable, fault-tolerant, SCSI (Small Computer System Interface) hard-drive disk arrays. It is the kind of high-potential venture that attracts venture capitalists.

Home Store, Inc. is a retail chain of home improvement stores catering primarily to middle income female homemakers interested in undertaking do-it-yourself (DIY) and do-it-for-me (DIFM) projects. The company grew rapidly from a single store with sales revenue of $8.8 million in 2001 to 20 stores with total sales of $11.334 million in 2003. Yet, the company's rapid growth in revenues has been accompanied by declining profits and a substantial increase in receivables, inventories, and capital investments in new stores. The resulting cash outflows have been financed by increased borrowing from Bank of America as well as stretching the company's payables, i.e., taking longer to pay suppliers. Bank of America reluctantly increased the maximum amount available to the company under its term loan to $5 million from $2.6 million. In early January 2004, Hermione Granger, President and Chief Executive Officer of Home Store, Inc., and Ron Weasley, the company's chief financial officer, completed a review of the company's financial situation. The company's executives are unsure whether the new credit limit will permit the company to implement its growth strategy since there is only $1.464 million remaining under the term loan at the beginning of 2004.

Spreadsheet Supplement for case 204081

Helps students understand the principles underlying competition and antitrust policy in the context of the proposed GE-Honeywell merger. The U.S. Department of Justice has already approved the transaction and it is being considered by the European Commission. The Competition Commissioner, Mario Monti, must analyze the economic consequences of the proposed merger and evaluate how it will affect competitors, customers, and product markets. He must also address key policy choices. In understanding the nuances of the transaction, students identify different sources of value and must confront the question of whether the efficiencies generated enhance social welfare in the long run. The decision of whether to approve the merger, and on what terms, provides students with insights into the complexities of operating under multiple regulatory regimes.

With electricity generating businesses around the world, AES Corp. is seeking a methodology for calculating the cost of capital for its various businesses and potential projects. In the past, AES used the same cost of capital for all of its capital budgeting, but the company's international expansion has raised questions about this approach and whether a single cost of capital adequately accounts for the different risks AES faces in its diverse businesses and diverse environments. The company recently suffered heavy losses from currency devaluations in South America and regulatory changes in other countries. The director of the corporate planning group is developing a methodology for taking account of different country and project risks, and the case allows students to use this methodology to calculate the cost of capital for 15 different projects around the world. Students must consider how a global firm can account for differing risks in evaluating its international operations and in investing abroad. To obtain executable spreadsheets (courseware), please contact our customer service department at [email protected].

HiJinx is formulating its financial policy after a failed IPO. Options include landlord financing of its expansion, though with the knowledge that its real estate strategy may be compromised.

During a weekend social event, a company president learns of an attractive investment tenuously connected to his firm's line of business. Is this a corporate opportunity?

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The head of SysCom's test equipment division is concerned about how to answer employee and customer questions concerning the possible sale or liquidation of the division. The consequences of alternative approaches (full transparency vs. strong optimism and reassurance) for the various parties differ substantially. Also involves important legal, regulatory, and reporting requirements.