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30 May 2019

Companies raise funds through debt capital (principally through bonds) or equity (common stock). More than 15 years ago the CFO of Home Depot spoke at Nova (I cannot remember the exact date due to my age). He was asked the following question: "Why does HD not have any long term debt or much debt at all to speak of?" His answer: "because we like to sleep at night." Comment on debt and equity and the capital structure of a company. For example, is it wise to have no debt? Would the CFO's answer be acceptable if you were a shareholder?

Please explain with details

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Keith LeannonLv2

31 May 2019

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Please read the article and answer these THREE questions:

1. Why are conditions currently favorable for firms to issue debt and pay out the proceeds to stockholders?

2. What are dangerous impacts of issuing additional debt mentioned in the article?

3. TransDigm used the proceeds of their debt issue to pay a one-time dividend while Intel used the proceeds to repurchase shares. How does a repurchase differ from a one-time dividend? Why do you think the two firms chose different approaches to distributing cash to shareholders?

___________

"Borrowing for Dividends Raises Worries" at the Wall Street Journal on 10/06/2009

The nascent trend is controversial because corporate borrowers are sinking themselves deeper into debt to pay out special dividends, buy back stock or finance acquisitions. While such moves were all the rage during the credit boom, most corporate-bond offerings during the recession have been used to reduce debt or stockpile cash.

Eric Felder, global head of credit trading at Barclays Capital, says the lure of low rates and companies' stables of cash increases "the risk of non-bondholder friendly events."

Last week's sale of $425 million of bonds by aircraft-parts manufacturer TransDigm Group Inc. is one of the back-to-the-past corporate-bond deals causing concern among some analysts. More than $360 million of the proceeds will be used to pay a special cash dividend to shareholders and management of the Cleveland company.

The added debt increased TransDigm's borrowings to 4.3 times its earnings before interest and taxes, compared with 3.1 times before last week's deal. The expected dividend of $7.50 to $7.70 a share is equal to nearly all of the net income that TransDigm reported since the end of fiscal 2003, according to Moody's Investors Service.

Moody's said the dividend "illustrates the company's aggressive financial policy." Moody's gave the new debt a junk rating of B3, even though the ratings firm said TransDigm's "strong operating performance will enable the company to service the increased debt level."

Sean Maroney, director of investor relations at TransDigm, says the "stability of our business, high profit margins and consistent cash flow" give the company "the ability to support this level of leverage."

Borrowing from bondholders to pay shareholder dividends is "a hallmark of an earlier credit era," Jeffrey Rosenberg, head of credit strategy at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, wrote in a report Friday. Such deals were popular in 2003 and 2004, the last time the Federal Reserve lowered its benchmark interest rate to historically low levels, keeping it at 1% for more than a year.

With the federal-funds rate at 0% for nine months now and confidence returning to the stock and debt markets, investors have been driven to take on more risk. That is flooding the corporate-bond market with cash. Investors poured $43 billion into investment-grade corporate-bond funds in the second quarter and nearly $40 billion in the third quarter -- almost double previous peak quarters, according to Lipper AMG Data Services.

The wave of buying drove down borrowing costs for the average highly rated corporation to about 5%, according to Merrill, a level not seen since 2005. In the heat of the crisis last October, such rates averaged 9%. Through the end of September, more than 1,000 high-rated companies borrowed a record $860 billion, according to Dealogic.

In July, Intel Corp. INTC 0.33% sold $1.75 billion of convertible bonds, planning to use $1.5 billion of the proceeds to buy back shares. A spokesman for Intel declined to comment.

The computer-chip giant has a strong credit rating of single-A, so it doesn't carry a burdensome debt load. Still, the deal raised eyebrows among some analysts and investors, who say floating debt to buy back stock could become more common as companies regain confidence.

And as merger-and-acquisition activity revs up, the cheaper cost of debt compared with equity is tempting companies to use bond sales as a deal-making war chest.

Analysts are watching Kraft Foods Inc. in anticipation that the company would finance its proposed purchase of U.K. chocolate, candy and chewing gum maker Cadbury PLC by raising tons of debt. Last month's unsolicited bid by Kraft was then valued at about $16.7 billion, but it could be weeks before Kraft submits a formal offer.

"Kraft is committed to maintaining an investment-grade rating," a Kraft spokesman said, declining to comment further.

So far in 2009, returns to high-grade bond investors are 19%, according to Merrill. "We've seen a feeding frenzy" because of low interest rates, says Kathleen Gaffney, portfolio manager at Loomis, Sayles & Co. She sold some bonds recently to take profits from the rally. Loomis Sayles wants to have cash on the sidelines in case the Fed raises rates soon or Treasury bonds sell off.

maroonclam133

Please read the article and answer these THREE questions:

1. Why are conditions currently favorable for firms to issue debt and pay out the proceeds to stockholders?

2. What are dangerous impacts of issuing additional debt mentioned in the article?

___________ "Borrowing for Dividends Raises Worries" at the Wall Street Journal on 10/06/2009

Rock-bottom interest rates and thawed credit markets are emboldening some companies to use bond-sale proceeds to go on the offensive, even if that means rewarding shareholders at the expense of bondholders. The nascent trend is controversial because corporate borrowers are sinking themselves deeper into debt to pay out special dividends, buy back stock or finance acquisitions. While such moves were all the rage during the credit boom, most corporate-bond offerings during the recession have been used to reduce debt or stockpile cash.

Eric Felder, global head of credit trading at Barclays Capital, says the lure of low rates and companies' stables of cash increases "the risk of non-bondholder friendly events." Last week's sale of $425 million of bonds by aircraft-parts manufacturer TransDigm Group Inc. is one of the back-to-the-past corporate-bond deals causing concern among some analysts. More than $360 million of the proceeds will be used to pay a special cash dividend to shareholders and management of the Cleveland company. The added debt increased TransDigm's borrowings to 4.3 times its earnings before interest and taxes, compared with 3.1 times before last week's deal. The expected dividend of $7.50 to $7.70 a share is equal to nearly all of the net income that TransDigm reported since the end of fiscal 2003, according to Moody's Investors Service. Moody's said the dividend "illustrates the company's aggressive financial policy." Moody's gave the new debt a junk rating of B3, even though the ratings firm said TransDigm's "strong operating performance will enable the company to service the increased debt level." Sean Maroney, director of investor relations at TransDigm, says the "stability of our business, high profit margins and consistent cash flow" give the company "the ability to support this level of leverage." Borrowing from bondholders to pay shareholder dividends is "a hallmark of an earlier credit era," Jeffrey Rosenberg, head of credit strategy at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, wrote in a report Friday. Such deals were popular in 2003 and 2004, the last time the Federal Reserve lowered its benchmark interest rate to historically low levels, keeping it at 1% for more than a year.

Companies like Dex Media Inc. DEX -0.18% took on debt to pay dividends to its private-equity owners, including Carlyle Group and Welsh, Carson, Anderson & Stowe, before taking the companies public. Dex Media filed for bankruptcy earlier this year under a mountain of debt. With the federal-funds rate at 0% for nine months now and confidence returning to the stock and debt markets, investors have been driven to take on more risk. That is flooding the corporate-bond market with cash. Investors poured $43 billion into investment-grade corporate-bond funds in the second quarter and nearly $40 billion in the third quarter -- almost double previous peak quarters, according to Lipper AMG Data Services. The wave of buying drove down borrowing costs for the average highly rated corporation to about 5%, according to Merrill, a level not seen since 2005. In the heat of the crisis last October, such rates averaged 9%. Through the end of September, more than 1,000 high-rated companies borrowed a record $860 billion, according to Dealogic. In July, Intel Corp. INTC 0.33% sold $1.75 billion of convertible bonds, planning to use $1.5 billion of the proceeds to buy back shares. A spokesman for Intel declined to comment. The computer-chip giant has a strong credit rating of single-A, so it doesn't carry a burdensome debt load. Still, the deal raised eyebrows among some analysts and investors, who say floating debt to buy back stock could become more common as companies regain confidence. And as merger-and-acquisition activity revs up, the cheaper cost of debt compared with equity is tempting companies to use bond sales as a deal-making war chest. Analysts are watching Kraft Foods Inc. in anticipation that the company would finance its proposed purchase of U.K. chocolate, candy and chewing gum maker Cadbury PLC by raising tons of debt. Last month's unsolicited bid by Kraft was then valued at about $16.7 billion, but it could be weeks before Kraft submits a formal offer.

Three major credit-ratings agencies have warned Kraft that they could slash the company's debt ratings if the company reaches a deal agreement with Cadbury. At the current offering price, Kraft would need to shell out at least $6 billion in cash, much of it likely from the debt markets, according to corporate-bond research firm Gimme Credit. "Kraft is committed to maintaining an investment-grade rating," a Kraft spokesman said, declining to comment further. So far in 2009, returns to high-grade bond investors are 19%, according to Merrill. "We've seen a feeding frenzy" because of low interest rates, says Kathleen Gaffney, portfolio manager at Loomis, Sayles & Co. She sold some bonds recently to take profits from the rally. Loomis Sayles wants to have cash on the sidelines in case the Fed raises rates soon or Treasury bonds sell off.

coppertiger522

PLEASE ANSWER AS MANY QUESTIONS AS POSSIBLE

12. Media companies have historically stood out from other industries with a practice of focusing investors on non-GAAP measures like EBITDA. Why?

13. Apple, Inc. reported last week that its balance sheet cash at March 31, 2017 now exceeds an astonishing $257 billion, more than the entire annual economic output of many countries, including Chile, Pakistan and Finland. Please read the following disclosure from Apple in conjunction with its Q1 2017 earnings release and explain 1) whether you think the magnitude of this return of capital plan is satisfactory from a shareholder perspective and 2) why do you think Apple needs to "access the domestic and international debt markets to assist in funding the program"?

Apple announced that its Board of Directors has authorized an increase of $50 billion to the Companyâs program to return capital to shareholders. Under the expanded program, Apple plans to spend a cumulative total of $300 billion by the end of March 2019.

âWe generated strong operating cash flow of $12.5 billion and returned over $10 billion to our investors in the March quarter,â said Luca Maestri, Appleâs CFO. âGiven the strength of our business and our confidence in our future, we are happy to announce another $50 billion increase to our capital return program today.â

As part of the latest update to the program, the Board has increased its share repurchase authorization to $210 billion from the $175 billion level announced a year ago.

The Board has approved a 10.5% increase to the Companyâs quarterly dividend, and has declared a dividend of $0.63 per share of the Companyâs common stock, payable on May 18, 2017 to shareholders of record as of the close of business on May 15, 2017.

From the inception of its capital return program in August 2012 through March 2017, Apple has returned over $211 billion to shareholders, including $151 billion in share repurchases.

The Company plans to continue to access the domestic and international debt markets to assist in funding the program.

14. Refer to Facebook's Q1 2017 investor press release here: https://investor.fb.com/investor-news/press-release-details/2017/Facebook-Reports-First-Quarter-2017-Results/default.aspx (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site.

e. What is Facebook's current market capitalization and enterprise value using a market price of $150 per FB share?

f. Provide Facebook's EV/adjusted EBITDA and P/E ratios using $150 per FB share.

g. Hypothetically, let's say Facebook has an agreement to buy Pandora at $14 per P share, or about $3.5 billion. How would you recommend to the Facebook CFO as to how to finance (pay for) the acquisition and why?

h. Do you think that there is another company on the planet with a more impressive set of financial statements than Facebook?