14.4 Capital Structure Fallacies
Use the following information to answer the question(s) below.
Nielson Motors is currently an all equity financed firm. It expects to generate EBIT of $20 million over
the next year. Currently Nielson has 8 million shares outstanding and its stock is trading at $20.00 per
share. Nielson is considering changing its capital structure by borrowing $50 million at an interest rate
of 8% and using the proceeds to repurchase shares. Assume perfect capital markets.
1) Nielson’s EPS if they choose not to change their capital structure is closest to:
A) $2.00
B) $2.30
C) $2.50
D) $2.90
2) Nielson’s EPS if they change their capital structure is closest to:
A) $2.00
B) $2.30
C) $2.50
D) $2.90
3) Which of the following statements is FALSE?
A) The money taken in by the firm as a result of the share issue exactly offsets the dilution of the shares.
B) Most analysts prefer to use performance measures and valuation multiples that are based on the
firm’s earnings before interest has been deducted.
C) Because the firm’s earnings per share and price-earnings ratio are affected by leverage implies that
we can always reliably compare these measures across firms with different capital structures.
D) In general, as long as the firm sells the new shares of equity at a fair price, there will be no gain or
loss to shareholders associated with the equity issue itself.