b. Amount Needed = $15,990,000
15. P/E ratio for new public issue (LO15-2) Richmond Rent-A-Car is about to go public. The
investment banking firm of Tinkers, Evers, and Chance is attempting to price the issue. The
car rental industry generally trades at a 20 percent discount below the P/E ratio on the
Standard & Poor’s 500 Stock Index. Assume that index currently has a P/E ratio of 25. The
firm can be compared to the car rental industry as follows:
Richmond Car Rental Industry
Growth rate in earnings per share……… 15% 10%
Consistency of performance…………….. Increased earnings Increased earnings
4 out of 5 years 3 out of 5 years
Debt to total assets………………………….. 52% 39%
Turnover of product………………………… Slightly below Average
average
Quality of management……………………. High Average
Assume, in assessing the initial P/E ratio, the investment banker will first determine the
appropriate industry P/E based on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index. Then, a half point will
be added to the P/E ratio for each case in which Richmond Rent-A-Car is superior to the
industry norm, and a half point will be deducted for an inferior comparison. On this basis,
what should the initial P/E be for the firm?
15-15. Solution:
Richmond Rent-A-Car