(2.) Should the component costs be figured on a before-tax or an after-tax basis? Answer: See Chapter 9 PowerPoint
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The relevant cost of debt is the after-tax cost of new debt, taking account of the tax deductibility of interest. The after-tax
rate is calculated by multiplying the interest rate (or the before-tax cost of debt) times one minus the tax rate.
To help you structure the task, Leigh Jones has asked you to answer the following questions.
(5) Harry Davis’s target capital structure is 30% long-term debt, 10% preferred stock, and 60% common equity.
b. What is the market interest rate on Harry Davis’s debt and what is the component cost of this debt for WACC
purposes?
During the last few years, Harry Davis Industries has been too constrained by the high cost of capital to make many
capital investments. Recently, though, capital costs have been declining, and the company has decided to look seriously
at a major expansion program that has been proposed by the marketing department. Assume that you are an assistant to
Leigh Jones, the financial vice president. Your first task is to estimate Harry Davis’s cost of capital. Jones has provided
you with the following data, which she believes may be relevant to your task:
a. (1.) What sources of capital should be included when you estimate Harry Davis’s weighted average cost of capital
(WACC)? Answer: See Chapter 9 PowerPoint file.
(1) The firm’s tax rate is 40%.
(2) The current price of Harry Davis’s 12% coupon, semiannual payment, noncallable bonds with 15 years remaining to
maturity is $1,153.72. Harry Davis does not use short-term interest-bearing debt on a permanent basis. New bonds would
be privately placed with no flotation cost.
Davis would incur flotation costs equal to 5% of the proceeds on a new issue.
approach, the firm uses a 3.2% judgmental risk premium.