FINANCE 611 CORPORATE FINANCE FALL 2016 Prof Jules H van Binsbergen Office 2460 Steinberg Hall Dietrich Hall Email julesv wharton upenn edu Office Phone 215 573 1606 Office hours By Appointment Course Website Available on Canvas COURSE DESCRIPTION This course presents the foundations of finance with an emphasis on applications vital for corporate managers We discuss most of the major financial decisions made by corporate managers both within the firm and in their interactions with investors Essential in most of these decisions is the process of valuation which will be emphasized throughout the course Topics include criteria for making investment decisions valuation of financial assets and liabilities relationships between risk and return capital structure choice payout policy the effective use and valuation of derivative securities futures options and convertible securities and risk management COURSE MATERIALS Textbook The textbook for the course is 1 Corporate Finance plus MyFinanceLab Jonathan Berk and Peter DeMarzo 3rd ed Pearson Prentice Hall 2014 SBN 10 0 13 342415 4 ISBN 13 978 0 13 342415 7 There are several options for accessing the book and MyFinanceLab You can purchase the book with MyFinanceLab You can purchase the e book and MyFinanceLab You can purchase or rent the book and purchase MyFinanceLab separately Other required readings are listed in the syllabus and made available through Canvas or Study net Slides PowerPoint slides for all of the class sessions will be printed and handed out in class I will also make them available on Canvas in Slides folder under the Files tab Cases Cases are available on Study net which is accessible via Canvas Case related material if any will be made available on Canvas Additional Material 2 Additional copywritten material e g readings will be made available on Study net non copywritten material e g notes supplemental exercises supplementary material will be made available on Canvas under the Files tab CLASS PREPARATION AND PARTICIPATION Proper preparation consists of completing the required readings and case if any I will not waste class time regurgitating what you can read in the textbook Class time is for exploring and applying the principles you learn in the textbook An important by product of proper preparation is that it lessens the chances of falling behind in the course and being unable to catch up This course covers a large amount of material in significant depth Consider this a warning Do not fall behind The classroom environment will be one of discussion and collaboration An integral part of the learning experience is learning from your colleagues their experiences and the classroom discussion As such coming to class prepared is crucial for your success in the course and the success of the course CASES Students are encouraged to form groups of no more than four students for the purpose of working the case Neither the TAs nor I will answer any questions related to the cases prior to their discussion in class as an important element of these assignments is your ability to interpret information and work independently of any guidance At the start of the class in which we discuss the case you will be required to answer three questions related to the case to test your knowledge and understanding of the case material HOMEWORK ASSIGNMENTS Homework assignments are available on MyFinanceLab The course code is binsbergen56133 Make sure that you have the exact right edition of the book see above otherwise MyFinanceLab will not work Instructions for registering are attached to the end of this syllabus The assignment schedule is provided at the end of this syllabus below the class schedule You must purchases access to this site and register for the course by entering the course code which will be announced in class and made available in the introductory slides The purpose of the homework assignments like preparing for course is to keep you up to date with the course material Because students have unlimited attempts at the homework problems on MyFinanceLab before the 3 assignment due date almost all students receive full points on the homework You can re take the homework assignment as often as you like by undertaking similar exercises in MyFinanceLab Therefore getting less than full points on a homework assignment puts you at a considerable disadvantage when the final grade is computed Neither the TAs nor I will answer any questions pertaining to the homework as an important element of the homework is your ability to work on the mechanics of finance independently of any guidance If you miss the due date which is clearly identified in MyFinanceLab you will receive a zero There are no exceptions so do not ask for one For those looking for additional problems to test the understanding of the material I have posted problem sets and their solutions on Canvas in the folder Additional Problems There are also problems at the end of each chapter in the textbook as well as problems scattered throughout each chapter EXAMS There is a midterm and a final exam Both exams are open book and you are free to bring a calculator to the exam Laptops tablets and computers are not permitted for space reasons and the exams will be designed to recognize this limitation in computing power The exam dates are provided in the Course Schedule attached to the end of this syllabus There are no makeup exams If you miss the midterm exam regardless of the reason your final score will be used in its place If you miss the final exam you will automatically fail the course The only excuse for missing the final exam is a medical emergency the validity of which will be verified by the University The best way to prepare for the exams is to come to class and participate work all of the cases and complete the homework assignments For additional preparation try the problems sets available in the Additional Problems folder on Canvas and the problems at the end of each chapter in the textbook GRADING Your course grade will be determined by your class participation 10 performance on the case questions 15 completion of the MyFinanceLab homework assignments 15 a midterm 25 and a final exam 35 If your score on the final exam is greater than that on the midterm 4 I will replace your midterm score with your final score which will then count for 60 of your grade However this substitution can only occur if you take the midterm and receive a minimum number of points to be determined at the