The measurement of the cost of preference capital poses some conceptual difficulty. In the case of debt, there is a binding legal obligation on the firm to pay interest, and the interest constitutes the basis to calculate the cost of debt. However, in the case of preference capital, payment of dividends is not legally binding on the firm and even if the dividends are paid, it is not a charge on earnings; rather it is a distribution or appropriation of earnings to preference shareholders. One may be, therefore, tempted to conclude that the dividends on preference capital do not constitute cost. This is not true. The cost of preference capital is a function of the dividend expected by investors. Preference capital is never issued with an intention not to pay dividends. Although it is not legally binding upon the firm to pay dividends on preference capital, yet it is generally Continue reading
Financial Management Concepts
Management Accounting Best Practices – Cost Allocation
Cost allocation is the process of identifying and assigning the costs of services necessary for the operation of a business or other type of entity. Unlike a cost rating, the allocation is less concerned with the actual amount of the cost, and more concerned with allocating or assigning the cost to the correct unit within the organization. From this perspective, cost allocation can be seen as a tool that helps track all costs associated with the ongoing operation more efficiently, since each cost is associated with specific departments or groups of departments within the organization. A simple example of cost allocation would be the wages or salary of an employee assigned to work in a specific department. In a hospital, a nurse is normally assigned to a specific wing or floor, with the costs allocated to the general operation of that unit. As long as the nurse continues to work Continue reading
Merchant Banking Services: Management of Capital Issues
The capital issue are managed are category-1 merchant banker and constitutes the most important aspects of their services. The public issue of corporate securities involves marketing of capital issues of new and existing companies, additional issues of existing companies including rights issue and dilution of shares by letter of offer. The public issues are managed by the involvement of various agencies i.e. underwriters, brokers, bankers, advertising agency, printers, auditors, legal advisers, registrar to the issue and merchant bankers providing specialized services to make the issue of the success. However merchant banker is the agency at the apex level than that plan, coordinate and control the entire issue activity and direct different agencies to contribute to the successful marketing of securities. The procedure of the managing a public issue by a merchant banker is divided into two phases, viz; Pre-issue management Post-issue management Pre-Issue Management: Steps required to be taken to Continue reading
Negative Impacts of Overcapitalization
Overcapitalization occurs when a company has issued more debt and equity than its assets are worth. The market value of the company is less than the total capitalized value of the company. An overcapitalized company might be paying more in interest and dividend payments than it has the ability to sustain long-term. The heavy debt burden and associated interest payments might be a strain on profits and reduce the amount of retained funds the company has to invest in research and development or other projects. To escape the situation, the company may need to reduce its debt load or buy back shares to reduce the company’s dividend payments. Restructuring the company’s capital is a solution to this problem. The phrase ‘overcapitalization’ has been misunderstood with abundance of capital. In actual practice, overcapitalized concerns have been found short of funds. Truly speaking, overcapitalization is a relative term used to denote that Continue reading
Features of a Sound Capital Structure
Capital structure is a business finance term that describes ‘the proportion of a company’s capital, or operating money, which is obtained through debt and equity or hybrid securities’. Debt consists of loans and other types of credit that is to be repaid in the future, usually with interest. Equity involves ownership interest in a corporation in the form of common stock or preferred stock. Equity financing does not involve a direct obligation to repay the funds which is in contrast to debt financing. Instead, equity investors are able to exercise some degree of control over the company as they become part-owners and partners in the business. The goal of a company’s capital structure decision is to maximize the gains for the equity shareholders. The optimal capital structure is the one that maximizes the price of the stock and simultaneously minimizes the cost of capital thus striking a balance between risk Continue reading
Concept of Bridge Finance
Bridge financing is a method of financing, used to maintain liquidity while waiting for an anticipated and reasonably expected inflow of cash. Bridge financing is commonly used when the cash flow from a sale of an asset is expected after the cash outlay for the purchase of an asset. For example, when selling a house, the owner may not receive the cash for 90 days, but has already purchased a new home and must pay for it in 30 days. Bridge financing covers the 60 day gap in cash flows. Another type of bridge financing is used by companies before their initial public offering, to obtain necessary cash for the maintenance of operations. These funds are usually supplied by the investment bank underwriting the new issue. As payment, the company acquiring the bridge financing will give a number of stocks at a discount of the issue price to the underwriters Continue reading