GRA 6541 Topics in Corporate Finance
GRA 6541 Topics in Corporate Finance
This course deals with contemporary issues in corporate finance. It explores how corporate finance decisions are affected when the classic Modigliani-Miller capital structure irrelevance-assumptions are relaxed, focusing on the consequences of information asymmetries, agency conflicts, and bankruptcy among others. The course introduces students to modern corporate financial theories as well as empirical patterns and studies.
1. Develop an understanding of different economic mechanisms that drive firms' capital strutcure and financing choices.
2. Understand how firm value may be impacted by financing choices.
1. Ability to identify pros and cons (trade-offs) associates with different financing choices.
2. Ability to identify conflicts of interest between different corporate stakeholders.
3. Ability to interpret empirical evidence in light of theory.
4. Ability to analyse and discuss in a structured and "precise" manner.
1. Critical reflection and ethical awareness in connection with topics in corporate finance.
2. Structuring and articulating economic arguments in writing and orally
3. Case analysis
The exact course content may vary from year to year, but will include topics such as the following:
- Theoretical Corporate Finance
- Capital Structure Decisions
- Bankruptcy and Corporate Restructuring
- Merger and acquisitions
- Dividend policy and share repurchases
- Initial Public Offerings
- Private Equity and Venture Capital
- Behavioral Corporate Finance
Lectures and class discussions. Students are expected to prepare for the lecture by reading assigned papers and participate actively in the discussions. There will be group assignments and possibly group presentations. Most learning will take place through student discussions of articles, cases and group assignments.
Please note that while attendance is not compulsory in all courses, it is the student’s own responsibility to obtain any information provided in class.
This is a course with continuous assessment (several exam components) and one final exam code. Each exam component is graded by using points on a scale from 0-100. The components will be weighted together according to the information in the course description in order to calculate the final letter grade for the examination code (course). Students who fail to participate in one/some/all exam elements will get a lower grade or may fail the course. You will find detailed information about the point system and the cut off points with reference to the letter grades when the course starts.
At resit, all exam components must, as a main rule, be retaken during next scheduled course.
All courses in the Masters programme will assume that students have fulfilled the admission requirements for the programme. In addition, courses in second, third and/or fourth semester can have spesific prerequisites and will assume that students have followed normal study progression. For double degree and exchange students, please note that equivalent courses are accepted.
Covid-19
Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, there may be deviations in teaching and learning activities as well as exams, compared with what is described in this course description.
Teaching
Information about what is taught on campus and other digital forms will be presented with the lecture plan before the start of the course each semester.
| Assessments |
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Exam category: Submission Form of assessment: Written submission Weight: 20 Grouping: Group (2 - 5) Duration: 2 Week(s) Exam code: GRA65411 Grading scale: Point scale leading to ECTS letter grade Resit: All components must, as a main rule, be retaken during next scheduled course |
Exam category: Submission Form of assessment: Written submission Weight: 20 Grouping: Group (2 - 5) Duration: 2 Week(s) Comment: Assignment The requirement on the group size may change depending on the number of students enrolled for this course. Exam code: GRA65411 Grading scale: Point scale leading to ECTS letter grade Resit: All components must, as a main rule, be retaken during next scheduled course |
Exam category: Submission Form of assessment: Written submission Invigilation Weight: 60 Grouping: Individual Support materials:
Duration: 2 Hour(s) Comment: Final written examination under supervision Exam code: GRA65411 Grading scale: Point scale leading to ECTS letter grade Resit: All components must, as a main rule, be retaken during next scheduled course |
A course of 1 ECTS credit corresponds to a workload of 26-30 hours. Therefore a course of 6 ECTS credits corresponds to a workload of at least 160 hours.
The requirement on the group size may change depending on the number of students enrolled for this course.