AØKA08012U Corporate Finance and Incentives (F)

Volume 2018/2019
Education

MSc programme in Economics – elective course

Bacheloruddannelsen i økonomi – Prioriteret valgfag på 3. år

The Danish BSc programme in Economics - prioritized elective at the 3rd year

Sidefagsuddannelsen i Økonomi-Erhvervsøkonomi - valgfag på KA delen

The course is part of the Financial line at the MSc programme in Economics,   symbolized by ‘F’.

MSc programme in mathematics-economics

 

Content

This is the Economics programme’s central course on Finance, giving a broad insight into the core matter of the field. Building on earlier relevant courses from the Bachelor’s programme in Economics, it provides the common ground for later elective Finance courses.

The course develops your understanding of the different asset classes in financial markets, including bonds, stocks, forwards, futures and options. Based on considerations of investor demand, standard asset pricing methods are introduced. The pricing methodology is used to analyse the choice of investment projects inside firms, including the management of real options. Turning to classic corporate finance issues, the course explores the optimal capital structure of the firm, its optimal dividend policy, risk management, and the incentives of the firm’s management.

The asset pricing models include the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), the Arbitrage Pricing Theory (APT), risk-neutral pricing, and the Black-Scholes formula. Excel is used to solve problems in these areas. Market efficiency and investor behaviour is discussed.

Learning Outcome

After completing the course, the student should be able to:

Knowledge:

  • Understand, account for, define and identify the main methodologies, concepts and topics in Finance

  • Solve standard problems in Finance, partly using Excel

  • Criticize and discuss the main models in Finance, relating them to current issues in financial markets and corporate finance

Skills:

  • Manage the main topics and models in Finance

  • Organize material and analyze given problems, assessing standard models and results

  • Argue about financial topics, putting results into perspective, drawing on the relevant knowledge of the field

Competencies:

  • Bring into play the achieved knowledge and skills on new formal problems, and on given descriptions of situations in financial markets or corporations

  • Be prepared for more advanced models and topics in Finance

 

The main textbook for the course:

 

The course furthers the study of financial problems that was first introduced in the first-year 'Business Economics' course (Erhvervsøkonomi) at the BSc in Economics. It uses some knowledge of probability and statistics from the course 'Probability theory and statistics' (Econometrics A) at the BSc in Economics. Pricing and decisions by investors and firms are analysed with the methods from our sequence of courses in Microeconomics. Some problems are analysed with the aid of Microsoft Excel.

Academic qualifications equivalent to 1st and 2nd year of the Bachelor's programme in Economics
The lectures introduce the material from the syllabus. Students take a first reading of the material before the lecture, in order to engage in informed discussions during lectures.

This course also offers exercise classes meeting every week. Weekly exercise sets will become available through Absalon. Students consider how to solve the exercises before the class meets – working with the exercises provides the best chance to deeply understand the course material. Problem solving helps to realize which parts of the syllabus are harder to learn.
Most exercise sets contain a mandatory exercise. The solutions to a number of such exercises must be approved as a condition for the final exam.
Schedule:
2 hours lectures 1 to 2 times a week from week 36 to 50 (except week 42).
2 hours exercise classes a week from week 36/37 to 50 (except week 42).


The overall schema for the BA 3rd year can be seen at https:/​/​intranet.ku.dk/​polit_ba/​undervisning/​Lektionsplan-E18/​skemaer/​Sider/​default.aspx

or the Master at https:/​/​intranet.ku.dk/​economics_ma/​courses/​CourseCatalogue-E18/​Courseschema/​Pages/​default.aspx


Timetable and venue:
To see the time and location of lectures and exercise classes please press the link/links under "Se skema" (See schedule) at the right side of this page. E means Autumn. The lectures is shown in each link.

You can find the similar information partly in English at
https:/​/​skema.ku.dk/​ku1819/​uk/​module.htm
-Select Department: “2200-Økonomisk Institut” (and wait for respond)
-Select Module:: “2200-E18; [Name of course]””
-Select Report Type: “List – Weekdays”
-Select Period: “Efterår/Autumn – Weeks 31-5”
Press: “ View Timetable”


Please be aware regarding exercise classes:
- The schedule of the exercise classes is only a pre-planned schedule and can be changed until just before the teaching begins without the participants accept. If this happens it will be informed at the intranet or can be seen in the app myUCPH and at the above link
- That the study administration allocates the students to the exercise classes according to the principles stated in the KUnet.
- If too many students have wished a specific class, students will be registered randomly at another class.
- It is not possible to change class after the second registration period has expired.
- If there is not enough registered students or available teachers, the exercise classes may be jointed.
- The student is not allowed to participate in an exercise class not registered, because the room has only seats for the amount of registered student.
- The teacher of the exercise class cannot correct assignments from other students than the registered students in the exercise class except with group work across the classes.
- That all exercise classes will be taught in English.
  • Category
  • Hours
  • Class Instruction
  • 28
  • Exam
  • 3
  • Lectures
  • 42
  • Preparation
  • 133
  • Total
  • 206
Credit
7,5 ECTS
Type of assessment
Written examination, 3 hours under invigilation
at the computers of Copenhagen University.
The exam assignment is given in English and must be answered in English.
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Exam registration requirements

3 out of 4 hand-ins must be approved in order for the student to be eligible to take the exam.

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Aid
Without aids
Marking scale
7-point grading scale
Censorship form
No external censorship
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Exam period

The exam takes place at the exam venues of the university:

21 December 2018

The exact time and room of the exam will be informed in the Self-Service at KUnet

 

Exam information:

For enrolled students more information about examination, rules, exam schedule etc. is available at the intranet for Master students (UK), Master students (DK) and Bachelor students (DK).

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Re-exam

The exam takes place at the exam venues of the university:

11 February 2019

The exact time and room of the exam will be informed in the Self-Service at KUnet

 

Reexam information:

If only a few students have registered for the written re-exam, the reexam might change to an oral exam including the date, time and place for the exam, which will be informed by the Examination Office.

More information is available at Master students (UK), Master students (DK) and Bachelor students (DK).

 

Criteria for exam assesment

Students are assessed on the extent to which they master the learning outcome for the course.

To receive the top grade, the student must with no or only a few minor weaknesses be able to demonstrate an excellent performance displaying a high level of command of all aspects of the relevant material and can make use of the knowledge, skills and competencies listed in the learning outcomes.

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