Finance

Courses

Prerequisite(s): (GB 201 or GB 112) and (GB 202 or GB 212 concurrent)

This course serves as the gateway to the Finance, Economics & Finance and Corporate Finance & Accounting majors. An overview of financial statements and approaches to financial statement analysis are covered first, followed by the basics of valuation and the management of working capital. Specific topic areas include time value of money, risk and teturn, valuation of financial securities, estimating the cost of capital, working capital management and financial planning and forecasting.

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Prerequisite(s): FI 320

Topics covered include in-depth treatment of modern portfolio theory - attitudes toward risk, derivation of portfolio models, and applications using active and passive approaches. Other topics include bond portfolio strategies, options pricing and financial futures.

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Prerequisite(s): Junior-level standing

Pre- or corequisite(s): FI 380

Acquaints the student with the basic concepts and principles of real estate and urban economics that affect real estate investments. Equips students with essential tools needed for comprehensive real estate investment analysis. Emphasizes the financial aspects of real estate, e.g., appraisal, feasibility analysis, and primary and secondary markets of real estate.

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Prerequisite(s): Junior-level standing

Pre- or corequisite(s): FI 320

Examines principles and methods of financing real estate, sources of funds and contents of financial instruments, and the operations of the primary and secondary mortgage markets. Covers types of loans, general legal aspects of real estate debt, mathematics of mortgages, underwriting, and institutional aspects of the primary and secondary mortgage markets.

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Prerequisite(s): Junior-level standing and FI 305

Introduces students to important topics in bond, equity and options markets. To this end, the course focuses on issues surrounding the nature and functioning of these markets and the key models used in valuing securities that are traded on them. Students will enhance their understanding of how these markets operate to establish asset values by engaging in exercises in the Trading Room.

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Prerequisite(s): Junior level standing

Pre- or corequisite(s): FI 320

Examines the structure and operation of financial institutions including commercial banks, thrifts, and financial services companies. Covers the techniques used to analyze profitability, liquidity, structure, short-run versus long-run decisions, and the particular difference between small, large, domestic and international banks.

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Prerequisite(s): Junior-level standing

Pre- or corequisite(s): FI 380

Studies insurance as an economic and legal relationship dealing with personal and property risks, subjective and objective risks, and insurability. Reviews contract and agency law; insurance coverages including life, health, liability, fire, homeowners and commercial special multiperil policies; Social Security and social insurance; pension plans including IRA accounts; estate planning; and risk management and self-insurance. Surveys the insurance industry, including its structure and regulation.

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Prerequisite(s): (FI 305 or FI 310) and 6 credits of Math. FI 320 is strongly recommended.

Analytical, seminar level course about the workings of equity markets. The course will cover IPOs; secondary markets, including auction and dealer markets, ECNs, equity futures, equity options and their relationship to equity markets. There are extensive readings from both the academic and popular literature, many of which are presented to the class by groups of students.

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Prerequisite(s): FI 320 or FI 380 and junior level standing

Presents the organization and operation of U.S. and international financial markets. Emphasizes factors influencing interest rates, including inflation, risk and term to maturity. Discusses the supply of, and demand for, funds from various economic sectors. Includes the current functioning of money and capital markets as providers of liquidity, short-term credit, long-term investment capital, and assets for hedging against adverse price and interest rate movements. Also discusses foreign exchange and Eurocurrency markets. Topics of current interest included.

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Prerequisite(s): FI 305 and junior level standing

Provides an overview of the personal financial planning process, including the establishment of goals and objectives, forecasting of lifetime income and expenditures, evaluation of alternative investments, money management, taxation, and retirement and estate planning. Covers the concepts, theories and analytical methods used in professional financial planning. Investments considered include home ownership, securities, money market funds, investment partnerships, insurance, business ownership, real estate, and retirement programs. Analyzes the effects of inflation, changing interest rates and taxation on these investments. Designed to give an in-depth exposure to financial planning issues to students with a professional interest in the field.

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Prerequisite(s): FI 320 or FI 380 and senior level standing

Surveys systematically the theory of international finance, international investing and international business. Areas covered include foreign exchange with emphasis on exchange rate determination, exchange risk, hedging and interest rate arbitrage, international money and capital markets and international financing, multinational capital budgeting and the cost of capital.

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Prerequisite(s): FI 325 and senior level standing

Seminar continuation of FI 325, Operations of Financial Institutions, in which advanced students work on selected cases and topics. Topics include profitability analysis, high-performance banking, capital structure, lending policy, development and marketing of financial services, business policies of financial institutions, and the emerging financial industry. Also examined are liability management, asset and liability matching and structure, capital policy, and aggressive financial institution behavior as they affect profitability. Preparation and presentation of research papers is required.

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Prerequisite(s): FI 305 and junior level standing

This course builds on materials covered in FI 305. Topics covered include capital budgeting under uncertainty, capital structure and payout policy, investment banking and public offerings of securities, lease financing and hybrid securities, mergers, acquisitions and other forms of corporate restructuring, bankruptcy and liquidations, and an introduction to derivative securities and corporate risk management. Course pedagogy includes the use of cases to bridge the gap between finance theory and real-world applications.

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Prerequisite(s): FI 305 & FI 380 & junior level standing

The Advanced Capital Budgeting course covers a suite of analytical tools and processes used to identify, analyze, select, and implement those capital projects that add value to the firm¿s owners. This course strengthens, broadens and deepens students¿ competence using these tools and processes. This case-based course gives students the opportunity to practically apply this knowledge to solve real-world resource allocation decisions.

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Corequisite(s): FI 380

Examines short-term financial concepts and their application in the corporate financial management area. Focuses on the management of cash and corporate liquidity by focusing on the roles of banking relationships and disbursement and collection systems. Sources of short-term financing and credit and inventory policies will also be examined.

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Prerequisite(s): FI 320 and students must attend Bentley Investment Group meetings

The course will focus on active investment management. In particular, students will apply techniques to select and value equity securities. They will also learn to make decisions related to asset allocation and investment performance evaluation. There are some applied research projects that students will undertake in groups. The group size will be determined based on class size. In addition to class meetings, students are expected to attend the weekly meetings of the Bentley Investment Group (BIG) and contribute to the presentations, discussions, and the final investment decisions made by BIG.

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Prerequisite(s): FI 320 and junior level standing

The course relies on a case-study approach to an increasingly important field that requires excellent financial management skills. We provide an overview of project finance employing the latest techniques for structuring transactions, including risk mitigation by financial intermediaries. Students will be introduced to substantial research data and informational resources. The course stresses decision making and prioritization of tasks, policy formulation, the selection of world-class partners and on-the-ground operational skills necessary to ensure timely completion of construction, budget adherence and efficient start-up. Large investment projects across a variety of geographic regions, industrial sectors, and stages of project execution are examined, including relevant data on default and loss characteristics. We will contrast the important differences in risk between domestic and export sector projects, including management of foreign exchange issues and the role of host gov.  I

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Prerequisite(s): FI 340

This course explores the complex issues involved in planning for specialized client circumstances. As a result, the course highlights the effects of marriage, separation, and divorce, childbirth, career changes, inheritance, health difficulties, and the retirement or death of household members on financial planning activities. The course work also illustrates actual uses of financial planning tools and a technology in the development of segmented and comprehensive plans to help refine students' research, communication, and decision-making abilities.

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Prerequisite(s): FI 380 and department chairperson's permission

Permits selected superior students to study special topics. (Allows repetition for credit.)

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Prerequisite(s): Depends upon the topic, and can include FI 320 and/or FI 380 and FI 351 as a co-requisite; junior or senior-level standing and/or department chairperson's permission.

Note: Not offered regularly. Check with department chair for availability.

Covers a broad range of topics in corporate finance and financial services. The seminars offered under this designation focus on contemporary issues to which financial principles and information technology can be applied.

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Prerequisite(s): At least nine hours of finance courses earned before the beginning of the internship period and permission of the internship coordinator

Note: Open to superior full-time students, selected by the finance faculty.

Provides the student with an on-the-job opportunity to apply principles of the finance discipline to a work situation in the business world. Requires the student to work with the faculty adviser to develop a report relating academic course work to the work experience.

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