Hartford Mining has 50 million shares that are currently trading for $4 per share and $200 million worth of debt. The debt is risk free and has an interest rate of 5%, and the expected return of Hartford stock is 11%. Suppose a mining strike causes the price of Hartford stock to fall 25% to $3 per share. The value of the risk-free debt is unchanged. Assuming there are no taxes and the risk (unlevered beta) of Hartford’s assets is unchanged, what happens to Hartford’s equity cost of capital?

Appendix