Answer each independent question, $($a$)$ through $($e$),$ below.

a$.$ Project A costs $$4,000$ and will generate annual after$-$tax net cash inflows of $$1,700$ for $5$ years. What is the payback period for this investment under the assumption that the cash inflows occur evenly throughout the year? $($Round your answer to $2$ decimal places.$)$

b$.$ Project B costs $$4,000$ and will generate after$-$tax cash inflows of $$500$ in year $1,$ $$1,100$ in year $2,$ $$2,000$ in year $3,$ $$3,000$ in year $4,$ and $$2,000$ in year $5.$ What is the payback period $($in years$)$ for this investment assuming that the cash inflows occur evenly throughout the year? $($Round your answer to $2$ decimal places.$)$

c$.$ Project C costs $$4,000$ and will generate net cash inflows of $$2,500$ before taxes for $5$ years. The firm uses straight$-$line depreciation with no salvage value and is subject to a $30\%$ tax rate. What is the payback period under the assumption that all cash inflows occur evenly throughout the year? $($Round your answer to $2$ decimal places.$)$

d$.$ Project D costs $$4,000$ and will generate sales of $$5,000$ each year for $5$ years. The cash expenditures will be $$2,000$ per year. The firm uses straight$-$line depreciation with an estimated salvage value of $$550$ and has a tax rate of $30\%.$

$(1)$ What is the accounting $($book$)$ rate of return based on the original investment? $($Round your answer to $2$ decimal places.$)$

$(2)$ What is the book rate of return based on the average book value? $($Round your answer to $2$ decimal places.$)$

Use the built$-$in NPV function in Excel to calculate the amounts for projects a through d$.($Round your answers to the nearest whole dollar amount.$)$

e$1.$ What is the NPV of project A$?$ Assume that the firm requires a minimum after$-$tax return of $8\%$ on investment.

e$2.$ What is the NPV of project B$?$ Assume that the firm requires a minimum after$-$tax return of $8\%$ on investment.

e$3.$ What is the NPV of project C$?$ Assume that the firm requires a minimum after$-$tax return of $8\%$ on investment.

e$4.$ What is the NPV of project D$?$ Assume that the firm requires a minimum after$-$tax return of $8\%$ on investment.