Projects differ in risk, and risk analysis is a critical component of the capital budgeting process.

Consider the case of United Recycling Inc.:

United Recycling Inc. is one of the largest recyclers of glass and paper products in the United States. The company is looking into expanding into the cardboard recycling business. The companys CFO has performed a detailed analysis of the proposed expansion.

The companys CFO hired a third-party consulting firm to estimate the cost per ton of processing the cardboard. The consulting firms cost estimate for processing the cardboard was significantly higher than what the CFO had been using in his financial model.

Based on the information given, determine which of the statements is correct.

When the CFO adjusts the cost per ton of processing the cardboard, the projects NPV will increase.

When the CFO adjusts the cost per ton of processing the cardboard, the projects NPV will decrease.

Evaluating risk is an important part of the capital budgeting process. Which of the following is measured by its effect on the firms beta coefficient?

Market, or beta, risk

Risk-adjusted cost of capital

Stand-alone risk

Corporate, or within-firm, risk

The problem with using when trying to adjust for projects that are more risky or less risky than a firms average project is that these adjustments are extremely subjective and difficult to justify.