Question 1. Bellring Brands, Inc. had an initial public offering of its common stock on October 17, 2019. Click this link, Nasdaq IPO calendar, and fill in the blank with the offer amount listed in the Overview tab. In other words, how much money did Bellring Brands plan to raise with the stock issue? The offer amount is the gross amount of cash the firm expects to raise in the IPO. Note that the offer amount is the share price multiplied by the number of shares offered for sale to investors.

QUESTION 2

1. Slack Technologies, Inc. had its IPO on June 20, 2019. The company is approximately 5 years old and describes itself as follows:

   "...we (and the rest of the world) still have a hard time explaining Slack. Its been called an operating system for teams, a hub for collaboration, a connective tissue across the organization, and much else. The most helpful explanation of Slack is often that it replaces the use of email inside the organization."

   On the Nasdaq IPO calendar, what was the offer amount or the gross amount of cash raised in Slack's IPO?

   		Approximately $118 million
   		$1,664
   		$38.50
   		Approximately $4.6 billion

QUESTION 3

1. Initial public offerings are a way for corporations to raise cash from:

   		Selling ownership to investors
   		Borrowing funds from investors
   		Selling products and services to customers

QUESTION 4

1. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is a stock index that tracks the performance of 30 stocks that represent non-transportation, non-utilities firms in the U.S. The Dow is useful for gaging how the broad stock market is performing.

   Visit the Yahoo Finance Dow Jones Industrial Average page. Which one of the following stocks is not a component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

   		Amazon.com, Inc.
   		JPMorgan Chase & Co.
   		Exxon Mobil Corporation
   		The Home Depot, Inc.

QUESTION 5

1. The Standard and Poor's 500 index (S&P 500) tracks the performance of 500 stocks issued by large corporations that are considered to be industry leaders (i.e., large and mega market cap stocks). The return on the S&P 500 index is a benchmark return for investors. Why? The S&P 500 return represents the return that the average investor earns. Below, discover what an average investor can earn by investing in funds that track the S&P 500.

   Visit the S&P 500 site. On the right of the page, select Performance and then select 10 Year to change the graph to show the 10-year index performance. What is the average annual return for the S&P 500 over a 10-year period? You will find this number below the graph, "10 Year Ann. Returns." Type your answer as shown on the page.

QUESTION 6

1. In the secondary stock market, stocks trade between individual buyers and sellers. The issuing firm is generally not involved in the transaction (unless it is buying back some of its shares outstanding). What role does E-Trade play for stock traders?

QUESTION 7

1. JPMorgan Chase is a large commercial bank. Commercial banks are financial institutions that are important for channeling funds from savers to borrowers as well helping payments from buyers to sellers flow in the economy. Large commercial banks often have multiple lines of business.

   Go to the JPMorgan Chase website and select About Us. How many assets are owned by the bank as reported on the About Us page? Enter the value as shown on the web site.

QUESTION 8

1. Go to Treasurydirect.gov Treasury Securities and Programs tab. This page provides information on the different types of U.S. Treasury securities. Scroll down to the I Savings Bonds description. Read the description and click the link for "I Savings Bonds."

   Scroll down and locate the minimum purchase for an electronic bond. An electronic bond is issued to you in electronic form.

   What is the minimum amount of money needed to purchase an electronic I Savings bond?

QUESTION 9

1. Go to the Morgan Stanley Investment Banking & Capital Markets website and select Capital Creates the Next Episode.

   What is the dollar amount of the note offering for Netflix in February 2015?

   FYI: a "note" is a medium-term maturity bond.

QUESTION 10

1. Goldman Sachs is a multi-services financial firm that offers investment banking services along with many other financial services. Investment banks are financial institutions.

   Go to the Goldman Sachs website. Select the Our Firm tab and scroll down to "We report our activities in the following four business segments."

   After exploring the page (and anything else on the site), answer the following question:

   Which one of the following is not a business segment of Goldman Sachs?

   		Corporate and government treasury management
   		Investment management
   		Institutional client services
   		Investing and lending
   		Investment banking

QUESTION 11

1. The Securities and Exchange Commission is a main regulator of financial markets in the U.S. The SEC is part of the U.S. federal government. Hedge funds are financial institutions that are relatively lightly regulated compared to commercial banks, mutual funds, and other types of financial institutions. The SEC Investor.gov provides a wealth of information for individuals who want to learn more about financial markets and institutions.

   Go to the Securities and Exchange Commission Investor.gov site hedge funds link. Read about hedge funds on the main page (this is brief) and select all of the following that apply.

   		Hedge funds typically do not limit opportunities to redeem, or cash in, your shares.
   		Hedge funds hold investments that are easy to sell and easy to value.
   		Hedge funds typically limit opportunities to redeem, or cash in, your shares.
   		Hedge funds may hold investments that are difficult to sell and may be difficult to value.
   		Hedge funds pool money from investors and invest in securities or other types of investments with the goal of getting positive returns.

QUESTION 12

1. Mutual funds are portfolios of securities that hire an investment management company such as Vanguard and Fidelity to manage the portfolio and interact with investors in the portfolio. Many individuals own mutual funds through their employer retirement savings program such as a 401(k). Mutual funds and investment management companies are financial institutions.

   Go to the Fidelity website and select Fidelity 500 Index Fund (FXAIX). FXAIX is a mutual fund that tracks the S&P 500 index and is composed of 500+ stocks that have risk and return profiles similar to stocks tracked by the S&P 500. Investors may buy shares in the fund to potentially achieve the same returns as the S&P 500.

   What are the top 3 market sectors of stocks held in the the fund? In other words, what economic sectors are you buying if you purchase shares in this fund? Select the Composition tab and find the answer in the "Major Market Sectors, Portfolio Weight" column.

   		Financials, Materials, Energy
   		Real Estate, Consumer Staples, Information Technology
   		Industrials, Utilities, Real Estate
   		Information Technology, Energy, Real Estate
   		Information Technology, Healthcare, Financials
   		Consumer Staples, Healthcare, Industrials

QUESTION 13

1. Investments, including mutual funds are risky. On the Fidelity 500 Index Fund (FXAIX) page, go to the Summary tab. In the Morningstar Snapshot on the upper left of the page, you will find a colored bar that shows "Risk of this Category." This is an indication of the risk of investing in a large blend index fund such as FXAIX. In other words, this indicator tells you that your investment may swing in value by a lot (higher risk) or a little (lower risk).

   What is the approximate risk of this category of funds?

   		Around average (between lower and higher)
   		Lower
   		Higher

QUESTION 14

1. Mutual funds are professionally managed portfolios available to investors. These types of investments charge investors fees for fund management. Fees are summarized in the expense ratio. The expense ratio is a percentage of your investment that is deducted to pay the fund manager.

   On the Fidelity 500 Index Fund (FXAIX) page, go to the Summary tab. Under Details, type in (or paste) the fund's expense ratio exactly as you see it (See Exp Ratio (net)). This is a very low expense ratio (good for investors)!

QUESTION 15

1. On the Fidelity 500 Index Fund (FXAIX) page, go to the Performance & Risk tab. What is the funds average annual return over the life of the fund (i.e., the length of time the fund has been in existence, in this case, since 1988)? Use the "Fidelity 500 Index Fund" row to find the answer.

QUESTION 16

1. Mutual funds will state a minimum investment. This is the minimum amount of money that you are required to invest in the fund. Minimum investments range from $0 to over $10,000, depending on the fund.

   What is the minimum investment in FXAIX? On the Fidelity 500 Index Fund (FXAIX) page, go to the Summary tab. Under Details, type in (or paste) the minimum dollar investment