Question 4 Cygnus plc is a company that wholesales non-electrical office equipment. The company has only one warehouse and has requested a term loan of 6 million (five- year floating rate) at an initial interest rate of 12% per annum in order to purchase new computer equipment to maintain its inventory and other records. The computer equipment will not materially change the company's current average percentage return on investment. Cygnus' revenue increased by 9% during the last financial year. The financial statements for Cygnus are as follows: Balance Sheet as at 31 March 2020 '000 2019 '000 Non-current assets Property, plant & equipment 16,060 14,380 Current assets Inventories Receivables Investment Cash and cash equivalents 31,640 21,860 24,220 17,340 8,760 10,060 1,700 960 66,320 50,220 82,380 64,600 16,340 13,220 20,920 15,280 2,420 2,800 39.680 31.300 Current liabilities Overdraft Trade payables Current taxation Non-current liabilities Long-term borrowings Debentures 6,000 16,000 16,000 22.000 16.000 Share capital and reserves Equity share 10 p each (38 million shares) Retained profit Total equity 3,800 3,800 16,900 13,500 20,700 17,300 82.380 64.600 Extract information from the Income Statement for year to 31 March 2020 Revenue Operating profit Finance costs Profit before income tax Income tax Profit for the year Dividend paid in the year f'000 99,360 10,760 (3,840) 6,920 (2,420) 4,500 1,100 Comparative ratio information for Cygnus' industry (averages) Price Earnings Ratio Gearing Ratio (%) Current Ratio Acid Test Ratio Return on Capital Employed (%) Operating Margin (%) Cygnus' shares are currently traded at 15.0 p. 2020 20 52.4 1:1 1:1 16.5 9.0 Required: a) You are a consultant for Cygnus plc. Calculate the following ratios for Cygnus for the financial years ended 31 March 2019 and 2020 where possible: 1. Return on Capital Employed 2. Operating Margin 3. Current Ratio 4. Acid Test Ratio 5. Inventory Holding Period 6. Creditors Payment Period 7. Gearing Ratio 8. Price Earnings Ratio (15 marks) b) Prepare a short report (with five meaningful comments) based on ratios calculated for part a) to present to Cygnus' directors in support of the new term loan. Use industry averages as benchmarks for your analysis whenever possible