The following information is for Company X:

• beta coefficient is 1.16
• 5 year average of 30-day T-bill rate is 2%
• average market return of (S&P 500 index) in the same period is 14%

1. what is the required rate of return for Company X?
2. The current dividend for Company X is $3.20 per share with an expected growth rate of 7.5% per year. What is the PRESENT VALUE of Company X's stock?
3. Without using the information of beta, the current market price for Company X's stock is $28.72 per share. Current stock price is equal to the stock's present value. What is the required rate of return for this stock using information from question #2.
4. using information from question #3, what is the beta of this stock now?
5. Company X has the capital structure of" issuing 7 million shares of common stock (with stock price given in question #3 and dividend in question #2). the company also issues 2 million shares of preferred stock with $1.29 preferred dividend per share. Currently, Company X has $90 million in debts with interest rate of 4.6%. The current preferred stock price is $6.72 per share and corporate tax rate is 30% along with the common stock price that is given in question #3....what is the (after tax) weighted average cost of capital (after tax) for Company X?
6. What is the meaning of WEIGHTED AVERAGE COST OF CAPITAL (after tax)? why is it applied as the discount rate for expected further cash flows in capital budgeting decisions?