Suppose the corporate tax rate is 40%. Consider a firm that earns $1000 before interest and taxes

Question:

Suppose the corporate tax rate is 40%. Consider a firm that earns $1000 before interest and taxes each year with no risk. The firm’s capital expenditures equal its depreciation expenses each year, and it will have no changes to its net working capital. The risk-free interest rate is 5%.

a. Suppose the firm has no debt and pays out its net income as a dividend each year. What is the value of the firm’s equity?

b. Suppose instead the firm makes interest payments of $500 per year. What is the value of equity? What is the value of debt?

c. What is the difference between the total value of the firm with leverage and without leverage?

d. To what percentage of the value of the debt is the difference in part (c) equal?

Dividend
A dividend is a distribution of a portion of company’s earnings, decided and managed by the company’s board of directors, and paid to the shareholders. Dividends are given on the shares. It is a token reward paid to the shareholders for their...