COURSE SYLLABUS - FINANCE 350 Spring 2011[1]
INSTRUCTOR: Donglin Li ()
OFFICE: BUS 315 (415-405-0981)
OFFICE HOUR: Wed 12:30-14:30 Fri 15:55-17:55
CLASSROOM FIN350-11: BUS222 W 16:10-18:55
HOMEPAGE : http://online.sfsu.edu/~donglin/courses.html
REQUIRED TEXT: “Fundamentals of Financial Management” Brigham and Houston, Thomas Southwestern Publisher, concise edition.
Prerequisites:
ACCT 101, ECON 101, DS 110, 212; ISYS 263 or pass computer information systems proficiency test. Please note that you need to get a grade of C- or better to use 350 as a prerequisite for higher level courses.
Course Objectives:
The primary purpose of the course is to provide students with some conceptual, analytical and institutional aspects of financial decision making at an introductory level. Specifically, the topics may include Financial Analysis, Capital Budgeting, Capital Structure, Valuation, Cost of Capital and Risk Analysis.
I hope that by the end of this course you will have a grasp of basic finance principles and that you will have gone beyond just memorizing facts and formulae. This will enable you to better understand current events in finance and will provide a solid framework for any subsequent courses you wish to take in finance.
I shall present the material in various topics. You are advised to review assigned chapters before each lecture. You are highly recommended to do the self-test problems and homework problems of each covered chapter in the textbook.
Calculator:
You must have a financial calculator to get through the course. Many of the test problems involve complex financial calculations - a financial calculator is necessary to solve them. No PC is allowed in exams.
I recommend the Texas Instruments BAII-Plus. The BAII-Plus will do everything needed in this and other undergraduate finance classes. HP 10B II (Hewlett Packard) is another great choice.
The ability to use a financial calculator is critical for success in this class. You are responsible for learning how to operate your financial calculator - and it is crucial that you are familiar with your calculator by the time we begin Chapter 2. Students may not share calculators during exams. Please check your batteries before exams.
Class Web Page:
There is a web page for this class at http://online.sfsu.edu/~donglin/courses.html. This web contains a lot of useful and very important information such as syllabus, lecture notes, homework solutions, exam solutions, and other useful links.
Homework
To help you understand the concepts and prepare for the quizzes and the final exam, there will be weekly homework problem sets. Homework solution will be posted on my website. Finance is a science; the only way to learn the material in this class is to work out a large number of problems. No credit is assigned for homework.
Class Performance
Class Performance can be enhanced by behaving well in class. Full attendance helps but does not guarantee full credit on class performance. Examples that may hurt class performance include but are not limited to the following: disturbing classroom; wasting other students’ time; poor attendance; and attempting to seek undue favor from the instructor.
In Class Work
There are a total of 4 projects that are done in class. These in-class projects are not graded, but they may be relevant for preparing the quizzes. There are absolutely no make-ups. Yes, you can discuss with others in doing these projects. The schedule of the 4 in-class-work projects is not announced in advance.
Quiz, Final and Grading:
There will be 3 quizzes and one final exam during the semester. These quizzes will be closed book. You cannot communicate with others during quizzes or the final.
Out of the 3 quizzes, you may drop the one with the lowest score. The schedule of these quizzes is not fixed; however the instructor might alert you one week in advance, at his option. Please bring your SFSU ID or a driver license to class, as well as scantrons.
The quizzes and final exams will be held in class. The quizzes are in the form of multiple choice questions, consisting of a mix of conceptual questions and numerical problems. The final might be also multiple choices or a combination of multiple choice and short answer questions.
The final exam will be cumulative, although some topics may be off the coverage. In general, the coverage will reflect the amount of time spent in class on the different chapters.
There are absolutely no make-up tests or in-advance tests. Giving tests before or after the assigned dates is not possible. No “incomplete” grade will be given. If you anticipate missing many classes, please take the course at a later date.
Since this course is a core business course and it is used as a prerequisite for another core course (e.g., Bus 690), you must earn a grade of at least C- or better in order to take the next core course.
Total available points will be broken down as follows:
Class performance 10
Quizzes 50
Final Exam 40
The grade that will appear on your transcript is based on the ranking of your total scores in class:
Above 85% of class / Above 65% of class / Above 25% of class / Bottom 25%A range / B range / C range / D, and F range
Please note that the grading is on a curve. Plus (+) and minus (-) grading will be employed.
The instructor reserves the right to make minor adjustment if necessary.
Other Issue
Students are not allowed to take lecture, quiz, or final in a section different from enrollment.
Academic Integrity Rules
Any students caught cheating in exams, will receive a failing grade. During exams, it is helpful to sit as far as possible between each other. It helps to look at the classroom ceiling, your shoes, or the blackboard rather than your neighbors when you need to rest your eyes.
Students with disabilities who need reasonable accommodations are encouraged to contact the instructor. TheDisability Programs and Resource Center is available to facilitate the reasonable accommodations process.
Any attempt to seek undue favor from the instructor will automatically inflict a student’s class performance points. The instructor cannot assign extra work to any individual to improve her/his grade. I impose this policy just to be fair to the whole class.
Tentative Course Outline (Subject to Change)
Date
/Chapter
/Topic
/HW Problems
1/26 / 1 / Introduction to Financial Management2/2 / 5 / Time value of money / ST-3, 9-15, 20
2/9 / 5 / Time value of money / ST-3, 9-15, 20
2/16 / 3 / Financial Statements, Taxes and Cash Flow / 5,7,10,11
2/23 / 4 / Analysis of Financial Statements / 7,10,17,18, 21
3/2 / 7, 6 / Bonds and their valuation; Interest rates / Ch7: ST-2, 1-5, 7, 20
3/9 / 7, 6 / Bonds and their valuation; Interest rates
3/16 / 8 / Risk and Return / 1-6, 12,17,21
3/23 / 8 / Risk and Return
3/30 / Spring Break
4/6 / 9, 2 / Stocks and their Valuation / Ch9: 1-3,5,8,11
4/13 / 9, 2 / Stocks and their Valuation
4/20 / 10 / Cost of Capital / 1-3, 8, 17
4/27 / 12 / Cash Flow Estimation and Risk Analysis / 8(a)
5/4 / 11 / Basics of Capital Budgeting / ST-2, 1,2, 4, 6
5/11 / 13 / Capital Structure and Leverage (if time permits), Slack, Catchup, and Review / 2
5/18 / Final Exam / Regular class room & Time
February 4 (Friday) / Last day to DROP a course without receiving a “W.” Also, last day to sign up to Audit a course.
February 7 (Friday)
February 18 (Friday) / Last day to ADD a course using 1st Round and 2nd Round of Permit Numbers, respectively
No Adds after February 18, 2011
March 18 (Friday) / Last day to elect CR/NC option.
Once elected, the option cannot be changed a later date.
April 22 (Friday) / Last day for student Withdrawals.
Only ONE withdrawal per COB course is permitted.
3
[1] Tentative and subject to change.