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2014/2015  KAN-CCMVV1149U  Topics of Finance

English Title
Topics of Finance

Course information
Language English
Course ECTS 7.5 ECTS
Type Elective
Level Full Degree Master
Duration One Semester
Course period Autumn
Timetable Course schedule will be posted at calendar.cbs.dk
Max. participants 50
Study board
Study Board for MSc in Economics and Business Administration
Course coordinator
  • Claus Parum - Department of Finance (FI)
Teacher: Johannes Mouritsen - jmo.acc@cbs.dk
Administration: Sabrine Schmidt - sjs.fi@cbs.dk
Main academic disciplines
  • Finance
Last updated on 10-04-2014
Learning objectives
Focus for this course are graduate students with basic knowledge of finance who are interested in an overview of selected issues and results of financial economics. The course will present results with practical impact from the theory of corporate finance, the theory portfolio investments, risk management and derivatives.
At the end of the course, students should :
  • Be familiar with fundamental theories and models of portfolio selection, pricing of shares, bonds, derivatives, as well as concepts of and tests of capital market efficiency, and performance evaluation
  • Be able to apply the theories and models in solving portfolio problems, pricing issues and, capital budgeting, real options and performance evaluation of corporations in practice
  • Have presented results from a group project in a seminar session and responded to critique from fellow students and teacher.
Course prerequisites
Participants are required to have completed basic courses in finance (approx. 80-100 class hours or equivalent to the Danish HA-bachelor degree).
FIR and ASC students cannot participate in the course.
Examination
Topics of Finance:
Exam ECTS 7,5
Examination form Oral exam based on written product

In order to participate in the oral exam, the written product must be handed in before the oral exam; by the set deadline. The grade is based on an overall assessment of the written product and the individual oral performance.
Individual or group exam Individual
Assignment type Synopsis
Duration
Written product to be submitted on specified date and time.
20 min. per student, including examiners' discussion of grade, and informing plus explaining the grade
Grading scale 7-step scale
Examiner(s) Internal examiner and external examiner
Exam period December/January, December, not January
Make-up exam/re-exam
Same examination form as the ordinary exam
Course content and structure
The course will cover the following topics: The reading material for the course will include a textbook (Brealey, Meyers, and Marcus) in addition to a collection of articles (Dickson) on selected issues from financial economics with relevance for business practice. The articles will give condensed reviews of developments of theoretical models and ways of thinking in practice within the last decades. They will preponderantly focus on results and applications in practice and be of a non-technical nature. The course will present issues and results from the following areas: Valuation, Equity and Debt Finance, Managing Value, Nature of Financial Markets, Equity and Debt Markets, Portfolio Investments, Risk Management, and Derivatives. Examples from practice to be discussed will among others include LBOs (leveraged buy-outs), IPOs (initial public offerings of equity capital), merger and acquisitions, EVA (economic value added) as measure of performance, new types of securities and securitization, active vs. passive portfolio strategies, to hedge or not to hedge risk, futures & options as risk control instruments. Some examples of mismanagement in business practice will also be discussed.
Teaching methods
The course has 33 class hours consisting of approximately 18h lectures and 15h seminars.
Further Information
Changes in course schedule may occur
Thursday 14.25-17.00, week 36-41, 46-50
Expected literature
The course uses the textbooks, Brealey, Myers & Marcus: Fundamentals of Corporate Finance, lastest edition Tim Dickson (ed): Mastering Finance. Pitman Publishing, 1998. Supplemental texts and handouts will be assigned for the lectures.
Last updated on 10-04-2014