Southern Utah University

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Southern Utah University
Southern Utah University
Spring Semester 2026

Managerial Finance (Online)

FIN 6100-B70

Course: FIN 6100-B70
Credits: 3
Term: Spring Semester 2026
Department: ACFN
CRN: 10387

Course Description

This course examines the capital budgeting process, including estimating the cost of capital and cash flows, correct application of decision rules, and ways of analyzing and dealing with uncertainty in your forecasts. It also discusses key topics in financial management, such as optimal leverage, raising capital for the firm, and equity payout policies. (Fall - 1st Session, Spring - 2nd Session) [Graded (Standard Letter)] Prerequisite(s): (ANLY 6100 or MGMT 6100) and ACCT 6100 - Prerequisite Min. Grade: C Registration Restriction(s): MAcc, MBA, or MSBA majors only

Required Texts

There is no required textbook for the class, and I will provide you with practice material similar to what you can expect to see on the exam.  However, there is a course pack from Harvard Business Publishing that will contain some readings that will be useful in helping you understand how some of the topics in the course is applied in actual practice.  You can find the link to purchase the course pack on the Syllabus tab of Canvas. 

Every semester, a few students comment that they wish they had a textbook to read in order to better understand the conceptual material.  I understand that it it is hard to catch everything during my recorded lectures, and encourage you to print off the slide handouts provided next to the lecture so you can take notes as you listen to the lectures.  Everything on the exam will be covered in my lectures specifically, and I don't just read off the slides.  You must view the lectures as essential, the same way you would need to attend regularly in a face to face class. 

However, I also have an optional textbook that is very readable for most students who are just being introduced to finance.  Please note that this text IS NOT REQUIRED!  But if you feel that it might help you to have something to read, I have put a course calendar at the back of the syllabus that shows which chapters cover the material we are discussing each week.  Because we stick to the most fundamental tools used in financial management, they haven’t changed in several decades.  There is no reason to purchase the most current version, which is the 11th edition.  I have checked the 9th and 10th editions, and they are very similar and the chapters should be the same.  So buy a cheap, old copy instead!

                                     Very Optional Textbook:   Fundamentals of Corporate Finance, by Brealey, Myers and Marcus

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course, students will be able to:

  1. Calculate the cost of capital for a firm using appropriate inputs and models.  This will include knowing where to obtain the inputs for the cost of capital and alternative approaches based on the information available to the manager.
  2. Forecast and estimate cash flows for the purpose of valuation and then apply the cost of capital in finding the value of a project and deciding whether it should be pursued, or finding the overall value of your firm or investments.
  3. Understand common financial management decisions, and be able to evaluate the impact the decisions have on the value of your firm through changes in the firm’s cash flows, growth, and cost of financing. 
  4. Demonstrate an ability to incorporate risk into their valuation models, and understand the tools and methods used to mitigate this risk or value real options created by this uncertainty.
  5. Demonstrate that they can apply the techniques and knowledge learned in this class to common tasks faced by managers in actual practice.

Course Requirements

Here are the activities that will contribute to your overall grade:

Four Topic Application Reports:  10% of your grade
 
One of the most constant critiques in my course feedback is that students don't think they will ever use the material from the course during their careers, and that it will only be used by finance professionals.  To try and give you better context, I will be giving you multiple articles taken recently from the Wall Street Journal or other news outlets, and you will be expected to write a short report (less than one page) that explains how that article relates to the material we have covered in the recent modules.  

You will be free to choose any of the articles to discuss, and don't have to discuss all of them.  The important part of the assignment is to discuss how the material you will be learning is incorporated into managerial decision making.  There will be four reports over the semester, worth 2.5% of your grade per report.

These assignments are very lightly graded, and I am not worried about you reaching any particular conclusion about the material, or whether the situation was handled correctly by the participants mentioned in the article.  Instead, I want you to just demonstrate that you understand why the topics we cover in class will have an impact on the decisions you make as a manager.  So please write from the perspective of a manager of your organization, and not necessarily from your current position when you might not be making the strategic decisions.  

I do want you to use your own thoughts on this; so please don’t use AI.  

Two Group Write-ups:  20% of your grade

One of the worst things in the business world is that you inevitably have to work with people.  Over the course of the semester, I am going to have you work in groups to complete two projects that allow you to demonstrate understanding of the material we are covering.  You may distribute the work for each of these projects however you wish, but I hope each team member will try to work the cases independently and then come together as a group to complete the project for submission.  Each assignment will be worth five percent of your grade. 

I want to make clear that participation in these projects are not optional!  You cannot decide to just write off these points and not work with your group.  That type of selfish behavior is exactly what we don’t want from our graduates, and I reserve the right to fail you in the class completely for non-participation!  (See grading percentages at the bottom of this section)

I expect that the work for these write-ups will take about two or three hours on your own, and a couple hours with your group, and will be no longer than two pages, double-spaced text and any additional tables for the write-ups.  Your write-ups will be evaluated for correctness, and professionalism.  If the writing is abysmal with many spelling errors, you can expect a lower grade.  I do expect that you will turn in something that would not embarrass you to submit to a future employer or client.  There is a rubric on Canvas accompanying each of the group assignments.

Please understand that unlike the Excel assignments, these will be graded as to quality of analysis, accuracy and quality of presentation.  When turning in these assignments, please include the name of everyone on the team who contributed to completing the project so they will get full credit.  Anyone not listed on the project will receive a zero for that project.

Quizzes: 10% of your grade

These quizzes are simply to help you evaluate how well you understand the material.  They are not timed and you are welcome to use whatever materials you wish as you work them.  They are more auto-graded homework than true quizzes.  They are graded on a pass/fail basis.  If you score higher than 80% on them, you will get the full points.  If you do worse than 80%, you will need to take it again and fix the ones you missed and then receive full credit.  If you don’t take it again, it will be converted to a zero.  However, these quizzes are worded very similarly to what you will see on the exams, and are thus excellent preparation!

Four non-cumulative exams: 60% of your grade

The four exams are each based on the material covering the modules preceding the exam.  While they are not comprehensive, there will be elements, such as calculating the WACC, which will carry through each of the exams.  But in general, the practice sets will be the best preparation for what to expect on the exam itself.

Grading Components:
Exam 1:                       15%   
Exam 2:                       15%
Exam 3:                       15%
Exam 4:                       15%
Group Projects:            20%
Excel Projects:             10%
Quizzes:                       10%
Non-Participation on Group Projects:   -40%

I will not necessarily use the traditional grading scale in assigning + or – to your grades.  You can find a copy of my grading scale on the Canvas site.  It is normal at the top, and if you score above 90%, it will at least be an A-.  But I have a wider range for B than traditional, with the cutoff for B- at 73%.  The cutoff for passing the class is set at 60%, which is the lower bound for a C.  Most student’s grades will fall between 70-85%, so please don’t feel like a failure if you are in that range.  That is the normal range for a group of very smart students!  

Course Outline

Course Schedule:  Chapters relate to the optional textbook:  Fundamentals of Corporate Finance by Brealey, Myers and Marcus (see Materials section above for details)

 Class Date                                        Topic                                                              Chapters (Optional)      Assignment                   Due Date
Week 1              Course Intro, Ratios and Pro Forma Forecasting                              3, 4, 18     
Week 1              Agency Problems and Corporate Governance                                  1.4-1.6                           Application Report 1           2-Mar
  3/4                           Exam 1 Due                                                                                                                    Group Project 1                9-Mar
Week 2              Bonds and Interest Rate Theory                                                       6                                                       
Week 2              Stocks and Cost of Equity Financing                                                7.1-7.4, 11.3-11.5, 12                         
Week 3              WACC and Optimal Capital Structure                                               13.1-13.5,16 
Week 3              Optimal debt theories and Payout Policies                                       17, 7.5                            Application Report 2         20-Mar
  3/22                         Exam 2 Due 
Week 4              Decision Rules and Estimating Cash Flows                                      8   
Week 4              Project Evaluation and  Advanced DCF problems                             9                                       
Week 5              Advanced DCF problems                                                                  8.5, 13.6 
Week 5              Raising Capital for the Firm                                                              14, 15                              Application Report 3         3-Apr   
  4/5                          Exam 3 Due                                                                                                                     Group Project 2              12-Apr
Week 6              Introduction to Derivatives                                                                23, 24
Week 6             Game Trees and Real Options                                                          10.4, 23.3 
Week 7             M&A, Proxy fights, Divestitures and LBO's                                        21
Week 7             Corporate Bankruptcy                                                                       16.5, Appendix                 Application Report 4       17-Apr
  4/19                        Exam 4 Due
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The textbook chapters refer to the optional textbook.  They are not required!

I know many of you will look at this and say it is a lot of material!  And you are correct. In the 7-week format, you are taking two weeks of material from a normal semester and cramming it into one week.  That is nearly 6 hours of classroom time per week!  But this is the material I have taught for decades now, and 99% of my students have been able to pass with hard work and study.  Because you will be competing against graduates of other programs who cover this same material, I can’t cut topics out just because we changed the length of the session.  So I do want to warn you that you cannot get behind!  I frequently get told by students in my evaluations that they feel guilty if they sit around because they know they should be studying!  While they mean that as a criticism, they are absolutely correct and I appreciate they did it.  I too will be missing my son’s soccer games, church activities and other family events to be available for students the next 7-weeks, so I completely understand the sacrifice you will be making to gain skills that can help you for your entire career.

Instructor's policies on late assignments and/or makeup work

Please reach out to me if things come up that will prevent you from meeting the posted deadlines.  Once you have submitted your exams or projects, I can't allow you another attempt.  So be proactive and let me know before the deadline that something is happening that would require a delay.  I am usually pretty flexible.  

Attendance Policy

Course is online.

Course Fees

There are no additional course fees associated with this class.

ADA Statement

Students with medical, psychological, learning, or other disabilities desiring academic adjustments, accommodations, or auxiliary aids will need to contact the Disability Resource Center, located in Room 206F of the Sharwan Smith Center or by phone at (435) 865-8042. The Disability Resource Center determines eligibility for and authorizes the provision of services.

If your instructor requires attendance, you may need to seek an ADA accommodation to request an exception to this attendance policy. Please contact the Disability Resource Center to determine what, if any, ADA accommodations are reasonable and appropriate.

Academic Credit

According to the federal definition of a Carnegie credit hour: A credit hour of work is the equivalent of approximately 60 minutes of class time or independent study work. A minimum of 45 hours of work by each student is required for each unit of credit. Credit is earned only when course requirements are met. One (1) credit hour is equivalent to 15 contact hours of lecture, discussion, testing, evaluation, or seminar, as well as 30 hours of student homework. An equivalent amount of work is expected for laboratory work, internships, practica, studio, and other academic work leading to the awarding of credit hours. Credit granted for individual courses, labs, or studio classes ranges from 0.5 to 15 credit hours per semester.

Academic Freedom

SUU is operated for the common good of the greater community it serves. The common good depends upon the free search for truth and its free exposition. Academic Freedom is the right of faculty to study, discuss, investigate, teach, and publish. Academic Freedom is essential to these purposes and applies to both teaching and research.

Academic Freedom in the realm of teaching is fundamental for the protection of the rights of the faculty member and of you, the student, with respect to the free pursuit of learning and discovery. Faculty members possess the right to full freedom in the classroom in discussing their subjects. They may present any controversial material relevant to their courses and their intended learning outcomes, but they shall take care not to introduce into their teaching controversial materials which have no relation to the subject being taught or the intended learning outcomes for the course.

As such, students enrolled in any course at SUU may encounter topics, perspectives, and ideas that are unfamiliar or controversial, with the educational intent of providing a meaningful learning environment that fosters your growth and development. These parameters related to Academic Freedom are included in SUU Policy 6.6.

Academic Misconduct

Scholastic honesty is expected of all students. Dishonesty will not be tolerated and will be prosecuted to the fullest extent (see SUU Policy 6.33). You are expected to have read and understood the current SUU student conduct code (SUU Policy 11.2) regarding student responsibilities and rights, the intellectual property policy (SUU Policy 5.52), information about procedures, and what constitutes acceptable behavior.

Please Note: The use of websites or services that sell essays is a violation of these policies; likewise, the use of websites or services that provide answers to assignments, quizzes, or tests is also a violation of these policies. Regarding the use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (AI), you should check with your individual course instructor.

Emergency Management Statement

In case of an emergency, the University's Emergency Notification System (ENS) will be activated. Students are encouraged to maintain updated contact information using the link on the homepage of the mySUU portal. In addition, students are encouraged to familiarize themselves with the Emergency Response Protocols posted in each classroom. Detailed information about the University's emergency management plan can be found at https://www.suu.edu/emergency.

HEOA Compliance Statement

For a full set of Higher Education Opportunity Act (HEOA) compliance statements, please visit https://www.suu.edu/heoa. The sharing of copyrighted material through peer-to-peer (P2P) file sharing, except as provided under U.S. copyright law, is prohibited by law; additional information can be found at https://my.suu.edu/help/article/1096/heoa-compliance-plan.

You are also expected to comply with policies regarding intellectual property (SUU Policy 5.52) and copyright (SUU Policy 5.54).

Mandatory Reporting

University policy (SUU Policy 5.60) requires instructors to report disclosures received from students that indicate they have been subjected to sexual misconduct/harassment. The University defines sexual harassment consistent with Federal Regulations (34 C.F.R. Part 106, Subpart D) to include quid pro quo, hostile environment harassment, sexual assault, dating violence, domestic violence, and stalking. When students communicate this information to an instructor in-person, by email, or within writing assignments, the instructor will report that to the Title IX Coordinator to ensure students receive support from the Title IX Office. A reporting form is available at https://cm.maxient.com/reportingform.php?SouthernUtahUniv

Non-Discrimination Statement

SUU is committed to fostering an inclusive community of lifelong learners and believes our university's encompassing of different views, beliefs, and identities makes us stronger, more innovative, and better prepared for the global society.

SUU does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, citizenship, sex (including sex discrimination and sexual harassment), sexual orientation, gender identity, age, ancestry, disability status, pregnancy, pregnancy-related conditions, genetic information, military status, veteran status, or other bases protected by applicable law in employment, treatment, admission, access to educational programs and activities, or other University benefits or services.

SUU strives to cultivate a campus environment that encourages freedom of expression from diverse viewpoints. We encourage all to dialogue within a spirit of respect, civility, and decency.

For additional information on non-discrimination, please see SUU Policy 5.27 and/or visit https://www.suu.edu/nondiscrimination.

Pregnancy

Students who are or become pregnant during this course may receive reasonable modifications to facilitate continued access and participation in the course. Pregnancy and related conditions are broadly defined to include pregnancy, childbirth, termination of pregnancy, lactation, related medical conditions, and recovery. To obtain reasonable modifications, please make a request to title9@suu.edu. To learn more visit: https://www.suu.edu/titleix/pregnancy.html.

Disclaimer Statement

Information contained in this syllabus, other than the grading, late assignments, makeup work, and attendance policies, may be subject to change with advance notice, as deemed appropriate by the instructor.