Category: Essays

Write a ten to fifteen (10-15) page paper in which you:

Provide a rationale for the U.S. publicly traded company that you selected, indicating the significant factors driving your decision as a financial manager.
Determine the profile of the investor for which this company may be a fit, relative to that potential investor’s investment strategy. Provide support for your rationale.
Select any five (5) financial ratios that you have learned about in the text. Analyze the past three (3) years of the company’s financial data, which you may obtain from the company’s financial statements. Determine the company’s financial health. (Note: Suggested ratios include, but are not limited to, current ratio, quick ratio, earnings per share, and price earnings ratio.)
Based on your financial review, determine the risk level of the company from your investor’s point of view. Indicate key strategies that you may use in order to minimize these perceived risks.
Provide your recommendations of this stock as an investment opportunity. Support your rationale with resources, such as peer-reviewed articles or material from the Strayer Library.
Use at least five (5) quality academic resources in this assignment. Note: Wikipedia and other Websites do not qualify as academic resources.

Your assignment must follow these formatting requirements:

Be typed, double spaced, using Times New Roman font (size 12), with one-inch margins on all sides; citations and references must follow APA or school-specific format. Check with your professor for any additional instructions.
Include a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. The cover page and the reference page are not included in the required assignment page length.

The specific course learning outcomes associated with this assignment are:

Critique financial management strategies that support business operations in various market environments.
Analyze financial statements for key ratios, cash flow positions, and taxation effects.
Review fixed income strategies using time value of money concept, bond valuation methods, and interest rate calculations.
Estimate the risk and return on financial investments.
Apply financial management options to corporate finance.
Determine the cost of capital and how to maximize returns.
Formulate cash flow analysis for capital projects including project risks and returns.
Evaluate how corporate valuation and forecasting affect financial management.
Analyze how capital structure decision-making practices impact financial management.
Use technology and information resources to research issues in financial management.
Write clearly and concisely about financial management using proper writing mechanics

need a few pages written for a paper centered around developing a strategic plan for IBM. Required portions are as follows:

alternative strategy generation and potential outcomes

strategy and prioritization selection.

Require apporx. 3-4 pages that analize these two topics related to the IBM company.

Instructions are as follows:

Identify strategies
Discuss strategies used at the corporate, business and function levels using the concepts learned in the course.
Demonstrate critical thinking in the assessment.
double spaced, 12 pt. font. include references. (APA format

need a few pages written for a paper centered around developing a strategic plan for IBM. Required portions are as follows:

alternative strategy generation and potential outcomes

strategy and prioritization selection.

Require apporx. 3-4 pages that analize these two topics related to the IBM company.

Instructions are as follows:

Identify strategies
Discuss strategies used at the corporate, business and function levels using the concepts learned in the course.
Demonstrate critical thinking in the assessment.
double spaced, 12 pt. font. include references. (APA format

Read: Swanson and Chermack (2013) e-book as well as the American Psychological Association (2010) and Baltes (1987) articles for this week (make sure to cite all of these sources and discuss in the post).

2. Create your own developmental theory on bullying (you may address bullying in a broad sense, or choose an aspect of bullying (e.g., cyber-bullying, school bullying, sibling bullying) to address theoretically).

a. Develop a hypothesis (see below)

b. Create a framework for the theory (see below)

c. Provide research and review research (see below)

i. Research several peer-reviewed articles on bullying . Look for patterns in the data presented in the articles and compile at least three peer-reviewed articles with similar findings on which to build your theory.

Discussion Format: Use Subtitles for this Assignment

· Hypothesis-Create a purpose statement that defines the phenomenon, identifies the need for better understanding of this issue, and explains human development in the context of bullying trends.

· Framework-Apply the findings within your chosen developmental research articles to the creation of your own research questions and create a hypothesis on bullying behaviors.

· Research Critique-Evaluate the unique scholarly perspectives presented in your research and explain how they support your hypothesis on bullying.

· After creating your hypothesis, you will devise an experiment to test it. Although you will not actually complete the experiment, describe it in detail including the sample, independent and dependent variables, materials needed, procedure, and expected outcomes.

· Analyze any ethical considerations which might affect the viability of your experiment and describe how you would address any ethical concerns regarding the use of your experiment.

· Based on the information you have collected to create your research questions and hypotheses, as well as the expected outcome(s) of your experiment, integrate this evidence into a theory by suggesting a framework for how we should understand bullying according to you, the expert.

o Choose an appropriate name for your theory

o Generate at least two phrases of terminology to explain the phenomenon in your own words.

o Explain how your theory addresses the hypothesis and expected outcomes of your experiment.

o Apply your developmental theory and associated terminology as “scholarly support” to propose solutions for bullying within your provided framework

Use technology and information resources to research issues in advanced financial management.  Write clearly and concisely about advanced financial management using proper writing mechanics. Introduction:  At the risk of repeating ourselves, let’s let Mr. Charlie Munger, co-chairman of BerkshireHathaway, say his piece on the power of financial incentives once more: “Never, ever think about something else when you should be thinking about the power of incentives.” Of course, we agree, and we want you to learn how to evaluate financial incentives that you’ll discover in the corporate world. We also want you to be able to assess relatively strong and weak corporate governance systems. That’s the crux of this final assignment.  First, what we’d like you to do is to identify a public company (preferably one that you’re familiar with from prior assignments). Then, we’d like you to examine and analyze its governance principles, structures, and practices.  We firmly believe that the effective financial decision-maker will understand the power that governance and strong systems have over financial performance, and thus it’s important to train ourselves to be acutely aware of these issues. Here’s how we recommend approaching the assignment: o Head to edgar.sec.gov to access your company’s financial statements (or any site where you feel comfortable accessing your company’s financial statements, including the company’s own homepage). o Pull up the proxy statement (it’s also called the 14A, the DEF14A, and occasionally the PRE14A). o Read the statement in its entirety and reflect. Write a 3-4 page paper in which you do the following: 1. Determine whether the board seems appropriately constituted. Are these people qualified to be governing a business of this type? (Read their bios and even Google them for more info.) 2. Assess the committees the board members sit on. Are they appropriately staffed? 3. Assess the management. How long have they been with the company? What is their relative experience? 4. Evaluate the board’s philosophy on executive compensation. 5. Discuss the metrics tied to the CEO’s inventive compensation. Are they sound metrics or not? JWI 531: Financial Management II Academic Submissions and Evaluations ©2015 Strayer University. All Rights Reserved. This document contains Strayer University confidential and proprietary information and may not be copied, further distributed, or otherwise disclosed, in whole or in part, without the expressed written permission of Strayer University. This course guide is subject to change based on the needs of the class. JWI 531 Course Guide – Winter 2015 Page 2 of 4 6. Determine if compensation is reasonable considering the company’s financial performance. 7. Determine if related-party transactions (sometimes called “transactions with related parties”) exist, and if they do, whether they are reasonable. Your assignment should adhere to these guidelines:  Write in a logical, well-organized, conventional business style. Use Times New Roman font size 12 or similar, double-space, and leave ample white space per page.

 All references must follow JWMI style guide, and works must be cited appropriately. Check with your professor for any additional instructions on citations.

 On the first page or in a header, include the title of the assignment, the student’s name, the professor’s name, the course title, and the date. Title and reference pages are not included in the assignment page length

Following a rigorous portfolio review and an informal expression of interest in the Pringles brand by Diamond Foods (Diamond) in late 2009, Proctor & Gamble (P&G), and the world? leading manufacturer of household products, believed that Pringles could be worth more to its shareholders if divested than if retained. Pringles is the iconic potato chip brand, with sales; in 140 countries and operations in the United States, Europe, and Asia. Diamond executive management had long viewed the Pringles? Brand as an attractive fi t for their strategy of building, acquiring, and energizing brands. The acquisition of Pringles; would triple the size of the firms snack business and provide greater merchandising influence in the way in which its products are distributed. The merger would also give Diamond a substantial presence in Asia, Latin America, and Central Europe. The increased geographic diversity means the firm would derive almost one-half of its revenue from international sales. After extended negotiations, Diamond and P&G announced on April; 15, 2011, their intent to merge P&G Pringles subsidiary into Diamond in a transaction valued at $2.35 billion. The purchase price consisted of $1.5 billion in Diamond common stock, valued at $51.47 per share, and Diamond assumption of $850 million in Pringles outstanding debt. The way in which the deal was structured enabled P&G shareholders to defer any gains they realize from the transaction and resulted in a one-time after-tax earnings increase for P&G of $1.5 billion due to the firm low tax basis in Pringles. The offer to exchange Pringles shares for P&G shares reduced the number of outstanding P&G common shares, partially offsetting the impact on P&G?s earnings per share of the; loss of Pringles earnings. Diamond agreed to issue one share of its common stock for each Pringles common share. The 29.1 million common shares issued by Diamond resulted in P&G shareholders participating in the exchange offer, owning a 57% stake in the combined firms, with Diamond shareholders owning the remainder. The deal was structured as a reverse Morris Trust acquisition, which combines a divisive reorganization (e.g., a spin-off or a split-off) with an acquisitive reorganization (e.g., a statutory merger) to allow a tax-free transfer of a subsidiary under U.S. law. The use of a divisive reorganization results in the creation of a public company that is subsequently merged into a shell subsidiary (i.e., a privately owned company) of another firm, with the shell surviving. The structure of the deal involved four discrete steps, outlined in separation and transaction agreements signed by P&G and Diamond. These steps included the following: (1) the creation by P&G of a wholly owned subsidiary containing Pringles assets and liabilities, (2) the recapitalization of the wholly owned Pringles subsidiary, (3) the separation of the wholly owned subsidiary through a split-off exchange offer, and (4) a merger with a wholly owned subsidiary of Diamond Foods. The separation agreement covered the first three steps, with the final step detailed in the transaction agreement. Under the separation agreement, P&G contributed certain Pringles assets and liabilities to the Pringles Company, a newly formed wholly owned subsidiary of P&G. After P&G and Diamond reached a negotiated value for the Pringles Company equity of $1.5 billion, or $51.47 per share, the Pringles Company was subsequently recapitalized by issuing to P&G 29.1 million shares of Pringles Company stock. To complete the separation of Pringles from the parent firm, P&G distributed on the closing date Pringles shares to P&G shareholders participating in a share-exchange offer in which they agreed to exchange their P&G shares for Pringles shares. In addition, the Pringles Company borrowed $850 million and used the proceeds to pay P&G a cash dividend and to acquire certain Pringles business assets held by P&G affiliates. Since P&G is the sole owner of the Pringles Company, the dividend is tax free to P&G because it is an intra-company transfer. If the exchange offer had not been fully subscribed, P&G would have distributed through a tax free spin-off the remaining shares as a dividend to P&G shareholders. The transaction agreement outlined the terms and conditions pertinent to completion of the merger with Diamond Foods. Immediately after the completion of the distribution, the Pringles Company merged with Merger Sub, a wholly owned shell subsidiary of Diamond, with Merger Sub continuing as the surviving company. The shares of Pringles Company common stock distributed in connection with the split-off exchange offer automatically converted into the right to receive shares of Diamond common stock on a one-for one basis. After the merger, Diamond, through Merger Sub, owned and operated Pringles (see Figure 16.3).;Prior to the merger, Diamond already had formidable antitakeover defenses in place as part of its charter documents, including a classified board of directors, a prohibition against stockholders? Taking action by written consent (i.e., consent solicitation), and a requirement that stockholders give advance notice before raising matters at a stockholders? Meeting. Following the merger, Diamond adopted a shareholder-rights plan. The plan entitled the holder of such rights to purchase 1/100 of a share of Diamond Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock if a person or group acquires 15% or more of Diamond outstanding common stock. Holders of this preferred stock (other than the person or group triggering their exercise) would be able to purchase Diamond common shares (flip-in poison pill) or those of any company into which Diamond is merged (flip-over poison pill) at a price of $60 per share. Such rights would expire in March 2015 unless extended by Diamond board of directors.

Questions

1. The merger of Pringles and Diamond Foods could have been achieved as a result of a P&G spinoff of Pringles. Explain the details of how this might happen.

2. Speculate as to why P&G chose to split-off rather than spin-off Pringles as part of its plan to merge post with Diamond. Be specific.

3. Why was this transaction subject to the Morris Trust tax regulations?

4. How is value created for the P&G and Diamond shareholders in this type of transaction?

5. Why did the addition of the shareholder-rights plan by Diamond Foods following the merger with Pringles make sense given the type of deal structure used?

The Session Long Project entails going through the process of influencing policymakers. Under the Connecticut Health Policy toolbox resource, read the section on “Writing to Policymakers.” You will notice toward the bottom of that page, “sample letters” and “related articles.” Read these sections as you will use them throughout your Session Long Project.
Your Task

For this part of the Session Long Project you will be writing on “supporting a proposal” (see sample letter at the bottom of the Connecticut Health Policy toolbox resource). Write on supporting any proposal that is related to the topic identified in SLP 1. You may choose to advocate for change at the local, state, or national level.

Using the same topic from SLP 1, identify the level you wish to write to (local, state, or national).
For this SLP assignment, you will be writing on “supporting a proposal.”
Choose one of the related articles on the bottom of the Connecticut Health Policy toolbox (different from the ones you used for SLP 1 & 2). Describe the key points of the article (one paragraph) and how it relates to influencing policymakers (one paragraph).
Write a one-page letter, that encompasses the information from the above 3 bullets (on “supporting a proposal”).

Note: The first page addresses bullets 1-3. The second page is a one-page letter on “supporting a proposal” and encompasses information from questions 1-3 (see sample letters for guidance). Remember, your letter addresses “supporting a proposal.”
SLP Assignment Expectations

Length: 2 pages.

Your work will be evaluated based on the performance assessment grading rubric criteria. Review it before you begin working on the assignment

During your Case 2 assignment, you were asked to map out the steps necessary for designing a media campaign. Effective communication strategies are essential to reach your target audience. However, the method needs to match the intended audience. In addition, working under budget constraints can be a daunting task and an area a health educator conducting a communication campaign needs to account for.
Case Assignment

Identify at least 4 different methods to reach an intended audience.
Describe each identified method of reaching an intended audience and provide examples of the method in use, related to a health topic of your choice.
Provide at least 3 different budget strategies a health educator could use when implementing a health communication plan.

n Chapter 2, (Hubbard – O’brien-Microeconomics) you learned about the concept of opportunity cost, and the Section 2.1 review video demonstrated this concept. In your initial post, respond to the following:

Describe various opportunity costs of attending a four-year college (assuming a full-time schedule). Given these opportunity costs, why do people choose a four-year college experience?
In your own life, what are the trade-offs you face when choosing online classes versus traditional face-to-face classes?

For this assignment, you will respond to the results of your team simulation round. What have you have identified as the key business issues that will impact your company? Respond to the results of your management area. What have you have identified as the key business issues that impacted your decisions in the simulation round? Prepare to discuss your decisions with the other members of your team.

As the Vice President of your product please address these questions for the decisions you made in R&D:

How well did you establish the specification of the products to meet customer demand?
What level of quality and reliability—mean time between failure (MTBF)—did you build into your products?
How did you ensure that the perceived age of the product meets customer demand?
What new products did you create to meet the changing marketplace?

As the Vice President of your product please address these questions for the decisions you made in Marketing:

Explain your rationale for how you set the price of your products in the marketplace.
What was your strategy around creating new products to meet the changing marketplace?
How well did you build customer awareness through promotion?
How effectively did you establish a sales force and distribution channels?
What was your sales forecast strategy for your products?
What was your rationale for your credit policies (accounts receivable and accounts payable)?

As the Vice President of your product please address these questions for the decisions you made in Production:

Did you purchase machinery to automate your facilities? If so, what was your rationale?
Did you buy or sell capacity of product lines?
How did you establish you production schedule for each line?
How well did you manage the majority of the company’s fixed assets?
Did you establish your workforce complement?

In conjunction with the COO, the Vice President will address these questions for the decisions you made in Finance:

Did you acquire capital to fund capital expansions?
Did you issue stock, short-term debt, or long-term bonds? If so, why?
Did you issue a dividend to your shareholders? Explain your rationale whether your answer was yes or no.
How well did you balance your debt portfolio? What was your strategy regarding the management of the pro forma statements