Corporate Finance: Newsletter – October 12, 2007

Where we are in class…

Where you should be in the project…

Data Notes…

The bulk of this week’s session and the quiz preparation has revolved around estimating bottom-up betas. The key to doing this well is having the betas of each business already identified. As some of you have probably discovered, I already have this information online for very broad aggregations of sectors for companies in the United States, Europe, Japan and the Emerging Markets.

http://www.sterm.nyu.edu/~adamodar/New_Home_Page/data.html

If you find this aggregation too broad, go to the top of this page (the url listed above) and you will find the excel spreadsheet containing individual firm information on the companies I used to compute the averages (about 30000 companies overall). You can download the excel files, sort them, and create your own comparable firm lists that are more refined.

You can also get this information from a Bloomberg terminal using an ESRC function. To get more information on that function try the Bloomberg data description document that is also available on the link listed above.

Miscellaneous FAQs

Can I miss the quiz?

Only if you are symptomatic.. In other words, you need a good reason to miss the quiz (physical sickness, family emergency and even an interview that cannot be rescheduled would qualify).

What do I need to do if I think I will be missing the quiz?

You need to email me before 3.30 on Monday to let me know that you will not be taking the quiz.

How much is this quiz worth?

The quiz is worth 10% of your grade. If you miss it, the 10% will be spread proportionately over your other quizzes and exam.

What I do badly?

Lets cross that bridge when we get to it, but there is always hope.