Fundamentals of Corporate
Finance, 2/e
ROBERT PARRINO, PH.D.
DAVID S. KIDWELL, PH.D.
THOMAS W. BATES, PH.D.

Learning Objectives
1.
DEFINE NET WORKING CAPITAL, DISCUSS THE
IMPORTANCE OF WORKING CAPITAL
MANAGEMENT, AND COMPUTE A FIRM’S NET
WORKING CAPITAL.
2.
DEFINE THE OPERATING AND CASH CONVERSION
CYCLES, EXPLAIN HOW ARE THEY USED, AND
COMPUTE THEIR VALUES FOR A FIRM.
3.
DISCUSS THE RELATIVE ADVANTAGES AND
DISADVANTAGES OF PURSUING (1) FLEXIBLE AND
(2) RESTRICTIVE CURRENT ASSET MANAGEMENT
STRATEGIES.

Learning Objectives
4.
EXPLAIN HOW ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLE ARE
CREATED AND MANAGED, AND COMPUTE THE
COST OF TRADE CREDIT.
5.
EXPLAIN THE TRADE-OFF BETWEEN CARRYING
COSTS AND REORDER COSTS, AND COMPUTE THE
ECONOMIC ORDER QUANTITY FOR A FIRM’S
INVENTORY ORDERS.
6.
DEFINE CASH COLLECTION TIME, DISCUSS HOW A
FIRM CAN MINIMIZE THIS TIME, AND COMPUTE
THE ECONOMIC COSTS AND BENEFITS OF A
LOCKBOX.

Learning Objectives
7.
DESCRIBE THREE CURRENT ASSET FINANCING
STRATEGIES AND DISCUSS THE MAIN SOURCES OF
SHORT-TERM FINANCING.

o WHAT IS WORKING CAPITAL MANAGEMENT?
• Working capital management involves two key issues:
What is the appropriate amount and mix of current assets for the firm to hold?
How should these current assets be financed?

Working Capital Basics o WORKING CAPITAL TERMS AND CONCEPTS
• Current assets are cash and other assets that the firm expects to convert into cash in a year or less.
• Current liabilities (or short-term liabilities) are obligations that the firm expects to pay off in an year or less.

Working Capital Basics o WORKING CAPITAL TERMS AND CONCEPTS
• Working capital is the funds invested in a company’s cash account, account receivables, inventory, and other current assets (also called gross working capital).

Working Capital Basics o WORKING CAPITAL TERMS AND CONCEPTS
• Net working capital (NWC) refers to the difference between current assets and current liabilities. NWC is important because it is a measure of liquidity and represents the net short-term investment the firm keeps in the business.

Working Capital Basics o WORKING CAPITAL TERMS AND CONCEPTS
• Working capital management involves making decisions regarding the use and sources of current assets.
• Working capital efficiency refers to the length of time between when a working capital asset is acquired and when it is converted into cash.

Working Capital Basics o WORKING CAPITAL TERMS AND CONCEPTS
• Liquidity is the ability of a company to convert assets—real or financial—into cash quickly without suffering a financial loss.

Working Capital Basics o WORKING CAPITAL ACCOUNTS AND TRADE-
OFFS
• Cash: Includes cash and marketable securities like treasury securities. The higher the cash balance the better the ability of the firm to meet its short-term financial obligations.
• Receivables: Represents the amount owed by customers who have availed the firm’s trade credit facility.

Working Capital Basics o WORKING CAPITAL ACCOUNTS AND TRADE-
OFFS
• Inventory: Firms maintain inventory of raw materials, work in process, and finished goods.
• Payables: Represents the amount owed to the firm’s vendors and suppliers for materials purchased on credit.

The Operating and Cash Conversion Cycles o SEQUENCE OF EVENTS IN A CASH
CONVERSION CYCLE:
• The firm uses cash to pay for the cost of raw materials and the costs of conversion.
• Finished goods are held in finished goods inventory until they are sold.
• Finished goods are sold on credit to the firm’s customers.
• Customers repay the credit the firm has extended them and the firm receives the cash.

The Operating and Cash Conversion Cycles o GOALS OF FINANCIAL MANAGERS IN
MANAGING THE CYCLE:
• To delay paying accounts payable as long as possible without suffering any penalties.
• To maintain minimal raw material inventories without causing manufacturing delays.
• To use as little a labor as possible to manufacture the product while maintaining quality.

The Operating and Cash Conversion Cycles o GOALS OF FINANCIAL MANAGERS IN
MANAGING THE CYCLE:
• To maintain minimal finished goods inventories without losing sales.
• To offer customers the most attractive credit terms possible on trade credit to maximize sales while minimizing the risk of non-payment.
• To collect cash payments on accounts receivable as fast as possible to close the loop.

The Operating and Cash Conversion Cycles o OPERATING CYCLE
• Begins when the firm uses its cash to purchase raw materials and ends when the firm collects cash payments on its credit sales.
• Described in two components: Days sales in
Inventory and Days sales outstanding.

Exhibit 14.3: Timeline for Operating and
Cash Conversion Cycles

The Operating and Cash Conversion Cycles o OPERATING CYCLE
• Days sales in inventory (DSI) shows how long the firm keeps its inventory before selling it. It is the ratio of the inventory balance to the daily cost of goods sold.
• The quicker a firm can move out its raw materials as finished goods, the shorter the duration when the firm holds it inventory, and the more efficient it is in managing its inventory.

The Operating and Cash Conversion Cycles o OPERATING CYCLE
• Days sales outstanding (DSO) estimates how long it takes on an average for the firm to collect its outstanding accounts receivable balances.
This ratio is also called the Average Collection Period
(ACP).
• An efficient firm with good working capital management should have a low average collection period compared to its industry.

The Operating and Cash Conversion Cycles o OPERATING CYCLE
• The operating cycle is calculated by summing the Days Sales Outstanding and the Days Sales in Inventory.
Operating Cycle = DSO + DSI (14.1)

The Operating and Cash Conversion Cycles o CASH CONVERSION CYCLE
• Is related to the operating cycle, but it does not start until the firm actually pays for its inventory.
That is, the cash conversion cycle is the length of time between the cash outflow for materials and the cash inflow from sales.
• To measure the cash conversion cycle we need another measure called the days payables outstanding.

The Operating and Cash Conversion Cycles o CASH CONVERSION CYCLE
• Days Payables Outstanding (DPO) tells how long a firm takes to pay off its suppliers for the cost of inventory.
• The cash conversion cycle is calculated as:
Cash Conversion Cycle = DSO + DSI - DPO (14.2) or;
Cash Conversion Cycle = Operating Cycle - DPO (14.3)

Working Capital Management Strategies o Financial managers use two types of strategies for current assets investments: flexible and
restrictive.

Working Capital Management Strategies o Flexible Current Asset Management Strategy
• The flexible strategy has a high percent of current assets to sales, whereas a restrictive policy has a low percent of current assets to sales.
• The flexible strategy calls for management to invest large amounts in cash, marketable securities, and inventory.

Working Capital Management Strategies o Flexible Current Asset Management Strategy
• The strategy also promotes a liberal trade credit policy for customers, which results in high levels of accounts receivable.
• The flexible strategy is perceived to be a lowrisk and low-return course of action for management.
• The advantage of this policy is the large working capital balances the firm holds.

Working Capital Management Strategies o Flexible Current Asset Management Strategy
• The strategy’s downside is the high carrying cost associated with owning a high level of inventory and providing liberal credit terms to its customers.
The higher carrying costs result from two reasons:
– The investment in low return current assets deprives higher returns that management could earn on long-term assets like plant and equipment.
– Higher amounts of inventory result in higher warehousing and storage costs.

Working Capital Management Strategies o RESTRICTIVE CURRENT ASSET MANAGEMENT
STRATEGY
• The restrictive strategy is a high-risk highreturn alternative to the flexible strategy.
• The high risk comes in the form of shortage costs which can be either financial or operating.
• Financial shortage costs arise mainly from illiquidity, shortage of cash, and a lack of marketable securities to sell for cash.

Working Capital Management Strategies o RESTRICTIVE CURRENT ASSET MANAGEMENT
STRATEGY
• Current assets are kept at a minimum under the restrictive strategy.
• The firm barely invests in cash and inventory and has tight terms of sale intended to curb credit sales and accounts receivable.

Working Capital Management Strategies o RESTRICTIVE CURRENT ASSET MANAGEMENT
STRATEGY
• If there are unpaid bills that are due, the firm will be forced to use expensive external emergency borrowing.
• If funding cannot be secured, default occurs on some current liability and the firm runs the risk of being forced into bankruptcy by creditors.
• Operating shortage costs result from lost production and sales.

Working Capital Management Strategies o RESTRICTIVE CURRENT ASSET MANAGEMENT
STRATEGY
• If the firm does not hold enough raw materials in inventory, time may be wasted by a halt in production.

Working Capital Management Strategies o THE WORKING CAPITAL TRADE-OFF
• The optimal current assets investment strategy will depend on the relative magnitudes of carrying costs and shortage costs. This conflict is often referred to as the working capital tradeoff.
• Financial managers need to balance shortage costs against carrying costs to define an optimal strategy.

Working Capital Management Strategies o THE WORKING CAPITAL TRADE-OFF
• If carrying costs are larger than shortage costs, then the firm will maximize value by adopting a more restrictive strategy.
• On the other hand, if shortage costs dominate carrying costs, the firm will need to move towards a more flexible policy.
• Overall, management will try to find the level of current assets that minimizes the sum of the carrying costs and shortage costs.

Accounts Receivables o Companies frequently make sales to customers on credit by delivering the goods in exchange for the promise of a future payment.
o The promise is an account receivable from the firm’s point of view.
o Offering credit to customers can help a firm attract customers by differentiating the firm and its products from its competitors.

Accounts Receivables o TERMS OF SALE
• Whenever a firm sells a product, the seller spells out the terms and conditions of the sale in a document called the terms of sale.
• The simplest offer is cash on delivery (COD)— that is, no credit is offered.

Accounts Receivables o TERMS OF SALE
• When credit is part of the sale, the terms of sale spell out the credit agreement between the buyer and seller.
• The agreement specifies when the cash payment is due and the amount of any discount if early payment is made.
• Trade credit, which is a short-term financing, is typically made with a discount for early payment rather an explicit interest charge.

Accounts Receivables o TERMS OF SALE
• Financial managers must realize that trade credit is a loan from the supplier and it is usually a very costly form of credit.
• We can find the effective annual rate (EAR) for trade credit using the following formula:



EAR= 1+
Discount
Discounted price



365 / days credit
-1 (14.4)

Accounts Receivables o AGING ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLES
• A common tool that credit managers use is called an aging schedule.
• The aging schedule shows the breakdown of the firm’s accounts receivable by their date of sale; how long has the account not been paid in days.
• Its purpose is to identify and then track delinquent accounts and to see that they are paid.

Accounts Receivables o AGING ACCOUNTS RECEIVABLES
• Aging schedules are also an important financial tool for analyzing the quality of a company’s receivables.
• The aging schedule reveals patterns of delinquency and shows where collection efforts should be concentrated. Exhibit 14.6 shows aging schedules for three different firms.

Inventory Management o Inventory management is largely a function of operations management, not financial management.
o Manufacturing companies generally carry three types of inventory: raw materials, work in process, and finished goods.
o Investment in inventory—raw goods, work in process, or finished goods—are costly.

Inventory Management o Capital invested in inventory provides no direct return. On the other hand, running out of raw materials can cause manufacturing to shut down at a greater cost to the firm, as shortage of finished goods can mean lost sales.

Inventory Management o ECONOMIC ORDER QUANTITY (EOQ)
• The EOQ mathematically determines the minimum total inventory cost taking into account reorder costs and inventory carrying costs.
• The optimal order size strikes the balance between these two costs.

Inventory Management o ECONOMIC ORDER QUANTITY
• EOQ is calculated as:
EOQ

2

Reorder costs

Sales per period
(14.5)
Carrying costs

Inventory Management o JUST-IN-TIME INVENTORY MANAGEMENT
• In this system the exact day-by-day, or even hour-by-hour raw material needs are delivered by the suppliers, who deliver the goods “just in time” for them to be used on the production line.
• A big advantage in this system is that there are essentially no raw material inventory costs and no chance of obsolescence or loss to theft.

Inventory Management o JUST-IN-TIME INVENTORY MANAGEMENT
• On the other hand, if the supplier fails to make the needed deliveries, then production shuts down.
• If this system works for a firm effectively, it cuts down their investment in working capital dramatically.

Cash Management and Budgeting o REASONS FOR HOLDING CASH
• Two reasons exist for holding a cash balance:
First, it facilitates transactions with suppliers, customers and employees.
The second reason for holding cash is simply that most banks require firms to hold minimum cash balances in exchange for the services they provide.

Cash Management and Budgeting o CASH COLLECTION
• Collection time, or float, is the time between when a customer makes a payment and when the cash becomes available to the firm.
• Collection time can be broken down into three components.
First is delivery time, or mailing time. When a customer mails payment, it may take several days before that payment arrives.

Cash Management and Budgeting o CASH COLLECTION
Second is processing delay. Once the payment is received, it must be opened, examined, accounted for, and deposited at the firm’s bank.
Finally, there is a delay between the time of the deposit and the time the cash is available for withdrawal.

Cash Management and Budgeting o CASH COLLECTION
• Payments in cash at the point of sale reduce the collection time to zero.
• Payments by checks or credit cards at the point of sale eliminates the mail time but not the processing time.

Cash Management and Budgeting o LOCKBOXES
• A system allows geographically dispersed customers to send their payments to a post office box close to them.
• With a concentration account, a post office box is replaced by a local branch which receives the mailings, processes the payments, and makes the deposits.
• Either approach will reduce the collection time to an extent but there is a cost associated with it.

o ELECTRONIC FUNDS TRANSFERS
• Another increasingly popular means of reducing cash collection time is through the use of electronic funds transfers. Such payments reduce cash collection times in every phase.
• First, mailing time is eliminated.
• Second, processing time is reduced or eliminated since no data entry is necessary.
• Finally, electronic funds transfers typically have little or no delay in funds availability.

Financing Working Capital o STRATEGIES FOR FINANCING WORKING
CAPITAL
• Exhibit 14.7 shows the three basic strategies that a firm can follow to finance its working capital and fixed assets. Each of the three panels show:
The total long-term financing needed, which consists of long-term debt and equity.
The seasonal needs for working capital that fluctuates with the level of sales.

Financing Working Capital o STRATEGIES FOR FINANCING WORKING CAPITAL
• The “matching of maturities” is one of the most basic techniques used by financial managers to reduce risk when financing assets. It is show in panel (a) of Exhibit 14.7.
• All seasonal working capital is funded with short-term borrowing and, as the level of sales varies, seasonally, short-term borrowing fluctuates between some minimum and maximum level.

Financing Working Capital o STRATEGIES FOR FINANCING WORKING
CAPITAL
• All permanent working capital and fixed assets are funded with long-term financing.
• The long-term funding strategy is shown in panel (b) of Exhibit 14.7.
This strategy relies on long-term debt to finance both capital assets and working capital.

Financing Working Capital o STRATEGIES FOR FINANCING WORKING
CAPITAL
• The short-term funding strategy is shown in panel (c) of Exhibit 14.7:
This strategy relies on short-term debt to finance all seasonal working capital, a portion of the permanent working capital and fixed assets.

Financing Working Capital o FINANCING WORKING CAPITAL IN PRACTICE
• Matching Maturities
Nearly all financial managers try to match the maturities of assets and liabilities when funding the firm. That is, short-term assets are funded with shortterm financing and long-term assets are funded with long-term financing.

Financing Working Capital o FINANCING WORKING CAPITAL IN PRACTICE
• Permanent Working Capital
Most financial managers like to fund some of their currents assets with long-term debt as shown in panel
(b) of Exhibit 14.7, so-called permanent working capital.
• However, in recent years, a number of large, well-known firms of the highest credit standing have been funding some of their long-term fixed assets with short-term debt sold in the commercial paper market.

Financing Working Capital o SOURCES OF SHORT-TERM FINANCING
• Accounts payable
Accounts payable (trade credit), bank loans, and commercial paper are common sources of short-term financing.
Accounts payable constitute close to 35 percent of total current liabilities for all publicly traded manufacturing firms.
The buyer needs to figure out whether it makes financial sense to pay early and take advantage of the discount or to wait and pay in full when the account is due.

Financing Working Capital o SOURCES OF SHORT-TERM FINANCING
• Short-term bank loans
Short-term bank loans account for close to 20% of total current liabilities for all publicly traded manufacturing firms.
If the firm backs the loan with an asset, the loan is defined as secured; otherwise, the loan is unsecured.
Secured loans allow the borrower to borrow at a lower interest rate, all else being equal.
An informal line of credit is a verbal agreement between the firm and the bank, allowing the firm to borrow up to an agreed-upon upper limit.

Financing Working Capital o SOURCES OF SHORT-TERM FINANCING
• Short-term bank loans
In exchange for providing the line of credit, a bank may require that the firm holds a compensating balance with them.
A formal line of credit is also known as “revolving credit.” Under this type of agreement, the bank has a legal obligation to lend to the firm an amount of money up to a preset limit. The firm pays a yearly fee, in addition to the interest expense on the amount they borrow.

Financing Working Capital o SOURCES OF SHORT-TERM FINANCING
• Commercial paper
Commercial paper is a promissory note issued by large financially secure firms, which have high credit ratings.
Commercial paper is not “secured” which means that the issuer is not pledging any assets to the lender in the event of default.
However, most commercial paper is backed by a credit line from a commercial bank.

Financing Working Capital o SOURCES OF SHORT-TERM FINANCING
• Commercial paper
Therefore, the default rate on commercial paper is very low, resulting in an interest rate that is usually lower than what a bank would charge on a direct loan.
For medium-size and small businesses, accountsreceivable financing is an important source of funds.

Financing Working Capital o SOURCES OF SHORT-TERM FINANCING
• Accounts Receivable Financing
A company can secure a bank loan by pledging the firm’s accounts receivable as security.
A second way for a business to finance itself with accounts receivables, called factoring, is to sell the receivables to a factor at a discount.
The firm which sells the receivables has no further legal obligation to the factor.