Overview
This introductory course examines the principles and practices of corporate financial management. It develops a structured understanding of how firms create and preserve value through investment, financing, and working capital decisions, while addressing agency relationships, corporate governance, ethical responsibilities, and the limitations of purely financial objectives.
Students apply time value of money techniques, financial statement analysis, security valuation, risk and return models, portfolio concepts, cost of capital estimation, capital budgeting methods, leverage analysis, capital structure evaluation, dividend policy, liquidity management, and financial planning. Spreadsheet models and financial calculators are used to calculate, interpret, and communicate financial measures under conditions of uncertainty.
Learning Outcomes
- Explain the objectives, functions, ethical responsibilities, and governance contexts of corporate financial management.
- Calculate and interpret financial ratios, cash flows, present values, future values, annuities, perpetuities, and effective interest rates.
- Value basic bonds and stocks using appropriate assumptions and discounted cash flow techniques.
- Evaluate the relationship between risk, required return, diversification, portfolio performance, and market efficiency.
- Estimate relevant and incremental project cash flows and apply net present value, internal rate of return, payback, and profitability index methods.
- Construct spreadsheet models for financial analysis, valuation, sensitivity analysis, and scenario analysis, documenting assumptions and limitations.
- Analyse operating leverage, financial leverage, capital structure, financing alternatives, dividend policy, liquidity, and cash conversion cycles.
- Recommend investment, financing, and working capital decisions that support sustainable shareholder value while recognising uncertainty, conflicts of interest, and broader ethical responsibilities.
Timetable
| Type | Length | Frequency | Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lecture | 2 hours | Weekly | All semester |
| Tutorial | 1 hour | Weekly | All semester |
| Workshop | 2 hours | Fortnightly | First term |
| Lab | 2 hours | Fortnightly | Second term |
Assessment Schedule
| Type | Description | Weighting |
|---|---|---|
| Quiz | Quiz (5 × 2%) | 10.00% |
| Assignment | Quantitative financial analysis exercises | 15.00% |
| Deliverable | Spreadsheet valuation and scenario model | 20.00% |
| Test | Mid-semester finance test | 20.00% |
| Capstone | Capital investment analysis and recommendation | 15.00% |
| Exam | Comprehensive final examination | 20.00% |
Prerequisites
- Requirement 8 NCEA Level 2 Mathematics credits, externally assessed
Teaching Staff & Programs
This course is delivered jointly by faculty from the participating programs listed below. In line with the Douchewater Way, the University of Sexology tailors core instruction directly to each cohort's specific discipline — adapting curriculum to program needs rather than forcing students into a one-size-fits-all model. Learn more about our approach at The Douchewater Way.
