Financial Analysis Courses
The written permission of the instructor and the dean is required. Must be arranged with a faculty member.
The course begins with a review of calculus. It then examines the concept of time value of money. It then examines the microeconomics of industry structure including perfect competition, competition with differentiated products and monopoly. It will conclude by a discussion of consumer theory and decision making under uncertainty.
An overview of the characteristics of financial markets including their structure and organization. We examine common models for pricing bonds and equities. We introduce the role of financial statements and accounting rules into the valuation process. The role of government regulation and its effects on financial innovation are analyzed.
Covers the basic concepts of corporate finance: financial ratios in valuation, dividend discount models, determining a firm's cost of capital, capital investment decisions and net present value vs. internal rates of return, treatment of leases, overview of mergers and acquisitions, hybrid securities.
The course examines the structure of macroeconomic relationships and the role of government in the economy. It begins with an overview of long run economic growth and its determinants. Short run macroeconomic fluctuations, investment and government policies are then investigated. The course concludes with an overview of international linkages between economies including the role of foreign exchange markets.
An in-depth treatment of the interplay between accounting statements, economic analysis, and corporate finance models in the valuation of firm valuation and the value of equity. Models include relative ratio analysis such as the DuPont model, general cash flow model for valuing assets and liabilities, dividend discount models, free cash flow models, and technical analysis. Prerequisites: ECON 714 or MSFA 714 or MBA 6101
A thorough and in-depth study of the structural features of debt markets. Term structure analysis of interest rates and bond valuation. Assessing sources of risk for debt portfolios, including the role of duration and convexity in evaluating the effects of interest rate changes. Credit analysis for corporate bonds. Prerequisites: ECON 716 or MSFA 716 or MBA 6102
An overview of derivative markets and instruments including options markets, futures markets, and swap markets. Prerequisites: ECON 712 or MSFA 712
An in-depth treatment of the interplay between accounting statements, economic analysis, and corporate finance models in the valuation of firms. Topics include accounting for leases, mergers, intangibles, and international subsidiaries. Emphasis is on forensic financial analysis of companies that may be systematically misrepresenting their economic condition through favorable accounting choices. Prerequisites: (MBA students must take accounting prior to this class)
Applicable laws and regulations including professional standards of practice, ethical conduct and professional obligations. Topics include conflicts of interest, insider trading, and an overview of presentation standards for portfolio results.
This course examines how limited information, limited attention and limited rationality impact financial markets. After a review of heuristics and bias literature, we discuss trading strategies in markets whose structure give rise to momentum, bubbles and segmented markets with limited arbitrage. Prerequisites: ECON 712 or MSFA 712 or MBA 6109
Analysis of fixed-income derivatives including custom interest rate agreements and analysis of interest rate and currency swaps. Analysis of equity options and warrants, hedging and hedging strategies. Prerequisites: ECON 724 or MSFA 724
International financial systems and foreign exchange rate regimes. Foreign exchange market calculations and arbitrage relationships. Exchange rate forecasting methods. Study of currency strategies for international portfolio management. International CAPM models of securities pricing. Prerequisites: ECON 716 or MSFA 716 or MBA 6102
Probability models for portfolio risk and Value at Risk models. Simple Regression Models with hypothesis tests, goodness of fit, and testing for problems with the data or the model. Multiple regression models with applications to CAPM and portfolio management. Prerequisites: (MBA students must take Stats prior to this class)
Valuation of advanced fixed income securities including collateralized mortgage obligations (CMOs), other securitized assets, and collateralized debt obligations (CDOs). Emphasis is on using probability models in the valuation process. Prerequisites: ECON 722 or MSFA 722
The goals of this course are to introduce student to the essential aspects and tools of portfolio management. Develop expected returns and risks for asset classes and individual assets based on macro- and micro-expectational factors; Develop strategies for managing portfolios of domestic and foreign debt securities, including passive, semi-active, and active management techniques. Prerequisites: ECON 712 or MSFA 712 or MBA 6109
The course will cover a history of alternative investments/strategies including private equity, venture capital, distressed debt, hedge funds, real estate, commodities and leveraged buy-outs. The primary goals of the course are to provide students with an understanding of alternative investments/strategies, their uses in a diversified portfolio, ways to access the investments and appropriateness for different investor types. Prerequisites: ECON 712 or MSFA 712
This course expands on the econometric techniques commonly used in finance. Financial markets have spurred many of the advances in econometrics in the past two decades, and in turn. Knowledge of financial markets is required in this course, but much of the finance theory in the course is communicated in the process of describing the econometric methods used. Prerequisites: ECON 736 or MSFA 736
Efficient financial markets theory. Asset pricing theories and models. Portfolio management policies for individual investors, mutual funds, and institutional investors. Asset allocation and general portfolio construction. Fixed income vs. equity portfolio management strategies. Risk measurement and management. Prerequisites: ECON 740 or MSFA 740
Professional standards of practice regarding Performance Presentation standards and associated ethical obligations. Ethical and practical issues in constructing and maintaining portfolio returns and appropriate benchmark portfolios. Prerequisites: ECON 728
