This document provides information about the Financial Management ACF 312b module, including the module leader's contact details, topics that will be covered, learning style, assessments, and required readings. The module aims to help students understand how businesses raise finance, calculate their cost of capital, evaluate investments, and value businesses. It will be assessed through a team coursework presentation and report (30%) and an individual exam (70%). Formative quizzes will also be given, and the main textbook is Corporate Finance by Watson and Head, with additional recommended readings.

1. Financial Management
ACF 312b
(previously ABF 301)
Semester 2
Module Leader:
Apinya Klinpratoom
CKY234, apinya.klinpratoom@plymouth.ac.uk

2. Have you ever wondered ......
• How wealthy are the founders of Facebook?
• Why has Apple been criticised for having over $100bn
in the bank?
• Was the Royal Mail sold off too cheaply?
• Why is Warren Buffett one of the most successful
investors in the world?
• What’s crowdfunding?
• Twitter’s IPO raised $1.8bn in 2013. Was it a success?
• Supermarkets sell for cash, but often take 60 days to
pay their suppliers. Why?
• The £ has strengthened recently. Is that good news?

3. Don’t despair!!
At the end of this module you should be able to answer those
questions and, more specifically:
1) understand how businesses raise long term finance
2) understand how a company can calculate its cost of capital
3) understand how managers take account of various factors
affecting investment appraisal - e.g. inflation, uncertainty, risk,
cost of capital
4) understand the meaning and implication of an “efficient market”
5) employ the various techniques used in the valuation of businesses
6) demonstrate an understanding of the different methods by which
corporate restructuring may be effected.
7) demonstrate an understanding of the need for the effective
management of working capital

4. Learning Style:
• Formal lecturer input, based on key exercises PLUS
• Student-led problem solving and research
• I expect you to do a lot of reading away from the
classroom. These four hyperlinks provide useful
background for the module:
• Your reading will supplement the in-class exercises
and ensure that you have a deeper understanding of
the theoretical underpinning of the syllabus.

5. Weighting of the assessments:
Coursework 30%
Examination (3 hours) 70% May 2016
Aggregate mark 100% Module total
To pass this module your aggregate mark must be at least 40%
AND both of your element marks (coursework mark and
examination mark) must be above 30%. This is a 20-credit
module.

6. Summative coursework detail
• You will do only ONE piece of summative coursework. This
will count as your coursework mark
• For this you will work in teams of one to five
• You choose your team or you can work on your own
• Aim of the assignment: you should research one, or an
aspect of one, of the topics from the ABF 301 syllabus.
• So collect up to date/recent information (VITAL!) about that
topic. Your module text and (some of your) supplementary
readings are based on theory. I want you to provide topical
information that supports, develops (or even counters) a
particular theory. This will be presented via:
 A presentation (maximum 20 minutes) AND
 A summary document (maximum five sides)

7. Formative coursework details
• We shall give you the opportunity to sit
formative tests and/or quizzes.
• These won’t count towards your coursework
mark but will
• Keep you up to date with your studies
• Let you know how well you’re doing
• Give you invaluable (time-constrained)
practice for your exam

8. Main Text & Additional reading:
Main Text:
• Watson, D. & Head, A. (2012). Corporate Finance: Principles & Practice (6th
ed.). FT/Prentice Hall, This is available in the “The University Bookseller”,
North Hill, Plymouth. You are strongly encouraged to make use of the
additional learning materials available to purchasers of this textbook.
Additional reading:
• EJ McLaney (2011). Business Finance: Theory and Practice, (9th ed.).
FT/Prentice Hall.
• B Neale & T McElroy (2004). Business Finance: A Value Based Approach,
(1st ed.). FT/Prentice Hall.
• G Arnold (2012). Corporate Financial Management, (5th ed.). FT/Prentice
Hall.
The above books are part of a large Financial Management/Business Finance
selection available in the available in the University Library, (reference
658.15).

9. In conclusion
This is a very interesting module and it will
give you a really good understanding of key
issues in corporate finance (CF).
You will find countless practical examples of
CF issues in the media.
This, combined with the exercise-led approach
to lectures, will help you to combine
theory and practice.