The course aims to provide deep knowledge for the application of advanced tools and techniques of corporate financial management.
In particular, at the end of the course, students will be able to:

- identify and understand the relationships between corporate financial activity, markets and financial institutions;

- use some specific analysis and evaluation tools, in order to evaluate the most efficient combination of investment decisions and financing choices;

- analyze the issues related to corporate control and maximization of the value of the company;

- understand the characteristics of long-term financial needs and know the main ways of financing it;

- apply the main methods of evaluation of the enterprise.

The course is divided into three distinct parts:
FIRST PART 
- introduction to corporate finance
- what is corporate finance and the role of the financial manager
- the objective of financial management
- corporate governance
- agency and corporate control problems
- aalue and capital budgeting: balance sheet analysis, reclassifications, cash flow statement and cash flows (outline)
- present value and cash flows
- evaluation: the multi-period case (capitalization period, annual rate)
- valuation of bonds, shares and company
- net present value and alternative criteria for choosing investments (the payback period rule, internal rate of return, managerial choices)
- investment decisions: incremental cash flows, hidden costs and opportunity costs
- risk and reward and their measurement.

SECOND PART

- expected return, variance and covariance; The beta formula
- risk, cost of capital and capital budgeting
- cost of capital, beta estimation and WACC calculation (outline)
- financing decisions and capital market efficie- financial structure and dividend policy: maximization of the value of the company and maximization of shareholders' interests
- financial structure: limits on the use of debt
- valuation and capital budgeting of the indebted company
- dividends and other forms of profit distribution.
- efficiency: the conditions on which market efficiency is based and the different forms of efficiency
- long-term financing of the company: shares, dividends, business debt, interest

THIRD PART

- financing innovations in enterprises
- ESG criteria and firm financing

No

Knowledge and understanding skills: at the end of the course students will be able to:
- know an exhaustive review of the literature on financial theory;
- clearly identify the role of the financial function within the company organization and its instrumentality with respect to the achievement of strategic business objectives, also identifying the relationships between corporate financial activity, markets and financial institutions;

- use the most important analysis and evaluation tools for financial decisions;
- assess the most efficient combination of investment decisions and financing choices;
- use financial planning tools

- understand the characteristics of long-term financial needs and the main source of financing it;

- apply the main methods for the evaluation of enterprises.

Application of knowledge and understanding skills: students must be able to apply in an adequate and timely manner the acquired knowledge to analyze, understand and solve problems related to financing choices and investment decisions of companies. The teaching methods with which these results will be achieved will consist of: lectures, analysis and discussions of business cases, in-depth seminars.

Skills in making their own judgments: students must have the ability to evaluate, applying the tools and knowledge acquired during the course, the problems of corporate finance, deal with complex problems independently and with their own judgment for the purpose of solving the problems themselves. The teaching methods with which these results will be achieved will consist of: lectures, analysis and discussions of business cases, in-depth seminars.

Communication skills: Students must acquire a clear and effective communication skills, in order to be able to share the analysis and solution of problems related to corporate financial management. The teaching methods with which these results will be achieved will consist of: lectures, analysis and discussions of business cases, group work, in-depth seminars.

Learning skills: Students must have developed good learning skills, which allow them to deepen the knowledge acquired during the course by facing subsequent study paths on the issues of corporate finance management and to acquire new knowledge, skills and abilities through professional and work experiences. The teaching methods with which these results will be achieved will consist of: ectures, analysis and discussions of business cases, group work, in-depth seminars.

The teaching material prepared by the lecturer in addition to recommended textbooks (such as for instance slides, lecture notes, exercises, bibliography) and communications from the lecturer specific to the course can be found inside the Moodle platform › blended.uniurb.it

Teaching

The course involves the use of different teaching methods:
- lectures;
- analysis and discussion of business cases in the classroom;
- tutorials.
 

Innovative teaching methods

Analysis and discussion of business cases in the classroom.

Course books

Hillier, Ross, Westerfield, Jaffe, Jordan, Corporate Finance, McGraw-Hill Education, IV Edition. Excluding chapters 8, 9, 10, 11 and 15. (ISBN 9788838656309).

The study text must be integrated with the material made available by the teacher about "ESG criteria and firm financing".  

Assessment

The evaluation takes place through a semi-structured written test, consisting of the examination of a practical problem of corporate finance and 2 open questions, concerning the main topics covered during the course. The student must be able to solve the practical problem by demonstrating the knowledge about correctly applying the methodology learned, as well as answer the questions in an articulated and in-depth way, in order to demonstrate:

- to have acquired full mastery of the concepts of financial theory;
- to be able to apply these concepts for the purpose of understanding, critical evaluation and solution of situations and problems related to corporate financial management, investment decisions, financing choices;
- to be able to present their arguments rigorously and in limited time, using appropriate language and identifying the essential elements for exposure.

The scores are awarded according to the following scale:

- less than 18/30 - insufficient level: the candidate does not achieve any of the learning outcomes provided for in the "knowledge and understanding skills" section;
- 18-20/30 - sufficient level: the candidate achieves, in particular, the learning outcomes provided for in the point "knowledge and understanding skills";
- 21-23/30 - fully sufficient level: the candidate achieves, in particular, the learning outcomes provided for in the points "knowledge and understanding skills" and "applied knowledge and understanding skills";
- 24-26/30 - good level: the candidate achieves, in particular, the learning outcomes provided for in the points "knowledge and understanding"; "applied knowledge and understanding skills" and "autonomy of judgment skills";
- 27-29/30 - very good level: the candidate achieves, in particular, the learning outcomes set out in the points "knowledge and understanding skills"; "applied knowledge and understanding skills"; "autonomy of judgment skills" and "communication skills";
- 30-30 cum laude - excellent level: the candidate fully achieves the learning outcomes set out in the points "knowledge and understanding skills"; "applied knowledge and understanding skills"; "autonomy of judgment skills"; "communication skills" and "ability to learn skills". 

Disability and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)

Students who have registered their disability certification or SLD certification with the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can request to use conceptual maps (for keywords) during exams.

To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam date, to the course instructor, who will verify their compliance with the university guidelines and may request modifications.

Teaching

Individual study of the exam texts indicated above and of the material on the blended platform.

Course books

In order to give non-attending students the opportunity to compensate for what is done during the lessons with independent study, the following materials are indicated referring to the same contents of the program in order to promote full understanding:

Hillier, Ross, Westerfield, Jaffe, Jordan, Corporate Finance, McGraw-Hill Education, IV Edition. Excluding chapters 8, 9, 10, 11 and 15. (ISBN 9788838656309).

The study text must be integrated with the material made available by the teacher about "ESG criteria and firm financing".  

Assessment

The evaluation takes place through a written test, consisting of the examination of a practical problem of corporate finance and 2 open questions on the topics covered during the course, according to the same procedures provided for attending students. 

The student must be able to solve the practical problem by demonstrating the knowledge about correctly applying the methodology learned, as well as answer the questions in an articulated and in-depth way, in order to demonstrate:

- to have acquired full mastery of the concepts of financial theory;
- to be able to apply these concepts for the purpose of understanding, critical evaluation and solution of situations and problems related to corporate financial management, investment decisions, financing choices;
- to be able to present their arguments rigorously and in limited time, using appropriate language and identifying the essential elements for exposure.
The time available for the exam is 2 hours. 

Evaluation criteria and score assignment are as for attending students.

Disability and Specific Learning Disorders (SLD)

Students who have registered their disability certification or SLD certification with the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can request to use conceptual maps (for keywords) during exams.

To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam date, to the course instructor, who will verify their compliance with the university guidelines and may request modifications.

The students participants to ERASMUS programs are held to prepare the examination studying the entire program of the course. References and examination could be in english, according to students' request. 

Students who have registered the disability certification or DSA certification at the Inclusion and Right to Study Office can ask to use concept maps (by keywords) during the exam. To this end, it is necessary to send the maps, two weeks before the exam session, to the teacher of the course, who will verify their consistency with the indications of the university guidelines and may request their modification.