Finance paper

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[ T y p e t h e c o m p a n y a d d r e s s ]

Fall 14

08 Fall

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I. Industry and Strategy Analysis

a. Industry Analysis

i. Value Chain Analysis

Any process costing time or direct money for a product, adds value to the final product in

it is being utilized efficiently. In the e-commerce industry value is added through several

factors I will explain in detail.

 Inbound Logistics: During this stage companies in this Industry add value to there firm or product by defining its inbound logistics strategy. In addition it also keeps

adding value to the product when spending on expedited delivery of products from

wholesalers/private sellers to their distribution centers. When this stage is utilized

efficiently it ends up better serving the company and adding value to the end

customer.

 Operations: In this kind of industry efficient operation management helps add value to the firm. The daily operations should be organized so that orders leave to

end customers from the appropriate geographical location of warehouse, to save on

un-necessary costs.

 Outbound Logistics: In order to maximize customer satisfaction the outbound logistics should be well managed, as customers are sensitive to delivery dates. In

this kind of industry companies are in-charge of shipping to final customers, and

providing efficient logistics solutions to be able to provide better prices. Therefore

to add value companies should be able to provide services to all geographical

location at an excellent quality level.

 Research and Development: One of the most important factors of adding value is researching the market and the needs wants, and desires of the consumer to be able

to provide them. Development consists of all kinds of development from

management system up to the online website or sale location.

 Marketing and Sales: This part of the value chain analysis includes how the company markets its products and services mainly focusing on price, promotion,

product and place. The sales part consists of growth rate of the industry in this case

the growth rate is determined by Amazon, as it is the major player in the industry.

In an industry where being a cost leader is a goal firms try to spend less on

marketing expenses, and use free advertisement such as email, marketing

campaigns, and creative own ways of marketing their product or service.

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 Service: Participating firms have to go above and beyond, and do anything to achieve maximum satisfaction for its customers. Customers should be able to

easily order from there website or from the mobile application. Customer service

hours should be available at all time with a Toll Free number. The product has to

arrive on time, which is what satisfies all customers. Finally they should work hard

to be able to provide every customer with good they offer no-matter where his

geographical location is. In other words in the consumer say jump amazon asks

how high? This is what companies have to do to add value in this industry.

ii. Porters Five Forces

1. Rivalry Among Existing Firms: Amazon participates in more than one industry, which results in facing high competition in several industries a result of lack of

concentration. The industries where high competition is faced are retail, e-

commerce services, digital content and digital media devices, and web services.

Amazon is in its way different than all other competitors, it offers low competitive

prices, a great brand image, and competes in both low prices, and offering better

service. Amazon seeks to reduce its variable cost and to leverage its fixed costs.

Their variable costs include product and content costs, payment processing

and related transaction costs, picking, packaging, and preparing orders for

shipment, transportation, customer service support, costs necessary to run

AWS, and a portion of our marketing costs. Their fixed costs include the

costs necessary to run our technology infrastructure; to build, enhance, and

add features to our websites, our Kindle devices, and digital offerings; and

to build and optimize our fulfillment centers. Therefore I believe rivalry

among existing firms is high.

2. Threat of New Entrants: Amazon has a powerful Infrastructure, 100,000 employees, 100,000,000 active users, one of the best supply chain management

systems, low pricing, existing contracts and relationships with vendors, a 19 years

old company which makes it rich in experience. Amazon also enjoys economies of

scale, efficient distribution channels, and first mover advantage a result of its early

entrance. Therefore entering the industry requires the enterer to beat all these

factors, which is difficult.

As a result barriers to entry are high and that makes the threat of new entrants low.

3. Threat of Substitute Products: The level of threat depends on two factors prices and performance of relative products, and the buyer’s willingness to switch to

another product. If we view amazon as a whole as one product I believe the threat

is low because it offers low prices, and ease of orders, which does not encourage

consumers to switch. If we analyze products separately for a single purchase some

products may be found for better prices. The reason threat is low when analyze a

group of products together is that they average to be cheaper than a group of

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products bought separately from several other vendors a result of logistics costs on

the consumers side.

4. Bargaining Power of Buyers: Bargaining power of buyers is always higher when competition exists. In this industry consumers are price sensitive and can push

prices down if they are over priced by switching to other providers. However

amazon leaves no space for switching because it strives to offer lower prices to

maintain its business within the industry. The bargaining power of buyers is

moderate, which, is why the prices are low. Switching costs are not low a result of

amazon price subscription for free delivery. Consumers cannot bargain prices

because the effect of there of bargaining power has already been absorbed by the

industry.

5. Bargaining Power of Suppliers: The bargaining power of suppliers is low a result of several factors. Amazon has more than 100 million active members and that

makes it easier for suppliers to sell their products. Switching costs for suppliers are

high because the give up 100 million users that there product was available to. When

a company wants to sell a product in amazon and be an official affiliate amazon sets

the price. Selling on amazon is an easy economical way to expose new products and

to avoid unessential costs associated with a sale of a product. Another reason their

bargaining power is low is that most companies have difficulties selling their

products when first introduced.

b. Company Strategy Analysis:

Amazon.com, Inc. is an American company headquartered in Seattle, traded in the

NASDAQ, and serves consumers globally. It is an e-commerce company that offers a

wide range of product from shoes, books, music, groceries to cloud services to

customers globally. Amazons mission is to be the earth’s most customer-centric

company for four primary customer sets: consumers, sellers, enterprises, and

content creators.

Amazon is highly integrated with value chain of the Industry. First, its supply chain

management is one of the world most efficient supply chains. Amazon is highly

diversified geographically, as it serves people all around the world from 10 different

countries, Austria, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Spain, United States, China,

Italy, and the United Kingdom. Being diversified geographically helps receiving

products from global wholesaler, and delivering to final buyer at a lower price

(operation management). Delivering products to final customers has never been any

better than how amazon does it, they are always on time when delivering shipments,

offer free two day shipping with amazon prime.

Its marketing consist primarily of targeted online advertising, television

advertising, public relations expenditures; and payroll and related expenses for

personnel engaged in marketing, business development, and selling activities.

Amazon views it Amazon prime as a marketing tool. The company is

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experiencing high growth Sales in North America grew 30%, 43%, and 46% in

2012, 2011, and 2010, compared to the comparable prior year periods.

International they grew 23%, 38%, and 33% in 2012, 2011, and 2010,

compared to the comparable prior year periods. The increase in sales and

growth was achieved without heavily investing in marketing, as amazon is

known by not spending heavily on marketing.

It is involved in more than one industry, and participating in more than one industry

can be economically beneficial for example the two kinds of goods inferior and

normal goods to reduce risk. Amazon competes in several industries, which makes it a

well-diversified company. Such as cloud services, jewelry, electronics, groceries and

etc. This company has worked hard during the years to acquire other business and

expand their business activity. One of the companies acquired is the famous shoe

company Zappos.

It is one of the few companies that are able to maintain tight margins and expand at an

above average rate. Within the industry amazon prices are the best when compared to

competitors. The company also offers Amazon Prime, which is a service you can

purchase to receive free two day shipping, access to instant movies, documentaries,

and television shows for an annual subscription fee of $80. This shows how good the

value chain actually is.

Amazon is a cost leader in the Industry benefiting from economies of scale a result of

its size, efficient supply chain management, and better sourcing. As mentioned earlier

that its mission is to be the most customer centric company in the world, being a cost

leader helps achieving the mission. As know about Amazons domination strategy, it

dominates any competitor when it comes to pricing pushing them away from

competing.

Amazon is different and unique within the industry. It provides intrinsic value via

product variety, bundled services, and on time delivery. Not only than but it also a

better brand image and reputation when compared to eBay. In addition to that it offers

a very efficient supply chain management that adds value to the product at a lower

cost. Their product line includes apparel, automotive, electronics, books, games, and

tens more. With this broad product and service offering to customers are pleased and

benefit from a competitive advantage amazon is characterized with.

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II. Financial Statement Ratio Analysis:

a. DuPont Analysis Return on Equity = Profit Margin * Total Asset Turnover * Equity Multiplier

2010 = 3.37%*2.10*2.74 = 19.391%

2011 = 1.31%*2.18*3.26 = 9.310%

2012 = (0.06)%*2.11*3.97 = -0.503%

 DuPont Analysis tells us that the Return on Equity is affected by three factors operating efficiency, which is measured by profit margin, asset use efficiency, which is measured by the

total asset turnover, and financial leverage, which is measured by the equity multiplier. As

you can see the total Asset turnover and financial leverage has been relatively consistent in

the past 3 years and that the factor affecting the Return on Equity is the profit Margin

declining dramatically. We could’ve measure the Return on equity the traditional way with an

irrelevant variance however; the traditional way does not provide use with details on what is

aspect is affecting the Return on Equity.

b. Profitability Analysis

i. Re-casted Income Statement

Standardized Income Statement for Amazon

2012 2011 2010

Statement of Operations

Sales $61,093 $48,077 $34,204

Cost of Sales 45,971 37,288 26,561

SG&A 3304 2288 1499

Other Operating Expense 11142 7639 4738

Other Expense 80 -76 -79

Interest Income 40 61 51

Interest Expense 92 65 39

Tax Expense 428 291 352

Unusual Gains, Net of Unusual Losses -155 -12 7

Net Income -$39 $631 $1,152

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ii. Re-casted Balance Sheet

iii. Common Size Income Statement

AMAZON.COM,INC

(in millions)

Assets 2012 2011 2010 Cash and Marketable Securities 11,448.00$ 9,576.00$

Accounts Recievable 3364 2571

Inventory 6031 4992

Other current Assets 453 351

Long Term Tangible Assets 7060 4417

Long Term Intangible Assets 2675 1983

Other Long-Term Assets 1524 1388

32,555.00$ 25,278.00$

LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS EQUITY 2012 2011 2010

Accounts Payable 13,318.00$ 11,145.00$

Other Current Liabilities 5684 3751

Long Term Debt 3,084 255

Other Long-Term Liabilities 2277 2370

Common Shareholders Equity 8192 7757

32,555.00$ 25,278.00$

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Standardized Income Statement for Amazon

2012 2011 2010

Statement of Operations

Sales $61,093 $48,077 $34,204

Cost of Sales 45,971 37,288 26,561

SG&A 3304 2288 1499

Other Operating Expense 11142 7639 4738

Other Expense 80 -76 -79

Interest Income 40 61 51

Interest Expense 92 65 39

Tax Expense 428 291 352

Unusual Gains, Net of Unusual Losses -155 -12 7

Net Income -$39 $631 $1,152

2012 2011 2010

Statement of Operations

Sales 100% 100% 100%

Cost of Sales 75.25% 77.56% 77.65%

SG&A 5.41% 4.76% 4.38%

Other Operating Expense 18.24% 15.89% 13.85%

Other Expense 0.13% -0.16% -0.23%

Interest Income 0.07% 0.13% 0.15%

Interest Expense 0.15% 0.14% 0.11%

Tax Expense 0.70% 0.61% 1.03%

Unusual Gains, Net of Unusual Losses -0.25% -0.02% 0.02%

Net Income -0.06% 1.31% 3.37%

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iv. Profit Margin Profit Margin= Net Income / Sales

2010 = 1152/34,203 3.37%

2011 = 631/48,077 1.31%

2012 = (39)/61093 -0.06%

 Amazon has had low profit margins throughout the years due to the nature of its business, focusing on providing customers with low prices, which leaves them limited space for profit

margins. During the past three years profit margin kept declining until it reached a negative

profit margin. One explanation could be because of there acquiring of new assets costing

billions of dollars, the other can be fighting competition by reducing price and lowering

margins. Third is the increase in spending. The company has grown during the past three

years dramatically to have more than double the sales when comparing 2010 to 2012. The

profit margin should be improved by reducing operating expenses. They should focusing on

increasing profit in the meantime no matter how high the growth rate of the company is

because the operating costs are grow at a faster rate, which isn’t improvement and can effect

the company. Total operating expenses was higher than net sales in 2012 and lower in 2010,

which tells us operating expenses require close monitoring.

v. Return on Assets Return on Assets= Net Income / Total Assets

2010 = 1152/18,797 = 6.13%

2011 = 631/25278 = 2.50%

2012 = (39)/32555 = -0.12%

Return on assets tells us how much profit a company is able to generate for each dollar of assets

invested. Return on Assets for companies vary because it mainly depends on the industry therefore,

ROA can only be compared to previous ROA or to competitors in the industry. A perfect explanation

for the decline in ROA is that Total assets are increasing and net income is decreasing. The reason net

income is decreasing is the increase in operating expenses throughput the past three years. The

increased are assets are from new asset purchases; new assets usually do not pay back immediately

and need time to see the results. When new assets start to generate revenue I expect return on assets

to slightly improve. The reason a say slight improvement is that, it is not only affected by assets but

mainly affected by operating expenses growing faster than sales.

vi. Return on Equity

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ROE= Net Income/Total Equity

2010 = 1,152/6,864 = 16.78%

2011 = 631/7,757 = 8.13%

2012 = -39/8192 = 0.48%

Return on Equity is a comprehensive indicator of a firm’s performance because it provides an

indication of how well managers are employing the funds invested by the firm’s shareholders to

generate returns. Usually a high growth company is accompanied with a high ROE; in amazon case

there is something different because it is acquiring new assets that do not pay pack immediately.

Amazon should improve its efficiency and prove its ability in earning more on its equity even though

the results do not seem that bad, in order to attract short term investors and increase equity. Equity

has decreased from 2010 to 2011 A result of its spending on assets.

vii. Accounts Receivable Turnover Accounts receivable turnover= Sales/Accounts Receivable

2010 = 34204/1,587 = 21.6

2011 = 48077/2,571 = 18.7

2012 = 61093/3,364 = 18.2

It is an accounting measure used to quantify a firm's effectiveness in extending credit as well as

collecting debts. The receivables turnover ratio is an activity ratio, measuring how efficiently a firm

uses its assets. Amazon in 2010 had a good ratio compared to following years. In 2010 it was 21.6

and decreased to 18.2 in 2012. The higher the ratio the better, it implies that it has fewer amounts to

be collected either because it operates on cash bases or efficient collection. In amazons case it has

good ration because it operates on quick receivable and a result of their efficiency. The rates in 2012

began to decrease and this indicates that credit policies should be monitored closely and compared to

earlier years. Most receivables are primarily related to vendor and customer receivables. Due to the

growth in sales the company may have lost some efficiency in handling receivables.

viii. Inventory Turnover Inventory Turnover= Cost of goods sold/ Inventory

2010 = 26,561/3,202 = 8.295

2011 = 37,288/4,992 = 7.470

2012 = 45,971/6,031 = 7.622

Inventory turnover shows how many times a company's inventory is sold and replaced over a period.

To determine whether those ratios are healthy they should be compared to the industry, in this case

amazon is the industry. Amazon uses a First in First Out method for accounting for its inventory,

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which helps recording costs at their fair values. The higher the number the faster the inventory is

moving. Ratio decreasing indicates either overstocking of products or poor sales. Another factor is

the increase of price of goods sold relatively when compared to previous years.

Days Inventory= Inventory/ Average cost of goods sold per day

AVG. GOGS/

DAY # Of Days

2010 = 26561/365 72.76986301 44.00173186

2011 = 37288/365 102.1589041 48.86505042

2012 = 45971/365 125.9479452 47.8848622

As the ratio is decreasing we can see the number of days increasing. It is not something bad to

inventory for this long for this kind of industry because the nature of the products does not perish or

loose value.

ix. Accounts Payable Turnover Accounts payable turnover= Cost of Goods Sold/Accounts Payable

2010 = 26,561/8051 = 3,30

2011 = 37288/11145 = 3.35

2012 = 45971/13318 = 3.45

Days Payable= Accounts Payable/ Average purchases (or cost of good sold) per day

AVG GOGS/

DAY # Of DAYS

2010 = 26561/365 72.76986301 110.6364595

2011 = 37288/365 102.1589041 109.094749

2012 = 45971/365 125.9479452 105.7420983

The turnover is a measure of how fast a firm pays its suppliers or section owing money. The higher

the turnover rates the better because it indicates faster payments to vendors in amazon’s case. As you

can see above the ratio is increasing which means there is improvement in paying accounts payable,

and that will definitely help the company engage in new contracts with other vendors at an easier

rate. The day’s payable shows us a more accurate measure of how it usually takes them to pay its

payable. They have started at 110 days in 2010 and improved to 105 days in 2012. This tells us that

amazon is a responsible company and strives to improve no matter how it is doing financially. It has

succeeded in improving ratios while profit margins decreased.

x. Fixed Assets Turnover

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Fixed Asset Turnover= Net Sales/ Net Fixed Assets

2010 = 34,204/2414 = 14.1

2011 = 48,077/4417 = 10.8

2012 = 61093/7060 = 8.6

The fixed asset turnover ratio measures how successful a firm is able to earn income on its net fixed

assets. Net fixed assets consist primarily of Property, plant, and equipment. Decreasing fixed asset

ratios are considered bas when decreasing in the situation of all assets remaining constant. However

with amazon the decrease is not considered bad because it has had some increases in net fixed assets

resulting from new purchases of assets. As mention previously this does not mean amazon is not

performing well, it means it is in the process of showing greater returns in future years from current

investments. It is not common that newly acquired assets pay back right away.

C. Risk Analysis

i. Current Ratio Current Ratio= Current Assets/ Current Liabilities

2010 = 13,747/10,372 = 1.33

2011 = 17,490/14,896 = 1.17

2012 = 21,296/19,002 = 1.12

The current ratio is a liquidity measure, which measures the ability of a firm to cover its current

liabilities using its current assets or revenues generated from current current assets. Any number

above 1 indicated that the company is able to cover its liabilities, but does not guarantee that it

will not go through rough financial issues. Amazon current ration declined which isn’t a good

indicator because it shows the firm is unable to cover its current liabilities as easy as it use to be.

The decline can be due to increased spending, or decline in management efficiency a result of the

high growth in sales. Investors should not disregard this ratio, as it is an important ratio that has

to be improved for security and assurance of company’s continuity.

ii. Quick Ratio Quick Ratio = Cash + Short Term Investments + Accounts Receivable / Current Liabilities

2010 = (3777+4985+1587)/10372 = 1.00

2011 = (5269+4307+2571)/14896 = 0.83

2012 = (8084+3364+3364)/19002 = 0.79

The quick ration is similar to the current ratio; it is a measure for the company’s short-term

liquidity. It tells us about the ability of the firm to cover its current liabilities using its most

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liquid assets such as cash, short-term investments and accounts receivable. Amazons has lost

a portion of its liquid assets that can be used to cover current liabilities due to several factors.

Firstly the decline of short-term investments while current liabilities is increasing. Secondly

the accounts receivable system needs to be improved. The quick ratio is low is because most

of amazons assets are inventory however, that does not justify the decline and should be

improved to gain better positioning.

iii. Cash Ratio Cash ratio= (cash + marketable securities) / Current Liabilities

2010 = (3777+4985)/10372 = .84

2011 = (5269+4307)/14896 = .64

2012 = (8084+3364)/19002 = .60

The cash ratio measures the firm’s ability to cover current liabilities by only using the cash

available and the marketable securities owned. In all liquidity measures declining ratios is

unacceptable but explainable. Cash ratio is not the only ratio we rely on when analyzing liquidity

and does not danger us when not accounting for a majoring of the assets to cover liabilities. The

expansion of amazon, increase in operating expenses, and decline in management efficiency has

led to a decrease in the cash ratio. Amazon with a ratio of .60 can face difficulties in covering

short-term liabilities with ease.

iv. Liabilities-to-Equity Ratio Liabilities to equity ratio = Total Liabilities / Shareholders Equity

2010 = (10,372+1561)/6864 = 1.75

2011 = (14,896+255+2370)/7757 = 2.26

2012 = (19002+3084+2277)/8192 = 2.97

This ratio compares the liabilities to the amount invested by shareholders (equity). It is not a perfect

measure on whether a company is using outside financing. The increase liabilities to equity ratio are

due to expansion plans they are implementing. A high ratio often indicates that that company is

using debt to finance its growth. We will have a closer look by analyzing the debt to equity ratio to

better understand how the growth is financed.

v. Debt-to-Equity Ratio Debt-to-Equity ratio= Short term debt + Long term debt/ Shareholders Equity

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2010 = N/A = N/A

2011 = 255/7757 = 0.03

2012 = 3084/8192 = 0.38

The debt to equity ratio is a perfect measure to understand in what the company is funding its

growth. The ratio for amazon when compared to the industry indicates a great low ratio. A low

ratio is usually means that they finance growth by investors instead of debt. Some debt is

healthy but not too much debt. Some debt can help avoid taxes, where more debt can affect a

company’s credibility when it needs to borrow money for operations.

vi. Interest Coverage (Earnings Basis) Interest coverage= (Net Income +Interest Expense + Tax Expense)/ Interest Expense

2010 = (3495+39+75)/39 = 92.54

2011 = (3903+65+33)/65 = 61.55

2012 = (4180+92+112)/92 = 47.65

This ratio highlights the dollars of earning available for each dollar of required interest payment; it is

used to determine how easily a company can pay interest on outstanding debt. The lower the ratio the

more the company faces difficulties in covering debt expenses. Any number below 1 is considered

unhealthy and indicates the company is not generating enough revenues to satisfy interest expense; a

number from 1.5 to 1.0 is questionable. Amazons numbers is outperforming the industry and are

great. However the decline in the interest coverage ratio is questionable and should not continue to

decline or else the company will end up being at risk.

vii. Dividend Payout Ratio Cash Dividends Paid / Net Income

2010 = 0/1,152 = 0

2011 = 0/631 = 0

2012 = 0/-39 = 0

Historical records indicate that Amazon has never paid out dividends.

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viii. Sustainable Growth Rate Sustainable growth rate = ROE x (1-divident payout ratio)

The company sustainable growth rate is equal to the ROE since dividend payout ratio is equal to

zero.

III. Forecasting

a. Five-Year Forecasted performance and net profit

b. Explanations of process and assumptions

 Sales: Amazon’s sales are currently growing at a fast rate, and are expected to continue to increase a result of its new purchase of assets and investments that will generate additional

sales. Amazon is aware of the external factors that may affect its market share and is

monitoring consumer needs closely to increase their share in the market. I have calculated the

expected growth of sales based on current (1-3 years old) growth rates. The average growth

rate was not used but an expected growth rate based on current growth and including other

factors such as market conditions in general such as economic conditions and expansion plans

in emerging economies.

 Cost of Sales: Cost of sales are cost directly related to the sale of good so they tend to increase when sales increase It is considered healthy doe cost of sales to increase at a lower rate than

the increase in sales, it indicates paying less for more (efficiency). In the past three years

amazon has managed to lower the Cost Of Sales at an average of 1% annually. It is part of

Amazons plans to decrease the Cost of Sales. Therefore when I calculated the expected COS I

expected it to decrease between 1-3 % annually of Sales of the year when compared to the

previous year.

 Selling, General, and Administrative Expenses: Was calculated using a simple expected growth. Sales growth rates were analyzed and SG&A Costs growth rate were analyzed and

(in millions) 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

Statement of Operations

Sales $34,204 $48,077 $61,093 $73,312 $91,640 $105,385 $137,001 $184,951

Cost of Sales 26,561 37,288 45,971 53,517 65,064 73,770 93,161 116,519

SG&A 1,499 2,288 3,304 4,472 5,407 6,797 9,234 12,947

Other Operating Expense 4,738 7,639 11,142 14,662 20,161 18,969 26,030 22,194

Other Expense (79) (76) 80 147 275 337 466 647

Interest Income 51 61 40 37 34 42 62 74

Interest Expense 39 65 92 125 135 45 40 35

Tax Expense 352 291 428 535 733 948 1,370 22,194

Unusual Gains, Net of Unusual Losses 7 (12) (155) (220) (170) (90) 100 90

Net Income $1,152 $631 -$39 $73 $276 $4,566 $6,539 $10,325

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compared to growth in sales. The forecast was based on an average of the growth oft hese

expenses. The Average was lowered at some years and increased in other years a result of the

expected economic situations that determine employee’s pay.

 Operating expense and other Expenses: This portion was calculated using average growth of the expenses through the years. After the percentage of growth was determined it was

multiplied by Sales forecasted for the year to know the amount it will cost the firm. Operating

expense and other expense were calculated separately using the same method.

 Interest Income: It was calculated by multiplying expected growth rate take from the average growth of the interest income by the expected sales. In years where interest income was lower

it is due to the expectancy of using cash for expansion.

 Interest Expense: Interest expense was also calculated by calculating is growth rate from previous rates and multiplying by sales. However, it was lowered in years such 2016, and

2017 a result of recovery of some debt or interest obligation expenses.

 Tax Expense: Is the amount the company pay in taxes. This expense is lowered when a company has debt and when it doesn’t have debt it pays a fixed percentage of its sales. The

taxed we also calculated using averages, and in some years adjusted to account for debt.

 Net Income: The results we obtained after deducting all expected costs from expected sales. I expect the company to be profitable in the coming years because it expansion costs paid and

assets purchased are going to pay back. Another reason is that it is working in decreasing

variable expenses.

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IV. Cost of Capital:

1. CAPM E[R

Ej ] = E[R

F ] + ß

j ́ {E[R

M ] – E[R

F ]}

Where:

E = expectation

R Ej

= Required return on common equity in Amazon

R F

= Risk-free rate of return

ß j = Market beta for Amazon

R M

= Required return on marketwide portfolio

Risk Free Rate = 2.87 %

Beta = .64

Expected Market Return = 15.8%

Required Rate of Return on Common Equity = 11.14%

(0.0287)+(0.64*(0.1579-.0287)) = 11.14%

2. WACC

Re = cost of equity = 14%

Rd = cost of debt = 9%

E = market value of the firm's equity = 8.4 Billion

D = market value of the firm's debt = 3 Billion

V = E + D = 11.4 Billion

E/V = percentage of financing that is equity = 73 %

D/V = percentage of financing that is debt = 27%

Tc = corporate tax rate = 78.6 %

WACC (8.4/11.4*0.1403)+(3/11.4*0.09*(1-0.786))= 0.108447

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Works Cited

1. Business Analysis and Valuation (International Version)

 Used for ratios

 Used for definitions 2. Yahoo Finance

 Used for Beta

 Helped calculate cost of capital 3. Investeopedia

 For Ratios, and ratio explanations

 Some ratios were copied and pasted 4. Personal Knowledge