Any Takers 4

Draft a response to each of the bulleted questions below. Each question must have its own response.

1. Compute the price of a 3.8 percent coupon bond with 15 years left to maturity and a market interest rate of 6.8 percent. (Assume interest payments are semiannual.) Is this a discount or premium bond?
2. A 5.65 percent coupon bond with 18 years left to maturity is offered for sale at $1,035.25. What yield to maturity is the bond offering? (Assume interest payments are semiannual.)
3. Financial analysts forecast Safeco Corp.’s (SAF) growth rate for the future to be 8 percent. Safeco’s recent dividend was $0.88. What is the value of Safeco stock when the required return is 12 percent?
4. Ecolap Inc. (ECL) recently paid a $0.46 dividend. The dividend is expected to grow at a 14.5 percent rate. At a current stock price of $44.12, what is the return shareholders are expecting? 
5. Consider the annual returns of Estee Lauder and Lowe’s Companies that is attached.Compute each stock’s average return, standard deviation, and coefficient of variation. Which stock appears better? Why?