A fitness electronics company is a first-mover in wearable fitness trackers. Its innovative everyday activity and exercise bracelet has created a monopoly for its product. Executives are apprehensive about the company's ability to maintain its competitive advantage because they know that rival companies have competent research and development skills and access to complementary assets. These rivals are considered:

a. barriers to imitation.
b. first-movers.
c. complementary assets.
d. capable competitors.

Benton company (bc), a calendar year entity, has one owner, who is in the 37% federal income tax bracket (any net capital gains or dividends would be taxed at a 20% rate). bc's gross income is $395,000, and its ordinary trade or business deductions are $245,000. ignore the standard deduction (or itemized deductions) and the deduction for qualified business income. if required, round computations to the nearest dollar. a. bc is operated as a proprietorship, and the owner withdraws $100,000 for personal use. bc's taxable income for the current year is $ , and the tax liability associated with the income from the sole proprietorship is $ . b. bc is operated as a c corporation, pays out $100,000 as salary, and pays no dividends to its shareholder. bc's taxable income for the current year is $ , and bc's tax liability is $ . the shareholder's tax liability is $ . c. bc is operated as a c corporation and pays out no salary or dividends to its shareholder. bc's taxable income for the current year is $ , and bc's tax liability is $ . d. bc is operated as a c corporation, pays out $100,000 as salary, and pays out the remainder of its earnings as dividends. bc's taxable income for the current year is $ , and bc's tax liability is $ .

In december of 2004, the company you own entered into a 20-year contract with a grain supplier for daily deliveries of grain to its hot dog bun manufacturing facility. the contract called for "10,000 pounds of grain" to be delivered to the facility at the price of $100,000 per day. until february 2017, the supplier provided processed grain which could easily be used in your manufacturing process. however, no longer wanting to absorb the cost of having the grain processed, the supplier began delivering whole grain. the supplier is arguing that the contract does not specify the type of grain that would be supplied and that it has not breached the contract. your company is arguing that the supplier has an onsite processing plant and processed grain was implicit to the terms of the contract. over the remaining term of the contract, reshipping and having the grain processed would cost your company approximately $10,000,000, opposed to a cost of around $1,000,000 to the supplier. after speaking with in-house counsel, it was estimated that litigation would cost the company several million dollars and last for years. weighing the costs of litigation, along with possible ambiguity in the contract, what are three options you could take to resolve the dispute? which would be the best option for your business and why?

Suppose you hold a portfolio consisting of a $10,000 investment in each of 8 different common stocks. the portfolio's beta is 1.25. now suppose you decided to sell one of your stocks that has a beta of 1.00 and to use the proceeds to buy a replacement stock with a beta of 1.55. what would the portfolio's new beta be? do not round your intermediate calculations.