Laurel, Inc., has debt outstanding with a coupon rate of 6.2 % and a yield to maturity of 6.9 %. Its tax rate is 40 %. What is Laurel's effective (after-tax) cost of debt? NOTE: Assume that the debt has annual coupons. Note: Assume that the firm will always be able to utilize its full interest tax shield.

Panera bread is a chain of cafes serving sandwiches, soups, and freshly baked breads. the company began in 1981 with stores primarily located along the east coast of the united states. since then, the firm has expanded to over 1,300 locations throughout the united states and canada. the firm has strong earnings and has been designated by business week as a "significant growth company." panera bread executives are considering the idea of expanding globally by opening cafes in asia through a franchising strategy. which of the following, if true, supports the argument that panera bread should expand into asia through franchising? a: the panera bread menu changes rapidly, and each cafe's artisan bread bakers receive regular training on new recipes. b: panera bread executives want fast access to the asian market without a significant investment of capital. c: panera bread executives want to test the asian market with a short-term commitment that allows them to make quick profits. d: the panera bread mission is to make excellent bread available to customers around the world.

Astock with a beta of 0.6 has an expected rate of return of 13%. if the market return this year turns out to be 10 percentage points below expectations, what is your best guess as to the rate of return on the stock? (do not round intermediate calculations. enter your answer as a percent rounded to 1 decimal place.)

Which of the following statements about brand names is true? brand names give the seller an incentive to provide consistently high-quality products and services in order to protect the reputation of the brand. brand names are always economically wasteful since they dupe consumers into buying more expensive goods and services that are no different from generic versions. it is always rational to prefer brand names over generic substitutes. read the following example and determine whether it illustrates a common critique or defense of advertising. musashi sees a commercial for a brand x clothing company that depicts the wearers of the clothes out having a good time with friends. although he doesn't particularly need new clothes, the commercial prompts him to buy a brand x t-shirt.