Fujita, Incorporated, has no debt outstanding and a total market value of $222,000. Earnings before interest and taxes, EBIT, are projected to be $18,000 if economic conditions are normal. If there is strong expansion in the economy, then EBIT will be 25 percent higher. If there is a recession, then EBIT will be 30 percent lower. The company is considering a $60,000 debt issue with an interest rate of 7 percent. The proceeds will be used to repurchase shares of stock. There are currently 7,400 shares outstanding. Ignore taxes for this problem. Assume the company has a market-to-book ratio of 1.0 and the stock price remains constant. a. Calculate return on equity (ROE) under each of the three economic scenarios before any debt is issued.
b. Calculate the percentage changes in ROE when the economy expands or enters a recession.