International Finance and Responsible Financial Management

There are many different theories in the academic world of finance surrounding both the importance of dividends and how shareholders and the general market can react to changes in a company’s dividend policy. There are also different types of dividend policy which will be discussed in this blog. The different theories and policies will be applied to a company I have looked at called Norilsk. I will look at their current dividend policy and their future dividend policy whilst also applying relevant theories and ideas I have been learning on the module International Finance and Responsible Financial Management. Norilsk Nickel (or Nornickel) is the world’s largest producer of palladium and is also one of the largest suppliers of nickel (Financial Times, 2019). Palladium is useful in the modern world as it is used in vehicles such as cars, specifically in the catalytic converter which is used to reduce harmful emissions (Financial Times, 2019). Norilsk's share price has increas...

For the topic of this week’s blog, I will focus on a film I have watched and relate the themes, ideas and events to relevant theories I have studied so far. The film I watched was The Wolf of Wall Street which was released in 2013 starring Leonardo DiCaprio and was directed by Martin Scorsese (Scorsese, 2013). The film is based on the life of famous stockbroker Jordan Belfort who acquired the name ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’, depicting his rise to fame and wealth and his eventual downfall (Scorsese, 2013). A lot of the financial theories, ideas and concepts shown in the film centre around the stock market (Scorsese, 2013). If we ignore the copious amounts of sex, drugs, alcohol and just general debauchery, there are some financial theories, ideas and concepts which directly relate to the International Finance and Responsible Financial Management module I have been studying over the last 8 weeks. Early in the film, when the main character, Jordan Belfort, gets a job working on wall ...

Pizza Express, a casual dining chain, are facing growing problems with their capital structure causing real concern for the company’s future (The Financial Times, 2019a). Capital Structure is simply, ‘the mix of securities and financing sources used by corporations to finance real investment’ (Myers, 2001).The main research conducted into capital structure focuses on the debate of debt vs equity and tries to establish the optimal ratio between the two types of finance (if one even exists) (Myers, 2001). This week’s blog will look at the case of Pizza Express as their current capital structure is causing concerns for bondholders (The Financial Times, 2019a). Also, this week’s blog will look at possible reasons why Pizza Express have chosen the capital structure they currently have and compare this to relevant theories of capital structure whilst also looking at possible solutions to improve their current financial situation. Pizza Express have undergone some difficult times in rec...

The weighted average cost of capital (WACC) is the weighted average cost of a firm’s capital structure (Mian & Vélez-Pareja, 2008). This is a company’s cost of equity and the cost of debt added together. According to Mian and Vélez-Pareja (2008), there are complications with the calculations for WACC however these are mainly due to misinterpretation and misuse by companies. Reducing WACC is something companies aim to accomplish and EDF Energy are no different. EDF Energy are currently undergoing construction of a new nuclear power station called Hinkley Point C which is projected to cost roughly £22 billion (The Financial Times, 2019b). This is a significant amount of money and so financing will be an issue for EDF Energy. On top of that, Hinkley Point C, as well as other projects in France and Finland, have been plagued with problems, causing long delays and extra unexpected costs (The Financial Times, 2019b). The problems with these projects have seen their share price in F...