Question

Companies HD and LD have the same total assets, sales, operating costs, and tax rates, and they pay the same interest rate on their debt. Both firms finance using only debt and common equity, and total assets equal total invested capital. However, company HD has a higher total debt to total capital ratio. Which of the following statements is CORRECT?
a. Company HD has a lower equity multiplier.
b. Company HD has more net income.
c. Company HD pays more in taxes.
d. Company HD has a lower ROE.
e. Company HD has a lower times-interest-earned (TIE) ratio

Answer 1

Answer:

B) Company HD has more net income.

Explanation:

The total debt to capital ratio is calculated by dividing total liabilities by the sum of total shareholders' equity + total debt:

• debt to capital ratio = total debt / (total debt + total equity)

Since company HD uses more debt to finance its operations, its net income will be lower since it has to pay more interests, but its ROE will be higher since equity is much lower also. Companies that use a lot of financial leverage are more risky but at the same time can generate higher returns to their owners.