Course Topics
• Financial decisions and key ideas in finance: Time, money, and interest rates • Capital budgeting techniques • Risk and return • Bonds • Valuing projects • Stocks • Portfolio investment theory and the CAPM • Cost of capital • Capital structure • Discounted Cash Flow analysis • Investment under uncertainty • Payout policy • Crowdfunding, decentralized finance, and innovations in finance

Teaching format
Frontal lectures and exercises. In the exercise sessions the students will apply Microsoft Excel to solve financial problems and examine case studies

Educational objectives
Knowledge and understanding BUSINESS THEORY AND PROCESSES of the accounting system, with a focus on the international context, and the double-entry method of the system of business management operations of the preparation of financial statements of the tools for analysing company financial statements economic and financial indicators methods of calculating the various measures of performance and value business valuation models investment analysis and planning the measurement of risk, cost of capital and financial structure the capital structure, payment system and operating capital management of the cost system and management operations principles of management control principles of financial planning and forecasting of benchmarks by cost centres the principles of strategic control. "Ability to apply knowledge and understanding " BUSINESS THEORY AND PROCESSES financial, economic and asset indicators for business decisions preparation of analytical reports on business financial, economic and asset performance with a particular focus on the services business segment analysis of business, financial and asset processes in the tourism, events and sports sector accounting principles for companies operating in different business segments tools for analysing business indicators and models decision-making system under conditions of uncertainty business valuation models for investment choices system of market indicators for investment choices analysis of the capital market and risk pricing system analysis of the cost of borrowing and debt policies for companies operating in the service sector analysis of the incentive payment system for managers cost system and management operations for business decisions cost system for financing decisions principles of financial planning and forecasting for service enterprises benchmarking methods for cost centres principles of strategic control in tourism, events and sport. Communication skills Finally, the final examination offers students an excellent opportunity to integrate the knowledge acquired with communication skills in a document that represents the culmination of the degree course studies. The achievement of this objective will be assessed by means of written examinations, individual and group assignments as well as the final dissertation. Learning skills ability to retrieve and make use of information from databases, research studies, laws, regulations and standards that are applied in professional life ability to analyse, critically evaluate and integrate data, information and experience;

Additional educational objectives and learning outcomes
Knowledge and understanding: • Knowledge and understanding of company valuation models • Knowledge and understanding of option pricing and real options in different activity settings • Knowledge and understanding of investment decision rules Applying knowledge and understanding: • Application of analytical tools for financial statement analysis and modeling • Application of models for investment decisions under uncertainty • Application of real option analysis • -Application of company valuation models for investment decisions Making judgments: Being able to choose the appropriate methods and techniques to be applied in various real-life situations common to the financial industry Communication skills: Ability to explain the results of financial valuation exercises Learning skills: Being able to understand and find a solution for a particular financial problem of a particular investor (or corporation) using analytical reasoning, also supported by quantitative methods implemented using Microsoft Excel software.

Assessment
Open-book part with numerical exercises in Excel and closed-book written exam with theoretical review questions for attending and non-attending students. The exam is expected to last at maximum 180 minutes – 80% of the grade. Part of the course grade (20%) is assigned for participating in the Investment Portfolio Challenge where the students will construct the investment portfolios and monitor their performance throughout the course.

Evaluation criteria
Treatment of attending and non-attending students for assessment is alike. The final mark from exam assessment is 100% for students not participating in the investment challenge and 80% for those participating. Relevant for exam assessment: theoretical knowledge of the concepts covered in the slides and explained in class, and ability to solve financial problems with the help of Microsoft Excel software as explained during the exercise sessions

Required readings

CFA Program Curriculum 2020 Level I, Volumes 4 – 5. Wiley,2017. ISBN: 1-942471-85-8 (library e-book)

Supplementary readings

R. Brealey-S. Myers-F. Allen, Principles of Corporate Finance, 12th edition, McGraw-Hill, 2017

Further information
no