Assignment

Paper #1

Excel Spreadsheet and 1-2 pages

Consider the following scenario:

Andre has asked you to evaluate his business, Andre's Hair Styling. Andre has five barbers working for him. (Andre is not one of them.) Each barber is paid $9.90 per hour and works a 40-hour week and a 50-week year, regardless of the number of haircuts. Rent and other fixed expenses are $1,750 per month. Hair shampoo used on all clients is $0.40 per client. Assume that the only service performed is the giving of haircuts (including shampoo), the unit price of which is $12. Andre has asked you to find the following information.

• Find the contribution margin per haircut. Assume that the barbers' compensation is a fixed cost. Show calculations to support your answer.

• Determine the annual break-even point, in number of haircuts. Support your answer with an appropriate explanation. Show calculations to support your answer.

• What will be the operating income if 20,000 haircuts are performed? Show calculations to support your answer.

• Suppose Andre revises the compensation method. The barbers will receive $4 per hour plus $6 for each haircut. What is the new contribution margin per haircut? What is the annual break-even point (in number of haircuts)? Show calculations to support your answer.

Using the information provided, provide a memo to Andre explaining the completed analysis and how he should use this information to monitor the operations of the barber shop. The memo should explain the cost associated with the barber shop including their relationships.

Paper #2

1 page & 1 excel page

Consider the following scenario:

Deer Valley Lodge, a ski resort in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah, has plans to eventually add five new chairlifts. Suppose that one lift costs $2 million, and preparing the slope and installing the lift costs another $1.3 million. The lift will allow 300 additional skiers on the slopes, but there are only 40 days a year when the extra capacity will be needed. (Assume that Deer Valley Lodge will sell all 300 lift tickets on those 40 days.) Running the new lift will cost $500 a day for the entire 200 days the lodge is open. Assume that the lift tickets at Deer Valley cost $55 a day. The new lift has an economic life of 20 years.

1. Assume that the before-tax required rate of return for Deer Valley is 14%. Compute the before-tax NPV of the new lift and advise the managers of Deer Valley about whether adding the lift will be a profitable investment. Show calculations to support your answer.

2. Assume that the after-tax required rate of return for Deer Valley is 8%, the income tax rate is 40%, and the MACRS recovery period is 10 years. Compute the after-tax NPV of the new lift and advise the managers of Deer Valley about whether adding the lift will be a profitable investment. Show calculations to support your answer.

3. What subjective factors would affect the investment decision?