Section A – BOTH questions are compulsory and MUST be attempted
Coeden Co is a listed company operating in the hospitality and leisure industry. Coeden Co’s board of directors met recently to discuss a new strategy for the business. The proposal put forward was to sell all the hotel properties that Coeden Co owns and rent them back on a long-term rental agreement. Coeden Co would then focus solely on the provision of hotel services at these properties under its popular brand name. The proposal stated that the funds raised from the sale of the hotel properties would be used to pay off 70% of the outstanding non-current liabilities and the remaining funds would be retained for future investments.
The board of directors are of the opinion that reducing the level of debt in Coeden Co will reduce the company’s risk and therefore its cost of capital. If the proposal is undertaken and Coeden Co focuses exclusively on the provision of hotel services, it can be assumed that the current market value of equity will remain unchanged after implementing the proposal.
Coeden Co Financial Information
Extract from the most recent Statement of Financial Position
Coeden Co’s latest free cash flow to equity of $2,600,000 was estimated after taking into account taxation, interest and reinvestment in assets to continue with the current level of business. It can be assumed that the annual reinvestment in assets required to continue with the current level of business is equivalent to the annual amount of depreciation. Over the past few years, Coeden Co has consistently used 40% of its free cash flow to equity on new investments while distributing the remaining 60%. The market value of equity calculated on the basis of the free cash flow to equity model provides a reasonable estimate of the current market value of Coeden Co.
The bonds are redeemable at par in three years and pay the coupon on an annual basis. Although the bonds are not traded, it is estimated that Coeden Co’s current debt credit rating is BBB but would improve to A+ if the non-current liabilities are reduced by 70%.
Other Information
Coeden Co’s current equity beta is 1·1 and it can be assumed that debt beta is 0. The risk free rate is estimated to be 4% and the market risk premium is estimated to be 6%.
There is no beta available for companies offering just hotel services, since most companies own their own buildings. The average asset beta for property companies has been estimated at 0·4. It has been estimated that the hotel services business accounts for approximately 60% of the current value of Coeden Co and the property company business accounts for the remaining 40%.
Coeden Co’s corporation tax rate is 20%. The three-year borrowing credit spread on A+ rated bonds is 60 basis points and 90 basis points on BBB rated bonds, over the risk free rate of interest.
Required: (a) Calculate, and comment on, Coeden Co’s cost of equity and weighted average cost of capital before and after implementing the proposal. Briefly explain any assumptions made. (20 marks) (b) Discuss the validity of the assumption that the market value of equity will remain unchanged after the implementation of the proposal. (5 marks) (c) As an alternative to selling the hotel properties, the board of directors is considering a demerger of the hotel services and a separate property company which would own the hotel properties. The property company would take over 70% of Coeden Co’s long-term debt and pay Coeden Co cash for the balance of the property value. Required: Explain what a demerger is, and the possible benefits and drawbacks of pursuing the demerger option as opposed to selling the hotel properties. (8 marks)