CIMA F3 Exam With Confidence Using Practice Dumps

Pre-acquisition:

Company X: earnings = $50m, P/E = 10 → value = 50 × 10 = $500m; shares = 100m → price = $5

Company Y: earnings = $15m, P/E = 10 → value = 15 × 10 = $150m; shares = 50m → price = $3

Combined earnings = 50 + 15 = $65m

Post-acquisition assumptions:

Earnings increase by 10% → 65 × 1.10 = $71.5m

Combined P/E remains 10 → total market value = 71.5 × 10 = $715m

We want X’s new share price to be 10% higher than $5 → target price = $5.50.

Share price = total value ÷ total X shares after issue:

5.50=715Total shares⇒Total shares=7155.5=130m5.50 = \frac{715}{\text{Total shares}} \Rightarrow \text{Total shares} = \frac{715}{5.5} = 130\text{m}5.50=Total shares715​⇒Total shares=5.5715​=130m

X currently has 100m shares, so must issue 30m new shares to Y’s shareholders.

Y has 50m shares → each Y share must get:

30m50m=0.6 X shares per Y share\frac{30m}{50m} = 0.6 \text{ X shares per Y share}50m30m​=0.6 X shares per Y share

Check options:

B: 3 X for 5 Y → 3/5 = 0.6 X per Y ✔

So that exchange ratio gives exactly 30m new X shares and hence a 10% increase in X’s share price.

Correct answer: B – 3 shares in Company X for 5 shares in Company Y.

Cash flows:

Years 1–3: 100, 100, 100

From year 4: grow at 2% forever. Cost of capital = 12%.

PV of years 1–3:

PV1−3=1001.12+1001.122+1001.123≈240\text{PV}_{1-3} = \frac{100}{1.12} + \frac{100}{1.12^2} + \frac{100}{1.12^3} \approx 240PV1−3​=1.12100​+1.122100​+1.123100​≈240

Terminal value at end of year 3:

Year 4 CF = 100×1.02=102100 \times 1.02 = 102100×1.02=102

TV3=1020.12−0.02=1020.10=1,020\text{TV}_3 = \frac{102}{0.12 - 0.02} = \frac{102}{0.10} = 1{,}020TV3​=0.12−0.02102​=0.10102​=1,020

PV of terminal value:

PV(TV)=1,0201.123≈726\text{PV(TV)} = \frac{1{,}020}{1.12^3} \approx 726PV(TV)=1.1231,020​≈726

Total value ≈ 240+726=966240 + 726 = 966240+726=966.

So the value is $966 million → Option A.

B. Diversification into another product market will lower business risk

Diversifying into a different sector can reduce unsystematic (business-specific) risk, as cash flows from different industries may be less correlated.

C. Greater protection from transaction risk

Company A already has B$ exposures (manufacturing and a B$ loan). Acquiring Company B, which operates and earns in B$, can provide B$ inflows that help naturally hedge B$ outflows, reducing transaction risk.

D. Greater protection from translation risk

The acquisition adds net assets in B$, which can act as a balance sheet hedge against existing B$ liabilities (such as the B$ loan). On consolidation, this can reduce the volatility of reported equity due to exchange rate movements, i.e. translation risk.

Option A is weak: political risk in Country B is not reduced by owning more assets there. E is doubtful because Company B is in a different industrial sector, so classic production scale economies are unlikely to be a primary justification.