Students

ACST6003 – Principles of Finance

2025 – Session 2, In person-scheduled-weekday, North Ryde

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff
Farida Akhtar
farida.akhtar@mq.edu.au
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

This unit aims to provide students with a knowledge and understanding of the principles and techniques underlying theory and practice in corporate finance. Topics include: basic financial mathematics: interest rates, present values, future values, annuities, perpetuities; valuation and analysis of debt and equity securities; methods for investment evaluation and capital budgeting: Net Present Value (NPV), Internal Rate of Return (IRR), Payback Priod (PP); business organisation and taxation, financial markets and raising finance; tradeoff between risk and return, the cost of capital and capital structure; dividend policy and company valuation; corporate liabilities and international finance; bond valuation and term structure; statistical concepts and risks; fixed income bonds and amortisation; introduction to risk management, application of financial mathematics concepts using MS Excel based activities within a corporate finance context.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  • ULO1: Exhibit knowledge and understanding of the principles and techniques underlying theory and practice in Corporate Finance and Capital Markets.
  • ULO2: Develop expertise in using spreadsheet software to build financial models and perform calculations for security valuation and corporate decision making.
  • ULO3: Be aware of different financial instruments and their valuation and usefulness in a Corporate Finance context.
  • ULO4: Explain the concepts covered in the course in a clear and concise manner and be able to communicate it to others effectively.

General Assessment Information

Late Assessment Submission Penalty (written assessments)

Unless a Special Consideration request has been submitted and approved, a 5% penalty (of the total possible mark) will be applied each day a written assessment is not submitted, up until the 7th day (including weekends). After the 7th day, a grade of ‘0’ will be awarded even if the assessment is submitted. Submission time for all written assessments is set at 11.55pm. A 1-hour grace period is provided to students who experience a technical concern.

For any late submissions of time-sensitive tasks, such as scheduled tests/exams, performance assessments/presentations, and/or scheduled practical assessments/labs, students need to submit an application for Special Consideration (https://students.mq.edu.au/study/assessmentexams/special-consideration)

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Formal and Observed Learning: Quiz 20% No Week 6
Professional Practice: Financial Models Applications 30% No Week 10
Formal and Observed Learning: Exam 50% No Exam Period

Formal and Observed Learning: Quiz

Assessment Type 1: Quiz/Test
Indicative Time on Task 2: 15 hours
Due: Week 6
Weighting: 20%

 

The purpose of this assessment is for you to demonstrate your understanding of key finance concepts and apply them to problem-based scenarios.

You will complete an online quiz during lecture time that includes multiple-choice questions requiring conceptual understanding and basic financial modelling application.

Skills in focus:

  • Work readiness
  • Critical thinking and problem solving
  • Discipline knowledge

Deliverable: Online Quiz.

Individual assessment

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Exhibit knowledge and understanding of the principles and techniques underlying theory and practice in Corporate Finance and Capital Markets.
  • Be aware of different financial instruments and their valuation and usefulness in a Corporate Finance context.
  • Explain the concepts covered in the course in a clear and concise manner and be able to communicate it to others effectively.

Professional Practice: Financial Models Applications

Assessment Type 1: Report
Indicative Time on Task 2: 20 hours
Due: Week 10
Weighting: 30%

 

The purpose of this assessment is for you to develop solutions to finance-related and non-financial business problems within a corporate context.

You will identify appropriate financial models, determine why and when to apply them, and use tools such as financial databases, Excel, and AI models to produce a report with comments/recommendations to enhance financial decision-making.

Skills in focus:

  • Critical thinking and problem solving
  • Digital skills
  • Discipline knowledge

Deliverable: Written Report

Individual assessment

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Exhibit knowledge and understanding of the principles and techniques underlying theory and practice in Corporate Finance and Capital Markets.
  • Develop expertise in using spreadsheet software to build financial models and perform calculations for security valuation and corporate decision making.
  • Be aware of different financial instruments and their valuation and usefulness in a Corporate Finance context.
  • Explain the concepts covered in the course in a clear and concise manner and be able to communicate it to others effectively.

Formal and Observed Learning: Exam

Assessment Type 1: Examination
Indicative Time on Task 2: 10 hours
Due: Exam Period
Weighting: 50%

 

The purpose of this assessment is for you to demonstrate the expertise, skills and knowledge you have gained in Finance Principles that focuses on demonstrating financial literacy skills to improve financial decision making .

You will participate in a 2-hour exam held during the University Examination period. Important information about the exam will be made available on the unit iLearn page. Students should also review the MQ Exams website for general tips.

Deliverable: Formal exam

Individual assessment

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Exhibit knowledge and understanding of the principles and techniques underlying theory and practice in Corporate Finance and Capital Markets.
  • Develop expertise in using spreadsheet software to build financial models and perform calculations for security valuation and corporate decision making.
  • Be aware of different financial instruments and their valuation and usefulness in a Corporate Finance context.
  • Explain the concepts covered in the course in a clear and concise manner and be able to communicate it to others effectively.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

Classes: 3.5 hours of teaching per week consisting of:

1 x 2 hours lecture and 1 x 1.5 hours tutorial/practical class.

• Lecture slides/notes, tutorial and any other additional materials on ilearn are the required materials and will be posted on the ilearn before each week of teaching conetnt.

• Relevant references will be provided in Lectures and/or on the ilearn page.

• Passing the Unit - Students must obtain a mark of 50% to pass the unit. There are no other hurdle requirements for this unit.

Textbooks Prescribed Textbook

• The textbook for this unit is Fundamentals of Corporate Finance by Parrino et al, 4th Edition (ISBN: 9780730382577). An electronic version of the book is available from Wiley Direct and is cheaper than the paper version: https://www.wileydirect.com.au/buy/ fundamentalsofcorporatefinance- 4th-edition.

• This book covers most but not all of the topics in the unit. The lecture notes will also cover what you need to know. Additional readings may be assigned for the various topics each week. This will either be journal articles, or other materials available on iLearn, web or available electronically e.g. via the Macquarie University Library.

Additional Readings

• Beninga, Principles of Finance with Excel, Oxford (ISBN 978 0 19 975547 9). This book may be used by students to learn about using MS Excel for the various financial calculations involved in the course, during the tutorial / computer lab sessions.

Unit Schedule

 

Week

Week beginning Monday

Topic

Book Chapter

Assessment Due

1

28-Jul

Introduction to Business Organisations and Taxation

Ch. 1 – 3

 

2

4-Aug

Time Value of Money and Interest Rates

Ch. 5 & additional material

 

3

11-Aug

Valuation of Multi-Payment Cash Flows

Ch. 6

 

4

18-Aug

Risk and Return

Ch. 7

 

5

25-Aug

Bond Valuation and the Structure of Interest Rates

Ch. 8 & additional material

 

6

1-Sep

ONLINE QUIZ/TEST (NO Lecture and Seminar)

 

ONLINE QUIZ/TEST

7

8-Sep

Share Valuation

Ch. 9 & additional material

 

8

15-Sep

The Fundamentals of Capital Budgeting

Ch. 10 & additional material

 

Recess

22-Sep

Recess

Recess

Recess

Recess

29-Sep

Recess

Recess

Recess

9

6-Oct

Cash Flows and Capital Budgeting

Ch. 11

 

10

13-Oct

Evaluation Project Economics and Capital Rationing

Ch. 12

ASSIGNMENT DUE

11

20-Oct

The Cost of Capital

Ch. 13

 

12

27-Oct

Capital Structure Policy

Ch. 16

 

13

3-Nov

Revision

 

 

 

 

 

 

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit connect.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

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Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

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Academic Success provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

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Got a question? Ask us via the Service Connect Portal, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

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Unit information based on version 2025.04 of the Handbook