The Walker Construction Company has just received a building contract. Walker estimates there is a 60% chance of making a $500,000 profit, a 10% chance of breaking even, and 30% chance of losing $200,000, depending upon weather conditions and other factors. What is the expected value of the company's contract?

College Algebra
1st Edition
ISBN:9781938168383
Author:Jay Abramson
Publisher:Jay Abramson
Chapter9: Sequences, Probability And Counting Theory
Section9.7: Probability
Problem 1SE: What term is used to express the likelihood of an event occurring? Are there restrictions on its...
icon
Related questions
Question

The Walker Construction Company has just received a building contract. Walker estimates there is a 60% chance of making a $500,000 profit, a 10% chance of breaking even, and 30% chance of losing $200,000, depending upon weather conditions and other factors. What is the expected value of the company's contract?

Expert Solution
Step 1

Let us assume X= amount of profit 

Breakeven means no profit.

Let us make a probability distribution for X

Amount of profit (xi) 500000 0 -200000
Probability (pi) 0.60 0.10 0.30

 

trending now

Trending now

This is a popular solution!

steps

Step by step

Solved in 2 steps with 1 images

Blurred answer
Knowledge Booster
Point Estimation, Limit Theorems, Approximations, and Bounds
Learn more about
Need a deep-dive on the concept behind this application? Look no further. Learn more about this topic, probability and related others by exploring similar questions and additional content below.
Recommended textbooks for you
College Algebra
College Algebra
Algebra
ISBN:
9781938168383
Author:
Jay Abramson
Publisher:
OpenStax