Case 2. The board of directors for Atlantic Corporation met in January to address growing concerns about the declining stock price of the firm. Because the price per share was so low, the board decided that the company would buy back 10 million shares of outstanding stock. During the year, Atlantic Corporation repurchased the shares at a total cost of $62 million. With fewer shares in the hands of shareholders, the board of directors declared and paid a dividend on only those remaining shares outstanding. As a result of these activities, the price per share rose dramatically in only 10 months. The board of directors then felt it best to reissue the
Why does the board of directors want to recognize the $80 million excess from the treasury stock transactions as a gain? Why does the accountant want to recognize the $80 million as an increase in total equity? Who is right? Are any ethical issues involved? Does the board of directors have a strong argument that it does not matter whether the stock was Atlantic Corporation stock or any other company because all stock is the same? Do you have any additional thoughts?
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Financial Accounting, Student Value Edition (5th Edition)
- In the spring of 1984, Disney Productions stock was selling for about 3.125 per share. (All prices have been adjusted for 4-for-1 splits in 1986 and 1992.) Then Saul Steinberg, a New York financier, began acquiring it; after he had 12%, he announced a tender offer for another 37% of the stockwhich would bring his holdings up to 49%at a price of 4.22 per share. Disneys management then announced plans to buy Gibson Greeting Cards and Arvida Corporation, paying for them with stock. It also lined up bank credit and (according to Steinberg) was prepared to borrow up to 2 billion and use the funds to repurchase shares at a higher price than Steinberg was offering. All of these efforts were designed to keep Steinberg from taking control. In June, Disneys management agreed to pay Steinberg 4.84 per share, which gave him a gain of about 60 million on a 2-month investment of about 26.5 million. When Disneys buyback of Steinbergs shares was announced, the stock price fell almost instantly from 4.25 to 2.875. Many Disney stockholders were irate, and they sued to block the buyout Also, the Disney affair added fuel to the fire in a congressional committee that was holding hearings on proposed legislation that would (1) prohibit someone from acquiring more than 10% of a firms stock without making a tender offer for all the remaining shares, (2) prohibit poison pill tactics such as those Disneys management had used to fight off Steinberg, (3) prohibit buybacks, such as the deal eventually offered to Steinberg, (greenmail) unless there was an approving vote by stockholders, and (4) prohibit (or substantially curtail) the use of golden parachutes (the one thing Disneys management did not try). Set forth the arguments for and against this type of legislation. What provisions, if any, should it contain? Also, look up Disneys current stock price to see how its stockholders have fared. Note that Disneys stock was split 3-for-1 in July 1998 and 1,014-for-1,000 in June 2007.arrow_forwardValuation of Assets and Stock A friend has come to you for advice. He states that he owns several shares of stock in a corporation. He has examined the most recent balance sheet of the corporation and has found that the common stock issued and outstanding totals 40,000 shares, and the market price per share is 25 on the balance sheet date. He is sure that the balance sheet must be in error because, in his words, the total assets are 1,100,000 and this current value should be the same as the 1,000,000 total value of the outstanding common stock. Required: Explain to your friend how the values of the various assets of the corporation typically are measured and reported on its balance sheet, and how the value of the 1,100,000 total assets is determined. Continue the discussion by explaining to your friend why the values of the assets and the stock are not the same.arrow_forwardNutritious Pet Food Companys board of directors declares a 2-for-1 stock split on June 30 when the stocks market value per share is $30. At that time, there are 10,000 shares of $1 par value common stock outstanding (none held in treasury). What is the new par value of the shares and how many shares are outstanding after the split? What is the total amount of equity before and after the split?arrow_forward
- In the spring of 1984, Disney Productions' stock was selling for about 3.125 per share. (All prices have been adjusted for 4-for-l splits in 1986 and 1992.) Then Saul Steinberg, a New York financier, began acquiring it; after he had 12%, he announced a tender offer for another 37% of the stockwhich would bring his holdings up to 49%at a price of 4.22 per share. Disney's management then announced plans to buy Gibson Greeting Cards and Arvida Corporation, paying for them with stock. It also lined up bank credit and (according to Steinberg) was prepared to borrow up to 2 billion and use the funds to repurchase shares at a higher price than Steinberg was offering. All of these efforts were designed to keep Steinberg from taking control. In June, Disney's management agreed to pay Steinberg 4.84 per share, which gave him a gain of about 60 million on a 2-month investment of about 26.5 million. When Disney's buyback of Steinberg's shares was announced, the stock price fell almost instantly from 4.25 to 2.875. Many Disney stockholders were irate, and they sued to block the buyout. Also, the Disney affair added fuel to the fire in a congressional committee that was holding hearings on proposed legislation that would (1) prohibit someone from acquiring more than 10% of a firm's stock without making a tender offer for all the remaining shares; (2) prohibit poison pill tactics such as those Disney's management had used to fight off Steinberg; (3) prohibit buybacks, such as the deal eventually offered to Steinberg, (greenmail) unless there was an approving vote by stockholders; and (4) prohibit (or substantially curtail) the use of golden parachutes (the one thing Disney's management did not try). Set forth the arguments for and against this type of legislation. What provisions, if any, should it contain? Also, look up Disney's current stock price to see how its stockholders have fared. Note that Disney's stock was split 3-for-l in July 1998.arrow_forwardAccording to a company press release, on January 5, 2012, Hansen Natural Corporation changed its name to Monster Beverage Corporation. According to Yahoo Finance, on that day the value of the company stock (symbol: MNST) was $15.64 per share. On January 5, 2018, the stock closed at $63.49 per share. This represents an increase of nearly 306%. A. Discuss the factors that might influence the increase in share price. B. Consider yourself as a potential shareholder. What factors would you consider when deciding whether or not to purchase shares in Monster Beverage Corporation today?arrow_forward
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