Economic measures of competitive advantage

9 important questions on Economic measures of competitive advantage

What are the advantages and disadvantages of account measures of competitive advantage?

- Advantages:
  1. Easy to compute
  2. Firms publicly share accounting statements
- Disadvantages:
  1. Cost of capital often excluded
  2. Incomplete performance view

How is cost of capital defined in a firm?

  • Represents the rate of return promised to capital suppliers.
  • Induces them to invest in the firm.

What are the two primary sources of capital?

1. Debt
  • From banks and bondholders
  • - Cost is the interest to debt holders
2. Equity
  • From stock purchasers
  • - Cost is the promised return to equity holders
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How is the cost of debt characterized?

  • It equals the interest required by debt holders.
  • Required to convince them to lend money to the firm.

What does cost of equity represent?

  • It denotes the return rate promised to equity holders.
  • Required to attract individuals and institutions to invest.

What is WACC and what does it indicate about a firm's capital?

It represents the percentage of total capital. Key points include:
  • Equity × Cost of equity
  • WACC < ROA < Industry Avg. ROA
  • Can indicate competitive advantage or disadvantage

What are the types of economic performance based on a firm's cost of capital?

The three types are:
  1. ABOVE NORMAL ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE - earns more than cost of capital, likely has competitive advantage
  2. NORMAL ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE - earns exactly the cost of capital, achieves competitive parity
  3. BELOW NORMAL ECONOMIC PERFORMANCE - earns less, leading to competitive disadvantage

What are the advantages and disadvantages of measuring a firm’s performance relative to its cost of capital?

Advantages include:
- Satisfying stakeholders (debt and equity holders)
Disadvantages include:
  • Difficulty in calculating cost of capital, especially for privately held firms
  • May need to use accounting ratios

How does the performance of a firm relate to its stakeholders?

Performance is crucial as it informs:
  • If a firm earns its cost of capital, it satisfies both debt holders and equity holders
  • A firm's ability to attract additional capital depends on its performance relative to cost of capital

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