--%>

Effect of illegal obligations on cost of equity

If dividends paid to common stockholders are not legal obligations of a corporation, is the cost of equity zero?  Describe your answer.

Even though common stockholders do not contain a contractual claim on dividends the funds supplied by stockholders definitely contain a cost.  Equity investors are paid last and therefore they are taking the greatest risk among all of the suppliers of capital.  If the company does not get a higher rate of return onto equity funds to compensate for the higher risk taken through equity investors, the price of the stock will fall and thus the value of the firm. 

   Related Questions in Managerial Accounting

  • Q : Define Capital Budgets Capital Budgets

    Capital Budgets: The procedure of finding out which potential long-term projects are value undertaking, by comparing their estimated discounted cash flows with their internal rates of return. Capital Budget is the

  • Q : Define Variance Variance : The rate,

    Variance: The rate, amount, extent, or degree of change, or the divergence from a preferred state or characteristic.

  • Q : Techniques to liberate the function of

    Write down the different techniques employed to liberate the function of management accounting?

  • Q : Regions of decision making process What

    What are the possible broad regions of decision making process where management accounting information is required?

  • Q : Management accounting and financial

    What does the difference between management accounting and financial accounting suggest?

  • Q : Capital expenditure Expenditure that

    Expenditure that increases the dollar amount of fixed assets on the balance sheet. These outlays either increase the value of assets already owned or add additional assets. The payments increase the future benefit of an asset by extending the life of the asset, increa

  • Q : Tax form a deadweight loss Why does a

    Why does a tax form a deadweight loss? A tax forms deadweight loss by artificially increasing price above the free market level, therefore reducing the equilibrium quantity. This reduction in demand decreases consumer as well as producer surplu

  • Q : Characteristics which accounting

    What are the key qualities or characteristics which accounting information should possess?

  • Q : Describe Cost Reduction Cost Reduction

    Cost Reduction: The procedure of looking for, finding and eliminating unwarranted expenses from the business to raise gains without containing a negative impact on the product quality. Most of the business managers will engage in periodic cost reducti