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Finance Course Descriptions

Important Notice:

Academic requirements in this site are based on current University Catalog. A student's academic requirements could be different depending on the catalog to which he/she has acquired "rights". Consult the University Catalog (section on General Regulations and Procedures) for detailed information for applicable requirements for graduation.

Upper Division

300. Business Finance (3)

Prerequisites: ACCT 201 or equivalent, STAT 108 or MATH 115 or equivalent, ECON 100 or ECON 101 or equivalent.
Introductory course for all business majors. Integration of computer applications and management information systems in (1) Time Value of Money, Risk, Valuation, Cost of Capital; (2) Capital Budgeting; (3) Long-Term Financing Decisions; (4) Working Capital Policy and Management; (5) Financial Analysis and Planning; (6) International Finance; (7) Special topics including Mergers, Acquisition and Bankruptcy.
Letter grade only (A-F).

310. Personal Finance (3)

Financial analysis planning and management for the individual. Topics include owning and financing a home, minimizing taxes, goals and strategies for investing, budgeting, savings plans, controlling expenses and credit usage, determining insurance needs, and planning retirement.
Letter grade only (A-F).

330. Insurance Principles (3)

Principles of risk-bearing and insurance. Life and property-liability insurance needs of the individual. Types of carriers and insurance markets; organization and functions of carriers; industry regulation.
Letter grade only (A-F).

340. Real Estate Principles (3)

Real estate markets, institutions and activities from the perspective of the decision makers involved in real estate.. Fundamental physical, legal, regulatory, economic, mathematical and taxation considerations influencing real estate decision and values. Brokerage, property management, appraisal and counseling.
Letter grade only (A-F).

350. Investment Principles (3)

Prerequisite: FIN 300.
Investment markets and transactions; sources of investment information; return vs. risk; margin trading and short selling; investment planning; investing in equities and fixed income securities; speculative tax-sheltered investments; gold and other tangibles; portfolio management. Demonstrations and use of microcomputer technology.
Letter grade only (A-F). Course fee may be required.

360. Capital Markets (3)

Capital formation, rates, markets and institutions. Flow of fund analysis, intermediation, interest rate structures, risks and liquidity. Management of financial institutions.

370. Working Capital Management and Cash Budgeting (3)

Prerequisite: FIN 300.
An introduction to working capital management and policy issues in general and how to manage short term assets and liabilities in particular. Cash forecasting and budgeting and short term investing and financing will be the focus of the course.
Letter grade only (A-F).

400. Intermediate Financial Management (3)

Prerequisites: FIN 300 and ACCT 310 or 320, IS 301.
An intermediate-level, lecture-discussion course in corporate finance. Topics include: cash budgeting, capital budgeting, business acquisition and mergers, cost of capital, and international finance.
Letter grade only (A-F).

410. Microstructure on Institution Services (3)

Prerequisites: FIN 300, I S 301.
Capital markets ranging from securities trading to corporate financing through private placement and/or public offerings. In-class trading simulations. Various market trading structures; various financing techniques as permitted under the SEC regulations. Use of simulation software.
Letter grade only (A-F).

450. Portfolio Analysis (3)

Prerequisite: FIN 350, IS 301.
Microcomputer technology to perform security analysis including bonds and the bond market, stocks and the stock market, security valuation, fundamental and technical analysis, portfolio management and risk-reward relationships. Microcomputer software programs that perform security analysis and portfolio management, numerous databases.
Letter grade only (A-F). Course fee may be required.

460. Management in Financial Institutions (3)

Prerequisites: FIN 300, I S 301.
Students will be introduced to management of banks and other depository financial institutions. Banking trends and introductory topics, Asset and Liability Management, Capital adequacy and Management of Investment portfolios will be the main focus of the course.
Letter grade only (A-F).

470. Seminar in Financial Management (3)

Prerequisites: FIN 400, I S 301.
This course is designed to enhance students’ comprehension of finance theories through case studies. The subject of each designed case is related to specific finance subjects including estimation of cost of capital, resource allocation and capital budgeting, IPOs, stock repurchase, dividend policy, agency cost, and merger and acquisition.
Letter grade only (A-F).

480. Derivatives (3)

Prerequisites: FIN 300 and 350, IS 301.
Exchanges, operation of firms, trading mechanics,and construction of a personal-risk profile analysis. Traditional decision variables, including construction of a 2-asset portfolio. Bias in futures prices, theory of storage price , ledger and speculator behavior, and stochastic nature of futures prices.
Letter grade only (A-F). Course fee may be required.

485. Fixed Income Securities (3)

Prerequisites: FIN 350, I S 301.
The course analyzes fixed income securities option embedded fixed income securities and interest rate derivatives. Usual duration and convexity analysis, and the interest rate stochastic processes and other forecasting techniques will be studied. New breeds of fixed income securities, various collateralized bond obligations and other asset backed securities, and interest rate arbitrage techniques will be introduced.
Letter grade only (A-F).

487. Mathematical Modeling in Finance (3)

Prerequisite: FIN 350, I S 301.
Various mathematical and statistical tools will be used in building financial models. Basic mathematical and statistical tools and how these quantitative tools can be utilized in real world valuation models will be demonstrated. The course also applies the languages to the implementation of various quantitative financial models.
Letter grade only (A-F).

490. International Finance (3)

Prerequisite: FIN 300; suggested, CBA 300; IS 301.
International trade theories, international payments; currency value fluctuations and exchange rates; international capital markets; roles of developing countries; international institutions and multi-national enterprises. Individual research required.

495. Selected Topics (1-3)

Prerequisite: Consent of instructor, IS 301.
Intensive study of current topics of interest in finance.
May be repeated to a maximum of 6 units. Topics will be announced in the Schedule of Classes.

497. Directed Studies (1-3)

Prerequisites: Consent of instructor and Department Chair, on Dean’s List and 3.0 GPA or higher in finance.
Individual projects, study and research of advanced nature in finance.

499A-B. Applied Portfolio Management (3-3)

Prerequisites: FIN 499A: FIN 350, 400, 450 (either or both FIN 400 and 450 may be taken concurrently), and consent of instructor and Department Chair, IS 301; FIN 499B: FIN 499A and consent of instructor and Department Chair. FIN 499A to be offered in Fall and accepted students must enroll in FIN 499B in Spring.
Participation in management of actual investment portfolio. Research, monitor, and analyze securities and make, buy and sell recommendations for a student-managed investment fund. Contribute to publication of semi-annual fund report. Market, sector and firm analysis with presentations and outside research.
Letter grade only (A-F).

Graduate-Level Courses

501. Financial Management Concepts (3)
Prerequisite: MBA standing required.
Integration of computers, management information systems and cases to: (1) time value of money, risk, valuation, cost of capital, capital structure; (2) capital budgeting; (3) long-term financing decisions; (4) working capital policy and management; (5) financial analysis and planning.
Letter grade only (A-F).

600. Seminar in Business Finance (3)
Prerequisite: MBA standing required.
Financial theory and management: (1) time value of money, risk, valuation, cost of capital, capital structure; (2) capital budgeting; (3) long-term financing decisions; (4) working capital policy and management; (5) financial analysis and planning; (6) special topics.
May be repeated to a maximum of 3 units. Letter grade only (A-F).

620. Capital Budgeting (3)
Prerequisite: FIN 600.
Theory of capital budgeting within the framework of the firm. Cost of capital determination and logic of expansion vs. growth, and equity financing vs. debt financing. Computer applications required.
Letter grade only (A-F).

630. Seminar in Financial Forecasting (3)
Prerequisite: FIN 600.
Research projects in industry, individual company, product and commodity areas. Computer applications required.
Letter grade only (A-F).

650. Seminar in Investments (3)
Prerequisite: FIN 600.
Security analysis, portfolio planning, balance and adjustment as related to (1) individual circumstances of the investor, (2) specific market conditions, and (3) broader financial aspects of the economy. Presentation and interpretation of student reports on selected topics. Computer applications required.
Letter grade only (A-F). Course fee may be required.

690. Seminar in International Finance (3)
Prerequisite: FIN 600.
Background in economics, accounting and finance, graduate standing in business administration. Real and monetary factors in the finance of international business, international capital markets, movement of funds and special problem areas.
Letter grade only (A-F).

695. Selected Topics (3)
Prerequisite: Consent of instructor.
Topics to be announced in Schedule of Classes. Different topics each semester.
May be repeated to a maximum of 6 units with different topics. Letter grade only (A-F).

697. Directed Studies (1‑3)
Prerequisite: Consent of instructor.
Individual study under direction of faculty.
Letter grade only (A-F).

699A-B. Applied Portfolio Management (3-3)
Prerequisites: FIN 699A: FIN 520, 600, 650; consent of instructor and Department Chair; FIN 699B: FIN 699A; consent of instructor and Department Chair.
FIN 699A offered in Fall and accepted students must enroll in FIN 699B in Spring.
Participation in management of actual investment portfolio. Research, monitor, and analyze securities and make, buy and sell recommendations for a student-managed investment fund. Contribute to publication of semi-annual fund report. Market, sector
and firm analysis with presentations and outside research.
Letter grade only (A-F).