Free CFA Institute CFA-Level-II Exam Questions

Christopher Robinson, chairman of the board of directors for a private endowment fund, believes that the endowment fund for which he is responsible has diverged too far from its stated objectives. Over several years the board has increased the size of the fund's equity position beyond the stated limits of the investment policy statement. In an effort to realign the fund's investments, Robinson has elected to choose a mortgage-backed security (MBS) for inclusion in the endowment's portfolio. After surveying the MBS market, Robinson has selected four MBS securities to present as potential investments at the next investment committee meeting. Details on the selected MBS securities are presented below:At the investment committee meeting, a fellow board member raises his concerns over the potential MBS investments stating, 'While we all agree that the fixed-income proportion of the endowment is much too small, I am not sure the suggested MBS securities will fulfill the cash flow requirements of the endowment. What risks are we taking on by allocating a portion of the portfolio to these investments? We cannot afford to end up with a timing mismatch between the cash needs of the endowment and the cash provided from its investments. Also, we have given no consideration to commercial mortgage backed securities (CMBS). Isn't our analysis incomplete if we fail to give proper discussion of potential CMBS investment opportunities?'Robinson responded to his fellow board member by addressing the board member's concerns as follows:'Since the cash requirements of the endowment fund fluctuate directly with interest rates, the cash flows provided from the MBS will provide adequate protection against cash shortfalls arising from differences in the timing of cash needs and cash sources. In addition, we can further reduce uncertainty surrounding the timing of cash flows by purchasing planned amortization class CMOs, which are securities issued against pools of MBS. CMBS were not presented due to the unacceptable risk profile of the comparable CMBS trading in the marketplace.'Which of the following factors would most likely increase the rate of prepayments on any of the listed MBS securities?

Theresa Ponder and Rod Owens are analysts for a multinational investment bank, Datko Bank, based in Canada. Datko's clients have been advised to diversify globally, due to a decrease in expected long-term growth for North American economies.As part of her analysis of global stocks, Ponder uses the domestic CAPM and the international CAPM to value stocks. She makes the following statements regarding the extension of the domestic capital asset pricing model (CAPM);Statement 1: To extend the domestic CAPM to international asset pricing using the extended CAPM, one must make two additional assumptions. First, that global investors have identical consumption baskets and second, that interest rate parity holds throughout the world.Statement 2: The extended CAPM assumes that exchange rate changes are predictable so that there is no real exchange rate risk.As the primary analyst for European securities, Owens analyzes the stocks in the countries of Catonia and Arbutia. Catonia and Arbutia arc not currently members of the European Union, but have a timetable for joining by the end of the decade.To evaluate Caionian stocks, he uses the international CAPM. Owens mentions that a foreign currency risk premium must be added in this model, and that the risk premium depends on various parity conditions. He finds that the foreign exchange expectation relation and interest rate parity hold between Canada and Catonia. The interest rate in Canada is 2%, and the interest rate in Catonia is 5%.One of the companies Owens follows in Arbutia is Diversified Metal Finishers. Diversified produces customized sheet metal applications for manufacturers throughout the world. The firm enjoys a competitive advantage because Arbutia is a commodity-rich country which allows Diversified to source its inputs locally. Owens has found that when the Arbutian currency changes by 10%, the value of the Diversified stock generally changes by 6%.Ponder is also analyzing stocks in the nations of Bisharov and Dineva. She is estimating the expected return using the international CAPM (ICAPM) for Ivanova Metals, located in Dineva. The data for Canada, Dineva, and lvanova are shown in the following. The foreign currency is denoted as the local currency (LC).Canadian risk-free rate 2.00%Dineva risk-free rate 8.00%World market risk premium 6.00%Dineva index beta to world market index 1.40Dineva local market risk premium 7.50%Ivanova beta to local index 1.30Foreign currency risk premium 3.00%Dineva sensitivity of LC stock returns to LC 0.70Owens examines Ponder's analysis and makes the following statements:Statement 1: To protect the growing economy and prevent capital flight, the Bisharov government taxes foreign investors at higher rates and has placed limits on currency convertibility. In Dineva, the government has taken a more hands-off approach and does not regulate .foreign investment. If the world were to consist entirely of countries like Bisharov, then the ICAPM cannot be applied.Statement 2; Furthermore, inflation is often a concern in emerging market countries. To measure an exchange rate between Canada and an emerging market currency that is adjusted for inflation, a real exchange rate should be calculated. Assuming no change in the real exchange rate, the change in an emerging market's asset values in domestic currency will just reflect the emerging market's asset returns in local currency and the difference between inflation rates in the domestic and foreign countries.Regarding the statements made by Owens on the ICAPM and inflation, are both statements correct?

Kevin Rathbun, CFA, is a financial analyst at a major brokerage firm. His supervisor, Elizabeth Mao, CFA, asks him to analyze the financial position of Wayland, Inc. (Wayland), a manufacturer of components for high quality optic transmission systems. Mao also inquires about the impact of any unconsolidated investments.On December 31,2007, Wayland purchased a 35% ownership interest in a strategic new firm called Optimax for $300,000 cash. The pre-acquisition balance sheets of both firms are found in Exhibit 1.On the acquisition date, all of Optimax's assets and liabilities were stated on its balance sheet at their fair values except for its property, plant, and equipment (PP&E), which had a fair value of $1.2 million. The remaining useful life of the PP&E is ten years with no salvage value. Both firms use the straight-line depreciation method.For the year ended 2008, Optimax reported net income of $250,000 and paid dividends of $100,000.During the first quarter of 2009, Optimax sold goods to Wayland and recognized $15,000 of profit from the sale. At the end of the quarter, half of the goods purchased from Optimax remained in Wayland's inventory.Wayland currently uses the equity method to account for its investment in Optimax. However, given the potential significance of the investment in the future, Rathbun believes that a proportionate consolidation of Optimax may give a clearer picture of the financial and operating characteristics of Wayland.Rathbun also notes that Wayland owns shares in Vanry, Inc. (Vanry). Rathbun gathers the data in Exhibit 2 from Wayland's financial statements. The year-end portfolio value is the market value of all Vanry shares held on December 31. All security transactions occurred on July 1, and the transaction price is the price that Wayland actually paid for the shares acquired. Vanry pays a cash dividend of $1 per share at the end of each year. Wayland expects to sell its investment in Vanry in the near term and accounts for it as held-for-trading.Wayland owns some publicly traded bonds of the Rotor Corporation that it reports as held-to-maturity securities.Which of the following best describes WaylancTs treatment of the intercompany sales transaction for the quarter ended March 31, 2009? Wayland should reduce its equity income by:

MediSoft Inc. develops and distributes high-tech medical software used in hospitals and clinics across the United States and Canada. The firm's software provides an integrated solution to monitoring, analyzing, and managing output from a variety of diagnostic medical equipment including MRls, CT scans, and EKG machines. MediSoft has grown rapidly since its inception ten years ago, averaging 25% growth in sales over the last decade. The company went public three years ago. Twelve months after their IPO, MediSoft made two semiannual coupon bond offerings, the first of which was a convertible bond. At the time of issuance, the convertible bond had a coupon rate of 7.25%, par value of $1,000, a conversion price of $55.56, and ten years until maturity. Two years after issuance, the bond became callable at 102% of par value. Soon after the issuance of the convertible bond, the company issued another series of bonds which were putable, but contained no conversion or call features. The putable bonds were issued with a coupon of 8.0%, par value of $1,000, and 15 years until maturity. One year after their issuance, the put feature of the putable bonds became active, allowing the bonds to be put at a price of 95% of par value, and increasing linearly over five years to 100% of par value. MediSoft's convertible bonds are now trading in the market for a price of $947 with an estimated straight value of $917. The company's putable bonds are trading at a price of $1,052. Volatility in the price of MediSoft's common stock has been relatively high over the last few months. Currently the stock is priced at $50 on the New York Stock Exchange and is expected to continue its annual dividend in the amount of $1.80 per share.High-tech industry analysts for Brown & Associates, a money management firm specializing in fixed-income investments, have been closely following MediSoft ever since it went public three years ago. In general, portfolio managers at Brown & Associates do not participate in initial offerings of debt investments, preferring instead to see how the issue trades before considering taking a position in the issue. Since MediSoft's bonds have had ample time to trade in the marketplace, analysts and portfolio managers have taken an interest in the company's bonds. At a meeting to discuss the merits of MediSofVs bonds, the following comments were made by various portfolio managers and analysts at Brown & Associates:'Choosing to invest in MediSoft's convertible bond would benefit our portfolios in many ways, but the primary benefit is the limited downside risk associated with the bond. Since the straight value will provide a floor for the value of the convertible bond, downside risk is limited to the difference between the market price of the bond and the straight value.''Decreasing volatility in the price of MediSoft's common stock as well as increasing volatility in the level of interest rates are expected in the near future. The combined effects of these changes in volatility will be a decrease in the price of MediSoft's putable bonds and an increase in the price of the convertible bonds. Therefore, only the convertible bonds would be a suitable purchase.'Assuming that portfolio managers at Brown & Associates purchased the convertible bonds, how many years would it take to recover the premium per share?

Viper Motor Company, a publicly traded automobile manufacturer located in Detroit, Michigan, periodically invests its excess cash in low-risk fixed income securities. At the end of 2009, Viper's investment portfolio consisted of two separate bond investments: Pinto Corporation and Vega Incorporated.On January 2, 2009, Viper purchased $10 million of Pinto's 4% annual coupon bonds at 92% of par. The bonds were priced to yield 5%. Viper intends to hold the bonds to maturity. At the end of 2009, the bonds had a fair value of $9.6 million.On July I, 2009, Viper purchased $7 million of Vega's 5% semi-annual coupon mortgage bonds at par. The bonds mature in 20 years. At the end of 2009, the market rate of interest for similar bonds was 4%. Viper intends to sell the securities in the near term in order to profit from expected interest rate declines.Neither of the bond investments was sold by Viper in 2009.On January 1,2010, Viper purchased a 60% controlling interest in Gremlin Corporation for $900 million. Viper paid for the acquisition with shares of its common stock.Exhibit 1 contains Viper's and Gremlin's pre-acquisition balance sheet data.Exhibit 2 contains selected information from Viper's financial statement footnotes.Using only the information contained in Exhibit 2, which of the following statements is most correct when presenting Viper's consolidated income statement for the year ended 2010?