Northwest Fabricators Inc. is considering an investment in equipment that will replace direct labor. The equipment has a cost of $142,000 with a $12,000 residual value and a five-year life. The equipment will replace one employee who has an average wage of $45,940 per year. In addition, the equipment will have operating and energy costs of $13,780 per year. Required:
Determine the average rate of return on the equipment, giving effect to straight-line depreciation on the investment.

Stock a has a beta of 1.2 and a standard deviation of 20%. stock b has a beta of 0.8 and a standard deviation of 25%. portfolio p has $200,000 consisting of $100,000 invested in stock a and $100,000 in stock b. which of the following statements is correct? (assume that the stocks are in equilibrium.) (a) stock b has a higher required rate of return than stock a. (b) portfolio p has a standard deviation of 22.5%. (c) portfolio p has a beta equal to 1.0. (d) more information is needed to determine the portfolio's beta. (e) stock a's returns are less highly correlated with the returns on most other stocks than are b's returns.

Which represents a surplus in the market? a market price equals equilibrium price. b quantity supplied is greater than quantity demanded. c market price is less than equilibrium price. d quantity supplied equals quantity demanded.

Which of the following describes one of the ways that the demographics of an area affect the price of housing in that area? a. when more people have children, their incomes tend to be higher and the housing prices are also higher. b. older people are more likely to stay in their houses, creating a seller's market that keeps prices low. c. an area with a lower population density won't have enough construction workers to build new houses quickly. d. an area with younger people will have a higher demand for rentals and a lower demand for buying.