The Allied Group is considering two investments

The Allied Group is considering two investments. The first investment involves a packaging machine, which can be used to package garments for shipping orders to customers. The second possible investment would be a molding machine that would be used to mold the mannequin parts.

The first possible investment is the packaging machine, which will cost $14,000. The second investment, the molding machine, would cost $12,000. The expected cash flows for the two projects are given below and the cost of capital to the firm is 15%. Both machines will be unusable after five years and have no salvage value.
The net cash flows for the two possible projects are given in the following table:
Year Packaging Machine Molding Machine
0 ($14000) ($12,000)
1 4100 3200
2 3300 2800
3 2900 2800
4 2200 2200
5 1200 2200
Address all of the following questions in a brief but thorough manner.

What is each project’s payback period? Provide a detailed explanation of how you calculated the payback period for each.
What is the NPV for each project? Provide a detailed explanation of how you calculated the payback period for each.
What is the IRR for each project? Provide a detailed explanation of how you calculated the internal rate of return (IRR) for each

find the cost of your paper

Sample Answer

 

 

 

Allied Group Investment Analysis

Payback Period:

  • Packaging Machine:

    • Total cash inflow needed to recover initial cost ($14,000) = Initial Investment
    • Cash inflows in year 1 ($4,100) are less than the initial investment.
    • We need to find the year where the cumulative cash inflows recover the initial investment.
    • In year 2, cash inflow is $3,300. Add this to year 1’s inflow: $4,100 + $3,300 = $7,400. This is still not enough.
    • To recover the remaining $6,600 ($14,000 – $7,400), we look at year 3’s cash inflow ($2,900). We only need a portion of year 3’s inflow to reach $14,000.
    • Payback Period (Packaging Machine) = 2 years + ($6,600 / $2,900) = 2.24 years.

Full Answer Section

 

 

 

  • Molding Machine:

    • Following the same logic as above:
    • Payback Period (Molding Machine) = 1 year + ($9,200 / $3,200) = 2.88 years.

Net Present Value (NPV):

  • NPV considers the time value of money and discounts future cash flows back to their present value using the cost of capital (15%).

Formula:

NPV = Σ (Cash Flow at Year t / (1 + Cost of Capital)^t) - Initial Investment
  • Packaging Machine:

    • Year 0: -$14,000 (Initial Investment – negative value)
    • Year 1: $4,100 / (1.15)^1 = $3,565
    • Year 2: $3,300 / (1.15)^2 = $2,793
    • Year 3: $2,900 / (1.15)^3 = $2,432
    • Year 4: $2,200 / (1.15)^4 = $1,842
    • Year 5: $1,200 / (1.15)^5 = $992
    • NPV (Packaging Machine) = -$14,000 + $3,565 + $2,793 + $2,432 + $1,842 + $992 = -$3,376
  • Molding Machine:

    • Following the same calculation process:
    • NPV (Molding Machine) = -$12,000 + $2,783 + $2,413 + $2,432 + $1,842 + $992 = $1,840

Internal Rate of Return (IRR):

  • IRR is the discount rate at which the NPV of a project becomes zero. It’s essentially the interest rate the project itself generates.

  • Finding IRR usually involves trial and error or using financial calculators/spreadsheets. Here’s a simplified explanation:

  • We know the NPV of each project is negative at the cost of capital (15%).

  • We need to find a discount rate that would make the NPV of each project equal zero.

  • Packaging Machine:

    • The IRR for the Packaging Machine would be between 0% (guarantees positive NPV) and 15% (given negative NPV at 15%).
  • Molding Machine:

    • The IRR for the Molding Machine would be higher than 15% (negative NPV at 15% but positive overall NPV).

In Conclusion:

  • Based on payback period, the Packaging Machine appears quicker to recover the initial investment.
  • However, NPV analysis reveals a negative value for the Packaging Machine, indicating a loss at the cost of capital of 15%.
  • The Molding Machine, although having a longer payback period, has a positive NPV, suggesting it generates returns higher than the cost of capital.
  • IRR further clarifies that the Molding Machine offers a better return on investment compared to the Packaging Machine.

Recommendation:

Based on this analysis, the Molding Machine appears to be the better investment for the Allied Group. It offers a positive NPV and a higher IRR, indicating better profitability.

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