8) Long Term Credit Decision: In no more than one typed page, provide a statement of your decision to lend or not lend to each firm based on your interpretation of their long-term prospects. Analyze this as you would if you were considering lending $10 billion of your own money to the firms to be repaid in 10 years. Essentially, you are answering whether you believe the firm is able to meet long-term liabilities, to use long-term debt and stockholder's equity effectively without jeopardizing the firm's future, and to manage long-term assets in a way that will maximize revenues. Comment on their success in employing financial leverage. Make sure to address the following: long-term viability, long-term growth, the need for future financing, the sources for payment of interest and principal, the cushion the firm has in earnings and cash flows to pay interest and principal, the volatility (unpredictability) in the firm's earnings and cash flows, the likelihood the company will file for bankruptcy, and the financial strength to pay debts in a period of poor profitability.
9) Investment Decision: In no more than one typed page, provide a statement of your decision to invest in the stock of one of the firms based on your interpretation of its long-term prospects. Analyze this as you would if you were considering investing $500 million of your own money in the stock. Address the following: the company's future business prospects, the company's future market prospects, the company's competitive strengths and weaknesses, the company's strategic initiatives in response to business opportunities and threats, the company's current earnings performance, the company's future earnings potential and the sustainability of its current earnings, the company's current financial condition, the risks and rewards of the company's financing structure, the company's vulnerability to earnings variability, and the company's financial strength to overcome a period of poor profitability. Be sure to provide a conclusion based on why you decided to invest in this company's stock over the other company's stock.