Ellis Enterprises is considering whether to lease or buy some necessary equipment it needs for a project that will last the next 3 years. If the firm buys the equipment, it will borrow $4,800,000 at 8% interest. The firm's tax rate is 35% and the firm's before-tax cost of debt is 8%. Annual maintenance costs associated with ownership are estimated to be $300,000 and the equipment will be depreciated on a straight-line basis over 3 years. What is the annual end-of-year lease payment (in thousands of dollars) for a 3-year lease that would make the firm indifferent between buying or leasing the equipment? (Suggestion: Delete 3 zeros from dollars and work in thousands.)
a. $2,382 b. $2,052 c. $2,160 d. $2,268 e. $1,950