buy custom The Conversion of Native Americans to Christianity essay

buy custom The Conversion of Native Americans to Christianity essay The Cherokee Removal, which took place between 18381839 stretched against a composite setting of challenging philosophies, self-centeredness, party political affairs, humanity, and aspiration. In 1815, the US administration compelled and deceived numerous Cherokees into signing agreements to do business in their territories of Oklahoma and Arkansas. Approximately, half of the Cherokees accepted the new land and were later called the Old Settlers. In 1828, the US administration was divided as to defend the Cherokees territory allegations, or to allow Georgia force them away. Meanwhile, gold excitement took over the south. Workers in mines and get rich fast cheat specialists attacked Cherokee land assassinating, raping, and smoldering. Vann James, a region arbitrator for the Cherokees, detained, prosecuted and killed the unlawful by hanging. Georgia made war intimidations over the indignation of Cherokee's execution of white men. The Cherokees offered legal representatives and the coun trys spokesmen to court to dispute their case. The central administration had given them agreements for the territory, and they must be sheltered from the people and military of Georgia. John (2002) elucidates that in 1830, the US High Court judged in support of defending the Cherokees property constitutional rights. However, the High Court was disobeyed by President Andrew Jackson, who ordered the military to send away the Cherokees fro Georgia. President Jackson signed the Indian Removal Act, which essentially led to the compulsory exclusion of all Indians east of the Mississippi River to the fresh empty territory acquired in the Louisiana acquisition, to be assured to the Indian clan, provided that they shall dwell in it. Hundreds of Cherokee households escaped from the area, to Tennessee, North Carolina and Alabama; from1830-1839. Even though these cases were being disputed in court, the state of Georgia a territory chance to divide the Cherokee country into ranches and gold mines. Colin (2007) explains that in the 16th century, the Spanish, the French, and the English discovered the Americas, relocated indigenous American customs, and set up settlements in the Western regions. These transformations pushed both societies to acclimatize and revolutionize, although indigenous American traditions frequently experienced the most changes in these early connections. The region now taken by the neighboring 48 nations was initially occupied by many indigenous American citizens and was in use as of the 16th century by Spain, France, the Netherlands, and England. U.S. society has considerable local variations. Most Americans are receptive to these distinctions regardless of the fact that these areas have gone through financial changes, and that Americans are a portable group that habitually departs from their states of origin. From 1707-1775, 145,000 Scots are estimated as having penetrated England's settlements along the Atlantic shoreline of the Americas. In this similar era, approximately 100,000 Germans came, in search of financial prospect, running from battle and, to a lesser extent, from religious harassment. England had little citizens paying attention to migrate to the settlements, but England's courts sent about 50,000 villains, who were hired as field hands, basically on tobacco farms, and handled as slaves, together with retribution by beating. Some of the children of the English colonists from the 1600s observed the coming of the Scots and Germans as a defense in opposition to the French, the Indians, or Spanish, oherwise as empl oyment for their plantations. And some were concerned as regards their English customs being weakened (Colin 2007, 101). Settlers had come with them from Europe that continent's worry concerning the future, deliverance of the spirit and brotherly devotion. However, they did not view natives from Africa as brothers, and numerous slave proprietors opposed transfer to Christianity by their slaves. The slave possessors dreaded that initiation would persuade their slaves with a sense of fairness and that the slaves would regard baptism as a path into to liberty. The mainstream of liberated individuals in the settlements studied just the Bible. Other manuscripts accessible in the settlements were basically spiritual stories and discourses, and academic, Christian leaders interpreted some of the prehistoric, like Cicero and Seneca, and writers of the illumination. Diverse explanations of scripture spread persistently, as in Europe, and in the positions of different denominations, a division grew between those called rationalists and those known as evangelicals. We learn from Colin (2007) that as for the inexperienced Pagans, the Spanish, English, Dutch, and French all acknowledged their longing to educate indigenous Americans on the gospel of Jesus Christ. Certainly, dispersing Christianity to the benighted communities of the New World was a principal basis for European immigration. However, disseminating the faith constantly occurred in a wider educational framework unusual to the ethnic group of the settlers concerned. Both the Spanish and the English believed in the notion of changing the Indians lifestyle, but only the Spanish followed that ambition meticulously and made it the groundwork whereupon much of Spanish American traditions were founded. Evidently, it was questionably much more the effect of European and Indian sexual combination than the massive enlightening attempts together taken on by the Catholic Cathedral and the Spanish leadership. Furthermore, in the Florida borderlands, Texas, and New Mexico, Spanish achievement at ac culturating the Indians was restricted in the best way possible (150). The Britonswereenthusiastic witheducating and Christianizing the Indians. Although, when measured up to the Spanish the British dedication to proliferate in their devotion and civilization among indigenous Americans were indiscriminate. Moreover, reuniting the possessions of their Catholic Cathedral and leadership, the French discipleship escapade in North America was expansively practiced throughout the Saint Lawrence River basin, the Illinois state, and along the Mississippi River basin to Louisiana in addition to the Gulf of Mexico. Less invasive and commonly more helpful than Spanish priests, French clerics, nonetheless, acquired thousands of followers and had a fundamental responsibility in creating a Franco-Indian coalition that subjugated much of North America. The European undertakings to the Indians aside, the most mesmerizing enlightening account concerning the Indians involved their fine-tuning to the European incursion of America that commenced with the coming of Columbus s in 1492. In Florida, all through their battle against the Aztec Kingdom in the 1520s, Spaniards built up outlooks toward the Indians, who would outline their guidelines in the border territories. Before the Aztecs could be educated on the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Spanish subjugators thought, their previous faith, which endorsed the sacrifice of humans and idolization, had to be trampled. The Franciscan ministers approved this invasion approach into the borderlands, affixed and strong-minded not only to amend the inhabitants but to educate them. Owing to its position close to the Bahamas canal utilized by Spanish fortune crafts, Florida was of tactical significance. After the French set up a Huguenot agreement there in 1564, Spain retaliated. The French stronghold was ruined; aiming at progressing towards both Christianity and Spanish civilization, the Franciscans forcefully controlled mission operations, educating not only spiritual principles but handiwork and agricultural expertise (Thed a and Michael 1995, 32). The Spanish, different from the French and the English, considered Indians as an exploitable workforce; to be toiled to farm, nurturing livestock, and digging out precious mineral deposits from quarries in Mexico, Middle and South America. In the beginning of 1500s, the Spanish rule compelled numerous Indians to toil on Spanish lands. Early 1560s, Jesuit and Franciscan clerics founded undertakings in what are currently Florida and Georgia and afterward, from the start of 1600s, in present Texas, Arizona, among others. In Florida, and later in California, operations were put in, independent societies merging agriculture with the production of ceramics, natural fiber mantles, and other merchandise. In New Mexico, several Pueblo people settled rural communities while the Franciscan disciples launched cathedrals on the border of cities (Theda and Michael 1995, 34). The French and the Indians they came across carried out a diverse type of housing. France's New World Kingdom was founded mostly on doing business. Associations involving the French and Indians were less aggressive than in Spanish or English settlements. Partly, this reflected the small magnitude of France's New World inhabitants. Universal business welfare also promoted housing among the French and the Indians. Discipleship actions, as well, attested rather less discordant in New France compared to New England or New Mexico, given that France's Jesuit clerics did not need them to instantly discard their ethnic attachments or their customary lifestyle. Popular legends describe numerous occurrences of collaboration among English settlers and indigenous Americans. Actually, meetings involving the English and the Indian natives were more challenging and aggressive than historical myths suggest. Some English colonists imagined of realizing treasures like gold or silver; others dreamt of a profitable business in furs. Nevertheless, progressively, the principal ambition of the English was to obtain territories. Different from the French and Spanish, the English formed self-sufficient colonist settlements, inhabited with English, Scot, and Scots-Irish settlers. In the Northeast, it was difficult for Indians to oppose the English intruders, unless they were capable of supporting themselves with a European command. Down the eastern shoreline, England, France, the Netherlands, and Spain, all fought over carrying out business with the Indian natives. France, Netherlands and England, in the Northeast, made an effort to manage the immeasurably precious fur business. It was not furs that attracted the English, the Spanish, and afterward, the French in the Southeast, but deerskin (which was then utilized for making garments, ornaments and paperback straps) as well as Indian slaves. In the early 18th century, Indian slaves (who had generally been transformed to Catholicism at Spanish operations before being detained) formed a considerable fraction of the captives in some southeastern settlements and mainly in South Carolina (Colin 2007, 205). Buy custom The Conversion of Native Americans to Christianity essay

How to Use $_SERVER in PHP

How to Use $_SERVER in PHP $_SERVER is one of the PHP global variables- termed Superglobals- which contain information about server and execution environments. These are pre-defined variables so they are always accessible from any class, function or file. The entries here are recognized by web servers, but there is no guarantee that each web server recognizes every Superglobal. These three PHP $_SERVER arrays all behave in similar ways- they return information about the file in use. When exposed to different scenarios, in some cases they behave differently. These examples may help you decide which is best for what you need. A full list of $_SERVER arrays is available at the PHP website. $_SERVER[PHP_SELF] PHP_SELF is the name of the currently executing script. yoursite.com/example/ /example/index.phpyoursite.com/example/index.php   /example/index.phpyoursite.com/example/index.php?atest   /example/index.phpyoursite.com/example/index.php/dir/test   /dir/test When you use $_SERVER[’PHP_SELF’], it returns the file name /example/index.php both with and without the file name typed in the URL. When variables are appended at the end, they were truncated and again /example/index.php was returned. The only version that produced a different result has directories appended after the file name. In that case, it returned those directories. $_SERVER[REQUEST_URI] REQUEST_URI refers to the URI given to access a page. yoursite.com/example/   /yoursite.com/example/index.php   /example/index.phpyoursite.com/example/index.php?atest   /example/index.php?atestyoursite.com/example/index.php/dir/test   /example/index.php/dir/test All of these examples returned exactly what was entered for the URL. It returned a plain /, the file name, the variables, and the appended directories, all just as they were entered. $_SERVER[SCRIPT_NAME] SCRIPT_NAME is the current scripts path. This comes in handy for pages that need to point to themselves. yoursite.com/example/   /example/index.phpyoursite.com/example/index.php   /example/index.phpyoursite.com/example/index.php?atest   /example/index.phpyoursite.com/example/index.php/dir/test   /example/index.php All cases here returned only the file name /example/index.php regardless of whether it was typed, not typed, or anything was appended to it.

Study Of Women in America Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Study Of Women in America - Essay Example The adjective liminal is derived from the word liminality which means to be in a situation where there is a sensory threshold of some kind. In our case, we shall focus on how these three women were able to cope with the challenges that accompanied the threshold situation they were in on whether to challenge the norms and expectations the society had for the women or abide by them. The contact period, which saw the meeting of the British and the North Eastern Native Americans, resulted in a huge clash between the ideas concerning the role of the men and the women in the society. The British cultures and norms were generally very gender biased. Women were not given an opportunity to participate in the politics of the country. They had been secluded to being participants of the domestic realm only in the society (Ulrich, 1991). The men basically controlled everything that happened in the society and made the decisions. Women were made to take a back seat as all these was going on. This was in contrast to the Native American system on gender roles. In the Native American system, the women were allowed to fully participate and take up major roles in the politics of the tribe. ... This was a political conspiracy in which she went against the Indian traditions and placed her head upon John Smith’s when her father was about to execute him with a war club. To the eyes of the British, she was the ideal example of a Native American. When she married John Smith, this was Pocahonta’s way of taking charge of the liminal situation that she was in. she did not sit back and allow the British norms to prevent her from marrying the man that she loved. Her love for John Smith made her take charge and she broke the norms thus making it possible for an interracial marriage to happen. Pocahontas was also able to challenge the English common law by engaging herself in the trade and participating in activities that uplifted her status as a woman in the society (Allen, 2004). Just like Pocahontas, Mary (White) Rowlandson was another woman who did not allow her liminal situation to take charge of how she conducted her lifestyle. During her time, the Native Americans believed that writing was a man’s job. They did not expect the women to indulge themselves in this field. After being captures by the Native Indiana and held hostage for eleven weeks, Rowlandson decided to write a book after her release to cover her ordeals during the capture. Mary Rowlandson decided to def all odds and went ahead to publish her book which spoke of the difficulties that the women had got to face in a male dominated society. Her book was reprinted four times within a short period of time. It was the first American written bestseller (Kerber, De Hart, and Dayton, 2011). With the help of her book, Mary Rowlandson was able to stand tall and bring to light the liminal conditions that the women were faced with as a result of oppressed cultural treatment they were subjected to (Kerber,

Sears Case Study Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Sears - Case Study Example The accusations brought against the company were considered to be quite grave and fatal owing to its impact on the reputation and business of the company. The request for reviving the case of Francis Latanowich prompted a review of the case by Judge Carol Kenner which revealed few facts that proved to act against the actions of the company. It was found from the further evaluation that the company mailed the security guard an offer according to which a payment of $28 each month made by the individual would prevent the company from reclaiming the goods that were purchased by Francis Latanowich before turning bankrupt. The act of influencing the debtors to enter into such agreements was known as reaffirmations and is considered to be lawful. Such kinds of agreements are considered to be quite common in the business of retail credit, however, it is perceived to be an unethical behavior by numerous judges. In addition to this, it was made mandatory for credit companies to file those reaf firmations with their respective courts for the reason of evaluating the potency of the debtor by the judge with regard to the fresh payment. The affirmation of Francis Latanowich was not found to be filed by the court and an explanation for such a conduct was demanded from the company by Judge Kenner. This proved to be the other breach that was made by the company. The company was also found to pay no heed to the law in quite a few similar cases that were considered to be illegal. Such grave accusations against the company and the violations of law made by the company called for huge losses as well as adverse reputation for it which would hamper its business operations in the future. The company was already stated to be suffering from huge losses owing to the increasing cases of personal bankruptcies that occurred from 1994 to 1998. In accumulation of the already existing losses, the fresh losses or charges incurred by the company due to violations and unethical practices would pro ve devastating for the survival of the company (Eugene D. Fanning Center For Business Communication, 2010). Recommendations The company should send out a letter of apology to its existing customers through electronic mails as well as through print media entailing newspapers. The company should also make an apology to the public and accept its responsibility regarding the unfortunate event through a press conference. It is

Ten Commandments Essay Example for Free

Ten Commandments Essay All the characters in the story have their parts on building up the atmosphere. Abigail has the biggest impact because holds some sort of power over all the other girls and they all fear her, so the fear and hysteria comes from her actions and her friends; Betty, Tituba and Mary. She has courage, intelligence and a charismatic personality but uses these gifts in destructive ways. She causes a harmful influence on the terrified villagers; she has a big impact on creating the hysteria and fear in the play. Reverend Samuel Parris is also a person who creates this setting of fear and hysteria. He is like a servant towards the people who are rich and so on but very brutal to anyone unable to defend for themselves. This explains why Betty loses her consciousness when he finds her in the forest. When the blame is safety diverted to Tituba Mr Parris becomes an enthusiastic witch hunter and changes his views on Mr Hale. Mrs Putnam, as well hasnt got much positive to say about her. She takes the rumours of witchcraft as a chance to find a scapegoat for the loss of her children, however our sympathy to this changes when we find out that she has sent her daughter to talk to spirits. Both Putnams make use of Parris to stir up the witch-hunt. He is responsible for many of the accusations of witchcraft, and takes advantage of this to gain more land off of people. Mr Parris is desperately trying to find someone to put the blame onto and since Tituba was the first to be accused, she is pressurised by him, Mr Hale and Abigail at the same time. You really feel for Tituba in this scene because all of the people seem to join up against her and scrutinise her until she either is at the point of confessing or accusing someone. However until that point is illustrated, Mr Hale and Mr Pariss interrogation against Tituba has great deal of hysteria, tension and fear. So her own friend Abigail accuses Tituba of talking to the Devil. She obviously disagrees to this not making it any better for herself. She comes to me while I sleep; shes always making me dream corruptions. Says Abigail to them (Mr Hale and Mr Paris). Every time Abigail accuses Tituba, someone has something to say Like Mrs Putnam or Mr Parris, to really make her look guilty. This forms an atmosphere of tension because the more and more she is questioned she is getting herself deeper into trouble, which means closer to death. She is really afraid and falls to her feet sobbing in terror after Putnam says she should be hanged. No, No, dont hang Tituba! I tell him I dont desire to work for him, sir. Tituba says using her own name. Later on in the conversation, she gives up and tells them that she saw several people with the Devil. From then is where she starts to name peoples names and then Abigail also begins to name them too. The scene then ends with them naming a load of innocent people. They mention these people hoping that these are the names Mr Hale and Mr Paris want to hear. Act 2 (The Arrests) The second scene I have chosen to analyse is act two (the arrests). A fortnight later the witch-hunt is in full cry. John has tried to keep away from what is going on by working on his farm. His wife Elizabeth has heard alarming details form their servant Mary Warren who was one of the girls in the forest. Now the girls go into hysterical fits and anyone whom they point at is charged with witchcraft. Elizabeth begs John to repeat what Mary has said to him in the courts and to make Abigail realize that their affair is over. She knows Abigail wants to accuse her and take her place. John doesnt want to speak up. Elizabeth says he is hanging back because he is still attracted to Abigail. On her return from the village, Mary mentions that Elizabeths name has come up in court. Johns friends, Giles Corey and Francis Nurse (Rebecca Nurses husband), explain that both their wives have been charged and arrested. Then a few minutes later two court officials arrive with a warrant to arrest Elizabeth. Abigail claims that Elizabeth has sent her spirit out to stab her in the belly. Elizabeth lets herself be taken away leaving John threatening Mary that he will make her tell the truth to the judges. In this scene there is a lot of tension due to the fact that Abigail, Betty and Tituba have all told lies about other people to get themselves out of punishment. Because of this many people get arrested, many hanged and families are pulled apart. When the villagers of Salem start to find out that many people are getting arrested caused by the fake allegations made towards them, the ones waiting around hoping their names is not mentioned creates the tension and fear towards them. Just like Elizabeth, when Abigail and John Procter had the affair, Elizabeth had blamed Abigail but not John. She thought John as a good man and Abigail a whore. So to this she has great hate towards Abigail, and Abigail towards Elizabeth. So Elizabeth is really tense fearing her name will come up in court. In Act two she really shows her fear to John about being arrested. She will cry me out until they take me, she wants me dead John, you know it! She shouts. This shows how she is feeling, although throughout the play she portrays a strong character. Then soon, later on, the two (John Procter and Elizabeth) are questioned by Mr Hale because he is unsatisfied with their attendance in church. In this part of Act two, pressure and fear are high because they are really nervous about what may come and what will be asked of them. They are asked the Ten Commandments and you can tell that tension and fear is high because it has written that he begins to sweat. They struggle when John repeats the same commandment. Then from there Elizabeth helps him out. Aye. You see sir between the two of us we do know them all. Says John Procter This shows the tension is released. Until, Giles Corey and Francis Nurse tell John that their wives are arrested not too long after people arrive with a warrant to arrest Elizabeth. Fear and tension is built up here because of the fact that Abigail has accused Elizabeth of sending her spirits to stab her in the belly, which is not true. So she is scared of facing death and fears what could happen but she hides this. Oh Oh, John, bring me soon! She says, as she is about to leave. The scene ends when Procter realizes that the girls false accusations are getting too serious know that Elizabeth could be hanged and forces Mary to tell the courts that they were just playing and thats all, but she begs him not to because she fears that Abigail will curse her. I cannot charge murder on Abigail shell kill me for sayin that! Betty is really scared and begs him, sobbing on the floor, as the scene ends. Mary is terrified the moment she steps inside the court, but she copes well under the questioning of the people of Salem. She is encouraged by Procter to tell the truth to the courts about the girls being all frauds even when Judge Hathorne bullies her. However she begins to get weak when all the girls turn on her under the influence of Abigail. From there she is caught up in hysteria and begins to fall apart. Conclusion Arthur Miller created an atmosphere of tension, fear and hysteria throughout the play. I feel this was due to the witch-craft issue that went on and the 1950s anti-communist trials in USA that also inspired Miller. The Crucible was written to show people that society in those days was ignorant towards things they didnt know and understand (things they fear) and in The Crucible witch-craft was the case. The play to me showed fear well because of the witch-craft history that Miller decided to useby using this would make readers feel already tense knowing the play is some how to do with witches. The meaning of the crucible is the melting pot for metals. This can somehow relate to the story by firstly referring to the pot as a cauldron. Also, the melting point could mean the boiling point of people and how far society is wiling to go. Miller most defiantly delivered that across to readers and you know why Miller named it The Crucible. The Crucible is sometimes quite hard to understand as it was written long ago and the language is different to now, however the way people act and the facial expression that is well described, defiantly help the play to build up the anxiety and fear. Bless him. Bless him. (She is rocking on her knees sobbing in terror) The book to me wasnt interesting. This is because Miller wasnt convincing about witch-craft and witch-craft doesnt relate to anything in modern times. Nothing really appealed t me, however, the deep meaning of the play, which was to show how the lack of understanding and knowledge of something resorts to violence and how it influences people, was shown very well.

Self-discovery, Destruction, and Preservation in Frankenstein Essay

Self-discovery, Destruction, and Preservation in Frankenstein      Ã‚  Ã‚   Mary Shelley's Frankenstein explores the downfall of certain human characteristics, set to the backdrop of creation, destruction, and preservation. The subtitle denoted by Shelly herself supports this idea, by relating the fact that the title can be viewed as either Frankenstein or The Modern Prometheus. One scholar, Marilyn Butler, also maintains this by noting, "It can be a late version of the Faust Myth"(302). Shelly uses the story of the main character, Victor Frankenstein, to produce the concept of a dooming human characteristic of which Frankenstein states, "I have . . . been blasted in these hopes"(Shelley, 152). The reader finds, as a result of his thirst for knowledge and infatuation with science, Victor creates a living being by whom he has "suffered great and unparalleled misfortunes"(Shelley, 17). Eventually, Victor realizes this self-destructive trait, but he is not able to save himself stating, "I have lost everything, and cannot begin life ane w"(Shelley, 16). Although everything in his life that is dear has been lost, Victor is able to convince one in his same position--Robert Walton--to not "lead [his crew] unwillingly to danger"(Shelley, 151). While addressing the concept of characteristic and self-discovery, it is possible to realize that the monster also possesses the characteristics held by both Victor and Walton; except in his learning, the monster is driven to continue to cause destruction. Most important about the thirst for knowledge is that, as a form of human characteristic or downfall, it leads to large, critical pieces of self-discovery. In obtaining these critical pieces, Frankenstein finds satisfaction in j... ...s Frankenstein. New Haven Yale University Press, 1998. Butler, Marilyn. "Frankenstein and Radical Science." Reprinted in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Norton Critical Edition. 1993; New York: W. W. Norton, 1996. 302-313. Gilbert, Sandra M. and Susan Gubar. "Mary Shelley's Monstrous Eve." Reprinted in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Norton Critical Edition. 1979; New York: W. W. Norton, 1996. 225-240. Moers, Ellen. "Female Gothic: The Monster's Mother." Reprinted in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. Norton Critical Edition. 1976; New York: W. W. Norton, 1996. 214-224. Shelley, Mary. Frankenstein. Norton Critical Edition. 1818; New York: W. W. Norton, 1996. Storment, Suzanna. "Frankenstein: The Man and the Monster." Commentary page. October 2002. Washington State University. 8 April 2003. http://www.wsu.edu/~delahoyd/frank.comment3.html.   

Linking Financial Ratios and Stock Returns

Chapter I INTRODUCTION Financial ratio analysis is a technique for trying to help interpret financial accounts and to determine the intrinsic value of a security by careful examination of key value drivers such as risk, growth, and competitive position. Various ratios can be calculated from the financial accounts. These ratios will then help us to examine the company’s performance over a number of periods by comparing the same ratios in previous years’ accounts and also the accounts of other businesses operating in a similar environment (Most common benchmarks are industry leaders and industry averages). Financial ratio analysis provides essential information and serve (Investors, Stockholders, lenders, corporation management, Fundamental analysts†¦. ) with a lot of different contexts for different kinds of decisions. 1. 1 Statement of the Problem The enormous number of financial ratios used by financial managers and financial analysts and their relationship with stock return is the main problem in interpreting the financial statements. Based on, the ultimate goal of financial managers is to maximize the wealth of their stockholders; financial managers must understand the impact of their managerial decisions on their company’s financial statements and financial ratios concluded which will consequently affect the stock price of their company. Interpreting such a huge number of ratios distracts attention from the most relevant factors that affect stock prices. 1. 2 Purpose of the study A number of studies such as Timo Salmi (1990) were conducted to reduce the information load resulting from computing a large number of ratios and categorize those ratios that were believed valuable. This study aims to identify those variables that are most relevant to the stock returns of pharmaceutical sector in Egyptian stock market. 1. 3 Statement of objectives This study attempt to achieve the following objective: -The most relevant independent variables (financial ratios) with stock returns as a dependent variable. Chapter II FINANCIAL RATIOS AND STOCK MARKET 2. 1 Literature Review The main goal of our research is to evaluate the relationship between common financial ratios as independent variables and stock returns of the pharmaceutical firms as dependent variable. The relation between financial statement information and stock return was examined by Ou and Penman (1989) who observed returns to investment strategies that are based on a measure that summarizes the information in financial statements to identify the relevant financial ratios. Their study indicate that the predicted returns can not be explained by return based risk measures and that financial statements capture fundamentals that are not reflected in stock prices. The results of the study suggest that it is possible for investors to make excess profits using publicly available information. More recently, the relation between financial statement information and stock return was extended by Holtausen and larcker (1992) who identify value-relevant fundamentals in the context of a return-fundamentals relation. Holtausen (1992) examined the ability of accounting information to generate profitable trading strategies (using 60 accounting ratios). The excess returns were observed in the fourth month following the company’s fiscal year end. The results of the study suggest that the trading strategy was able to earn significantly abnormal returns during the period of 1978-1988. The same issue was examined later by Lev and Thiagarajan (1993) who used fundamental ratios as the basis of analysts’ description of different ratios to identify the value relevance of the financial ratios and their usefulness in security valuation. Afterward, Belkoui (1997) employed the popular financial ratios to show the value relevance, where the popularity of these financial ratios is matched by their usefulness in security valuation. He shows that value relevance of popular financial ratios in both a non contextual setting and a setting conditioned by levels of inflation and growth. 2. 2 Classification of financial ratios The classification of financial ratios was studied by Timo Salmi (1990) who split these financial ratios into five somewhat arbitrary groups: †¢Profitability – how good is the business as an investment. Liquidity – the amount of working capital available. †¢Capital Adequacy – measure the leverage percentage. †¢Debt service coverage – how near is the business to bankruptcy. †¢Efficiency – how good is the management of the business. Each financial ratio has its own signal and its own relation to the stock return. Based on these previous studies, the stu dy selected the most popular financial ratios guided in major financial analysis books such as Mishkin (2001) 2. 3 An overview of Egyptian stock exchange EgyptWatch (2002) studied the history of the egyptian stock exchange and mentioned that the Egyptian Stock Exchange is comprised of two exchanges: the Cairo & Alexandria Stock Exchanges (CASE), and is governed by the same board of directors that share the same trading, clearing & settlement systems. The Alexandria Stock Exchange was officially established in 1888 followed by that of Cairo in 1903. The two Exchanges were very active until the 1940s, when the Egyptian Stock Exchange ranked fifth in the world. Nevertheless, the political turmoil of the mid-1950s led to the demise of activity on the Exchange, which remained dormant throughout the period between 1961 and 1992 (MohieEldin and Sourial, 2000). In 1990, the Egyptian government started on economic reform & restructuring program. The move towards a free-market economy has been remarkably swift and the process of deregulation and privatization has simulated stock market activity. The Capital Market Authority (2002) played an instrumental role in initiating and leading the effort for the revival of the Egyptian stock market in the period between 1992 and 1996. The Capital Market Authority (CMA) is the regulatory body in charge of enforcing, regulating & ensuring compliance as well as monitoring market performance. Relevant policy actions undertaken by the CMA include introducing all types of investment vehicles, allowing open competition in the pricing of market services; and providing full investor protection. The main features of the operational framework are fair trading procedures and practices as well as an immediate transfer of ownership of traded securities; optional listing on the stock exchange; quarterly disclosure requirements for companies; adequate protection of minority shareholder rights; and improved data collection schemes. Capital Law 95/1992 has put in place the regulatory framework in which financial intermediaries such as brokers, venture-capital firms, underwriters and fund managers are to operate. With respect to the managerial framework of CASE, a coherent organizational structure with a clear division of authority & responsibilities was established, creating new divisions & departments such as Publications & Public Relations, Research, Surveillance & Market Control, and Information Technology. Additionally, in May 1998, CASE signed a contract with EFA Software Ltd. , to deliver the new electronic trading, clearing & settlement system that will replace the existing one. The Board of Directors also set up several committees with specific responsibilities. At the senior level, an international advisory committee made up of internationally prominent economists, investment bankers, financiers & investors has been developed in order to ensure that CASE stays closely linked to the int’l arena. This group also provides continuous feedback on its policies. Both the CMA & the CASE monitor market activity to detect possible market manipulation or insider trading. Accordingly, they may suspend offers & bids for institutions suspected of price manipulation. In the case of an emergency, the CASE and/or the CMA may halt trading and/or place ceilings on floors trading prices (maximum 5% up or down), based on the closing prices of the preceding day. In the case of individuals, mutual funds & international funds, no taxes are levied on dividends, capital gain & interest on bonds. Profits of Egyptian corporations from securities investments are subject to a capital gains tax. 2. 3. 1 Recent developments On 21 July 2002, CASE commenced its new price ceiling system with regard to the most actively traded stocks. According to the new practice, the five-percent ceiling on daily prices was removed for a set of selected active stocks (currently twelve). This set of stocks comprises 12 out of the most actively traded stocks on CASE. The chosen of this set of stocks was based on meeting some stated criteria decided by CASE (2002): †¢Stocks must be dematerialized. †¢Minimum trading days per company per year is 220. †¢Average number of transactions per stock must be 20. †¢Minimum market capitalization per company amounts to LE 200 million. Minimum free float amounts to 15 percent of the total listed shares. †¢Minimum turnover ratio per company is 10 percent. †¢The company must prepare financial statements for three consecutive years. †¢Transactions conducted on the shares of the company must be executed by at least 20 brokerage firms. The new practice will stipulate the halt of trading on any of the twelve stocks for a period of thirty minutes, forty-five minutes o r till the end of the trading session, if the stock prevailing weighted average price exceeds 10 percent, 15 percent or 20 percent respectively over opening price. When trading is halted, brokers should inform their clients about the temporary suspension, its reasons, duration and should take the necessary actions in order to fulfill their clients requests. Brokers are allowed to cancel, any of their clients’ orders, when trading is halted. 2. 3. 2 Background of Privatization Program The Ministry of Public Enterprise (MPE) is dedicated to achieve the long-term goal of complete implementation of Egypt’s overall privatization plan. In 1991 Public Enterprise Law No. 203 was introduced as a transitional measure. Dr. Khatab M. (Minister of Public Enterprise) (2002) has explained his Ministry’s plans and objectives to facilitate privatization in Egypt and the methods that have been followed in this regard. Also Dr. Mokhtar Khatab has mentioned to the Government of Egypt (GOE) his efforts in undertaking an extensive privatization program whereby state-owned companies are transferred to the private sector through several methods McKinney (1996). †¢The transfer of ownership & control of state-owned enterprise to the private sector through a partial or a full public share flotation on both the domestic or foreign stock exchanges. †¢Direct sale of a controlling interest to domestic or foreign investors. Direct sale of a controlling interest to employees. †¢The law also allows the sale or lease of company assets, unlimited sale of government-owned shares, or liquidation. Primary objectives of the plan are to generate higher productivity and faster (but sustainable) growth, and as a consequence an increase in returns on assets and equity while at t he same time raising internal efficiency, improving capital structure and increasing capital expenditure. Since the early 1990s a number of key programs have been put into place to greatly liberalize commerce and trade; and to re-frame the country’s legal, regulatory, judicial, and tax structures. An equally important focus of the plan is the creation of new jobs that an expanding economy will provide for the workforce. Over the past five years, the GOE has achieved very gratifying results in macroeconomic terms. This is due to the creation of policies to remove trade barriers, the reform of trade and financial markets, and the reform of the legal taxation and regulatory frameworks, Field (1995) 2. 3. 3 Updates on the Situation of the Privatized Companies The Government of Egypt (GOE) has designed a balanced privatization program, which includes the following share sales strategies. The Egyptian Ministry of Public Enterprise Sector (2001) revealed that: †¢Public Offerings on the Cairo and Alexandria Stock Exchange 37 companies have so far been approved by the GOE for privatization and have been sold through Initial Public Offering (IPO) or second offerings. The sales of these companies netted 5. 6 billion pounds which represents 36% of privatization proceeds to date. 16 companies have achieved partial privatization netting the government nearly 1. 76 billion LE. †¢Sale to Anchor and Strategic Investors 3 companies have been privatized by this method, accounting for 6. 4 billion pounds LE in proceeds to the government. Sales to anchor investors have amounted to 42% of the total privatization proceeds thus far. †¢Employee Stock Ownership Programs (ESOPs) The GOE has approved the allocation through the sale of 10 percent of the public enterprises’ share offerings to the employees as part of the â€Å"Employee Stock Ownership Program†. I n other cases, and according to the particular circumstances of each company, the majority of shares have been sold to its management and employees. To date, mainly medium-sized companies in the public works sector have implemented this scheme. So far, 30 Employee Shareholder Association (ESA) sales transactions have taken place bringing in 870 million pounds LE. †¢Lease Management Contracts In this method, Companies were offered for management by the government to the private sector with an option to buy at a future date. This alternative is not very different to the anchor investor approach if and when the managing company exercises its option to buy. Five contracts of this type are currently active. Chapter III PHARMACEUTICAL SECTOR OVERVIEW The government has set a 40% ceiling (maximum that could be privatized), 10% of which is reserved for Employee Shareholder Associations (ESA), on the privatization of any public pharmaceutical company. The restriction relates to the government’s desire to maintain control of the industry for its significant role in society, The Egyptian Ministry of Public Enterprise Sector (2001). The first five companies that have been privatized: Alexandria, Cairo, Memphis, Arab and Nile pharmaceuticals. These companies have already been 40% privatized. The privatization plan then expanded to cover 11 companies at the end of June 2002. . 1 Pharmaceutical Industry Highlights Drug policy and planning center (2002) has published the following statistics: 199920002001 Market Size (LE bn)4. 655. 42 No. of Products (thousand)3. 63. 84 Per capita spending (LE)72. 6677. 1882. 14 3. 2 Pharmaceutical Products Total exports made by Egypt to the whole world includes a lot of commodities which are classi fied to (Fuels Products, Cotton, Raw Materials, Semi finished commodities and finished commodities). Central Bank of Egypt (2002) revealed that Pharmaceutical products are considered as part of finished commodities, they represent 3% of finished commodities and 1. % of the total export. Also, Pharmaceutical products play a significant role in Egypt’s import. They represent 4% of the total import and 21% of their classification division (consumer goods). Figure (1) shows Pharmaceutical Export and Import situation. Figure (1) Local production of medicine satisfies 92% of the market demand, whereas the remainder is balanced by imports. Kompass Egypt (2002-2003) classified the local market players as: 1) Public-sector companies. 2) Private-sector companies. 3) Multinationals Figure (2) Note: The term Private sector encompasses Multinationals and other Private companies. The government has set a relatively low tariff on imported drugs, which averages around 5%. The main reason for this comparatively low duty is the state’s policy of making medicine available to the bulk of the population at the cheapest possible price. 3. 3 Pricing Policy Prior to the reform program in 1991, the government’s major consideration when setting prices for drugs was to make medicine affordable to the bulk of the population regardless of a company’s cost structure. The focus on the social role of medicine, rather than the profitability of pharmaceutical companies, is the main reason behind this policy. The Drug Policy & Planning Center (DPPC) is the main regulatory authority controlling the pharmaceutical industry. The center is in charge of drug registration and pricing. The DPPC (2002) uses a â€Å"Cost Plus Formula† to price drugs. The formula stipulates a price equivalent to the products cost plus a certain profit margin. The profit margin is 25% for nonessential products, and 15% for essential products. It is noteworthy that once a product has been priced, it is seldom eligible for re-pricing to account for increasing costs. The heavy drop in the value of the Egyptian pound was mirrored in an increasing raw material costs burdening the Egyptian Pharmaceutical companies, which import around 80% of their raw material requirements. In order to save the profit margins from the aftermath of the devaluation, the Ministry of Health finally agreed to raise the prices of five products for each pharmaceutical company starting February 2002. 3. 4 GATT and TRIPS Egypt is a signatory to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) which will come into effect for the pharmaceutical sector in Egypt in 2005. The agreement is likely to have serious repercussions for the pharmaceutical industries of developing countries including Egypt. The agreement calls for the abolition of both quantitative and qualitative barriers to entry for pharmaceutical products, thus eliminating any governmental protection of the industry. Under GATT, Egyptian companies have to abide by the restrictions imposed by patents and property rights for a period of 20 years. Based on the Egyptian commitment with the agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), which is part of the GATT, President of Egypt published The Law No. 2 for year (2002), calling for the Protection of any invention whether industrial or intellectual. The agreement will result in the extension of a patent to 20 years and will grant protection to the product and the production process. Chapter IV METHODOLOGY AND EMPERICAL MODELS 4. 1 Data Set In our study, we select all the pharmaceutical companies quoted in the Egypt ian stock exchange which consists of 11 pharmaceutical companies representing the pharmaceutical sector. We covered the period from 1996 to 2001. Analyzing six continuous years of data, strengthen and support results and give our conclusion stability and reasonability. Kompass Egypt Financial Year Book and the Egyptian Capital Market Authority were the prime sources for our data set. Additionally, for the purpose of this analysis, we calculate the returns using annually prices of securities for years starting from 1996 to 2001. 4. 2 Selection of Financial Ratios (Independent variables) According to the literature, we determine the most useful financial ratios that could be functional in security valuation by analyzing and comparing several papers and texts were analyzed and compared. The reasons behind the selection of these financial ratios: †¢Their talent in theoretical explanation of fundamental relationships and signals experienced by the firms. [Foster 1986] †¢The importance of their existence in published annual reports. [Gibson 1982] †¢Surveys proved that chief executive officers and other senior executives are concerning popular financial ratios for various types of decision making. [Walsh 1984] The following table provides the most common financial ratios that might affect stock returns. For each financial ratio, we provide the way of calculation, the hypothesized positive or negative relationship with stock returns. Table (1) The common financial ratios and their prediction with stock returns GroupFinancial ratiosVariablesEquationsPrediction of relationship ProfitabilityEarning per ShareEPSNet income / Number of shares outstandingPositive Return on EquityROENet income / owners’ equity Return on AssetsROANet income / total assets Profit MarginPMNet income / total sales LiquidityCurrent RatioCTRCurrent assets / Current liabilitiesNegative Quick RatioQR(Current assets – Inventory) / Current liabilities Operating Cash flow RatioOCFCash flow from operations / Current liabilitiesPositive LeverageDebt to Equity RatioDERLong term liabilities / owners’ equityNegative CoverageInterest CoverageICEBIT / interest expensePositive EfficiencyAssets TurnoverATOSales revenue / Total assetsPositive Receivables TurnoverRTOSales / Account Receivables EBIT: Earnings before Interest and Taxes We refer to the explanantion of these financial ratios (independent variables) in the Appendix section. . 3 Buy-and-Hold Returns (BHR) As far as the dependent variable is concerned, stock returns, there is no consensus on the appropriate methodology for calculating the long-run stock returns (see among other, Barber and Lyon, 1997; Kothari and Warner, 1997; Brav and Gompers, 1997; and Barber, Lyon and Tsai, 1999). Researchers use several methods to calculate long run returns, in particular Buy-and-Hold returns (BHRs) method. The first s tep in calculating Buy-and Hold return method is to calculate rate of return on stocks. We consider that the appropriate rate of return on a given stock is the difference between the stock prices in time t plus dividends in time t-1 and the stock prices in time t-1 , as follows: (1) Where is the return for security I for period t, refers to the closing price of security I at time t , and is the price of security I at time t-1 , is the dividend received for period t-1 for the firm I As far as we consider time t as a year, rate of return on stocks ( ) that we calculated from the previous equation is the Buy-and-Hold return method for a financial year. (2) Where is Buy-and-Hold Return for security i in period t. we consider it a year. 4. 4 Regression Model To determine the relationship between the independent variables (financial ratios) and the dependent variable (stock return), we follow a similar methodology to that of Belkaoui (1997) and estimate the following regression: (3) Where is the annual stock return of firm I at time t, is the earning per share for firm I at t ime t, is the return on equity for firm I at time t, is the return on assets for firm I at time t, is the profit margin for firm I at time t, is the current ratio for firm I at time t, is the quick ratio for firm I at time t, s the operating cash flow for firm I at time t, is the debt to equity ratio for firm I at time t, is the interest coverage ratio for firm I at time t, is the asset turnover for firm I at time t, is the receivable turnover for firm I at time t. Since the return of a given stock is based on a period extending from 9 months prior to the fiscal year-end and 3 months after the fiscal year-end, corresponding roughly with the period between announcing the financial statement, the starting month would be December for firms whose fiscal years end at Jun, the 30th and June for firms whose fiscal years end at December the 31st. CHAPTER V RESEARCH FINDINGS 5. 1 Results We present results of a regression model where independent variables in the regression equation are chosen in two ways (both general and step wise regression). Multicollinearity tests the correlation among two or more of the independent variables (financial ratios) used in the regression equation. Multicollinearity is a problem because it increases the likelihood of rounding errors in the calculation of the beta estimates and standard error, and also it may produces confusing and misleading (signs of beta parameters are different from those signs expected) results (Mendenhall, 1996). Table (2) shows that the existing problem in this Multicollinearity is especially evident for the correlation between the Current Ratio and the Quick Ratio reaching 0. 92 and significant at 99% level. Current Ratio and Quick Ratio are two faces for the same coin. They are categorized under liquidity ratios group, they have the same explanation about the result and there is a little bit difference in their equations (In Quick Ratio, Inventory is excluded from the Current Assets). So we eliminate Quick ratio from the independent variables (financial ratios) and retain on Current Ratio because it is more popular. Table (2) Correlation Matrix to explain the relationships among the financial ratios as independent variables VariablesQRATODERCTRICEPSOCFPMRTOROAROE QR1. 000 ATO-0. 4204*1. 000 DER0. 03920. 3860*1. 000 CTR0. 9239*-03478*0. 08801. 000 IC0. 3752*-0. 3246**-0. 15040. 3610*1. 000 EPS0. 1884-0. 2604**-0. 12480. 0724-0. 03061. 000 OCF0. 0641-0. 3243-0. 29300. 15720. 19970. 32021. 000 PM0. 1659-0. 4338*-0. 2835**0. 23450. 04750. 6245*0. 34311. 000 RTO-0. 2999**0. 1663-0. 0413-0. 0230-0. 0298-0. 19220. 6846*0. 16561. 000 ROA0. 0535-0. 1600-0. 4080*0. 16850. 17500. 6342*0. 6703*0. 6392*0. 3761*1. 000 ROE0. 1264-0. 1178-0. 01580. 21150. 10610. 11030. 8970. 2610**0. 18200. 3693*1. 000 * Significant at the 1% level ** Significant at the 5% level Table (3) & (4) show the multiple and step-wise regressions of the relationship between explanatory variables (financial ratios) and stock returns utilizing buy-and-hold return (BHR) method. The relationship between stock returns and common financial ratios is es timated using the following equation: Where is the annual stock return of firm i at time t. BHR is calculated as follows: Where is buy- and- hold return for security i, in period T, T is the trading month number 12, and indicates the first event month of calculating the return. s the dependent variable in the regression equation. Table (3) Multiple Regressions of the Relationship between Financial Ratios and Stock Returns Independent variables BetaT testSig. T 1- Current ratio (CTR)0. 7821993. 0940. 0055* 2- Interest coverage ratio (IC)0. 6895873. 0850. 0056* 3 Profit margin ratio (PM)0. 6434102. 5740. 0177** 4- Earnings per share (EPS)0. 3790681. 1190. 2757 5- Operating cash flow ratio (OCF)0. 2002970. 5430. 5931 6- Assets turnover (ATO)0. 1150700. 4550. 6537 7- Return on Equity (ROE)0. 0966730. 5010. 6215 8- Debt to equity ratio (DER)0. 0622020. 3040. 7640 – Receivables turnover (RTO)-0. 165573-0. 4660. 6457 10- Return on Assets (ROA)-0. 121268-0. 3320. 7433 Multiple R = 0. 68529F = 6. 76472 R square = 0. 46962Significant F = 0. 0031 * Significant at the 1% level ** Significant at the 5% level The results from table (3) show that the F test used to test the overall utility of the model indicates that the model is significant at the 99% level. However, the R square is 46. 96% indicating that the ten independent variables together explained approximately half of the variance in the yearly return of pharmaceutical sector as a dependent variable. Also, T test of the individual Betas (financial ratios) indicates that the most active ratios in determining stock returns are Current Ratio (CTR), Interest Coverage Ratio (IC) and Profit Margin Ratio (PM) with a significant level of 99%, 99% and 95% respectively. To check on the signs of the beta coefficient, the dependent variable (stock return) was regressed on each of the independent variables (financial ratios) and the signs of the resulting betas were checked against that of the original equation. There are three ratios which are Current Ratio, Receivable Turnover and Return on Assets that had different signs from the original regression equation The positive coefficient estimated for Current Ratio with stock returns is not expected because conservative policies that tend to keep current asset higher than current liability have lower risk and also have lower expected return than the aggressive policies. So we conclude that rational investors put more confidence in low risky stocks and look forward for stable stocks more than the temporary profitable stocks. On the other hand, Receivable Turnover ratio and Return on Assets ratio are completely insignificant as show in table (3), so there is nothing important to explain their different signs from the original prediction. Table (4) Step-wise Regression of the Relationship between Financial Ratios and Stock Returns Independent variables R? BetaT testSig. T ChangeAccumulation 1- Current ratio 0. 194050. 194050. 7302745. 2990. 0000* 2- Interest coverage ratio 0. 121330. 315380. 7161115. 2420. 0000* 3 Profit margin ratio 0. 072850. 388230. 4597934. 1170. 0001* Multiple R = 0. 62308F= 12. 69213 R square = 0. 38823 * Significant at the 1% level ** Significant at the 5% level In the next step, we utilize the step-wise regression to reach the final model that contains the significant explanatory variables and give better explanation for the relationship. Consistent with the general regression models, the step-wise results confirm the above mentioned findings as Current Ratio (CRT) is the most significant variable at the 99% and explained about 19% of the variance in the yearly return of pharmaceutical sector with R square about 19%, while R square for the model is about 39%. Interest coverage ratio has also explained about 12% of the variance in the yearly return of pharmaceutical sector. Interest coverage ratio is regarded as a measure of a company’s creditworthiness because it shows how much income there is to cover interest payments on outstanding debt. Profit margin ratio explained about 7% of the variance in the yearly return of pharmaceutical sector with R square 7%. From results we conclude that rational investors and stockholders are looking for strength and stability first then profitability when evaluating a pharmaceutical stock company. Table (5) Stepwise Multiple regression analysis for the good predictors Company R? BetaT testSig. T ChangeAccumulation 1- Memphis0. 466240. 466240. 73001412. 4530. 0000* 2- Cairo0. 213940. 680180. 6092937. 6880. 0000* 3- Alexandria0. 094360. 77454-0. 521862-4. 6470. 0001* Multiple R = 0. 88006F= 23. 73573 R square = 0. 77454 * Significant at the 1% level ** Significant at the 5% level Stepwise multiple regression model yielded a reduced equation containing only three companies (independent variables) explaining about 77% of the variance in the yearly return of pharmaceutical sector as a dependent variable: the analysis yielded three good predictors as demonstrated at table (5), the results proved that Beta value of Memphis Pharmaceutical and Chemical Industries was 0. 73 and it is significant at 99% level. Additionally, Memphis Company alone explained about 47% of the variance in the yearly return of the pharmaceutical sector. The second good predictor is Cairo Pharmaceutical and Chemical Industries while its Beta value was 0. 60 and it is significant at 99% level. Cairo Company alone explained about 21% and together with Memphis Company explained about 68% of the variance in the yearly return of the pharmaceutical sector. The third and last predictor is Alexandria Pharmaceutical and Chemical Industries with a Beta value of -0. 52 and significant at 99% level. Alexandria Company explained alone about 9% of the variance in the yearly return. 5. 2 Summary and Conclusion The relationship between financial ratios and stock returns has been a popular issue in the area of accounting and finance for a long time, so we found that it is a good issue to discuss on the Egyptian stock market. Here, an analysis is undertaken to show the value relevance of the financial ratios and their usefulness in security valuation in the Egyptian pharmaceutical sector. In our research, we use step-wise multiple regressions between financial ratios and stock returns, also between pharmaceutical companies’ returns and pharmaceutical sector returns. The results from using step-wise and multi regression indicate that Current Ratio (CTR), Interest Coverage Ratio (IC) and Profit Margin Ratio (PM) respectively, are the most relevant ratios in determining stock returns. Additionally, Memphis Pharmaceutical and Chemical Industries is the most relevant company in explaining the variance of the pharmaceutical sector return as a whole. Finally, it seems that Current Ratio (CTR), Interest Coverage Ratio (IC) and Profit Margin Ratio (PM) play a significant role in formulating investment decisions in the Egyptian stock market (specifically, Pharmaceutical sector). Egyptian rational investors put more confidence in low risky stocks and look forward for stable stocks more than the temporary profitable stocks. 5. 3 Further Research The study was conducted on Egyptian pharmaceutical sector and taken all pharmaceutical companies (11 companies) that have been quoted in Egyptian stock exchange, covered the period from 1996 to 2001. Replicating the study on other sectors in Egypt such as (Agriculture, Food & Beverages, Construction, Banks†¦) at different times could be very useful. The study could be also replicated on the valuable Egyptian market indices such as (Case 30, IFCG, MSCI, EFG Hermes). These studies could help in determining more clearly the relationship between financial ratios as independent variables and stock returns as dependent variable. CHAPTER VI REFRENCES Barber, B. , Lyon, J. , and Tsai, C. , (1999), â€Å"Improved Methods for Tests of Long-Run Abnormal Stock Returnsâ€Å", Journal of Finance, 54 (1), 165-201. Baraber, B. , and Lyon, J. , (1997), â€Å"Detecting Long-Run Abnormal Stock Returns: The Empirical Power and Specification of Test Statisticsâ€Å", Journal of Financial Economics, 43 (3), 41-72. Brav, A. , and Gompers, P. , (1997), â€Å"Myth or Reality? The Long-Run Underperformance of Initial Public Offerings: Evidence from Venture Capital and non-Venture Capital-Backed Companiesâ€Å", Journal of Finance, 52 (5). Capital Law 95/1992, â€Å"Intermediation Companies†, (CMA. gov. eg), Available: http//www. cma. gov. eg /En-nf/index4. html, (Accessed: 2003, January 20). CASE, (2002), â€Å"What’s New†, (Egyptse. com), Available: http://www. egyptse. com, (Accessed: 2003, February 7). Central Bank of Egypt (2002), â€Å"Proceeds of commodity Exports and Imports by degree of processing†, (CBE. org. eg), Available: http//www. cbe. org. g, (Accessed: 2003, February 9). Charles, P. J. , (2002), â€Å"Investments Analysis and Management†, Seventh edition, John Wiley & Sons Inc. , NY: Third Avenue. David, I. , and Pitman, (2001) â€Å"Foundation for SME Development: Key Financial Ratios† Available: www. google. com , (Financial Ratios). 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(2001), â€Å"The Economics of money, banking, and financial markets†, Sixth Edition, Adison Wisel y, Boston. MohieEldin, M. and Sourial, M. S. , Institutional Aspects, Distributional Characteristics and Efficiency of Egyptian Securities Market, in Arab Stock Markets: Recent Trends and Performance, edited by Riad Dahel, (Cairo: AUC Press, 2000), 1-44. Ou, J. , Penman, S. 1989. â€Å"Financial statement analysis and the prediction of stock returns,† Journal of Accounting and Economics, Vol. 11, p. 295-330. Peter S. R. , (1999), â€Å"Commercial bank management†, fourth edition, McGraw-Hill Companies, NY: Avenue of the Americas. Riahi-Belkaoui, A. (1997). â€Å"Value relevance of popular financial ratios,† Advances in Quantitative Analysis of Finance and Accounting, Vol. 5, pp. 193-201. Ross, Westerfield, and Jaffe, (2002) â€Å"Corporate Finance†, Sixth edition, McGraw-Hill Companies, NY: Avenue of the Americas. The Capital Market Authority, (2002), â€Å"CMA Public Information Center†, (CMA. ov. eg), Available: http://www. cma. gov. eg/En-nf/index5. html (Accessed: 2003, January 20). The Drug Policy and Planning Center, (2002), Pharmaceutical Industry Statistics, (DPPC. gov. eg), (Accessed: 2003, February 10) The Egyptian Ministry of Public Enterprise Sector, (2001), Privatization Program perform ance from the start to February 2001, (Cairo: MPES), http://www. mpe-egypt. gov. eg/privatize. asp#methods. (Accessed: 2003, February 16) The Law No. 82 for year (2002), â€Å"Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS)†, Pharmacy and Medicine, March 2003, Vol. 24, p. 44-55 Timo S. , Ilkka V. , Paavo Y. O. (1990), â€Å"On the Classification of Financial Ratios†, published on the Word Wide Web as http://www. uwasa. fi/~ts/sera/sera. html Walsh, F. J. (1986), â€Å"The Relative Information Content of Accruals and Cash Flows: Combined Evidence at the Earnings Announcement and Annual Report Release Date† Journal of Accounting Research, p. 165-200 CHAPTER VII APPENDIX (A) Financial Ratios Financial ratios are very important for new investors who would like to invest in the firm and also for stockholders who are the investors of the firm because financial ratios give them several indicators which they can evaluate the firm with. 1) Profitability Ratios The main goal of these ratios is to help us to judge how good the firm's profit performance. Profitability ratios refer to the ability of a firm to generate revenues in excess of expenses. 1. 1 Earnings per Share The portion of a company’s profit allocated to each outstanding share of a company’s common stock. E arnings per share is simply a fundamental measure of profitability that shows how much profit was generated on a per-share-of-stock basis. EPS doesn’t reveal a great deal. Its true value lies in comparing EPS figures across several quarters, or years, to judge the growth of a company’s earnings on a per-share basis. David Irwin (2001) Therefore, studying refers to a positive relationship between EPS and stock market return. To calculate EPS, start with net income (earnings) for the period in question, subtract the total value of any preferred stock dividends and then divide the resulting figure by the number of shares outstanding during that period. Or: Net income / Number of shares outstanding 1. 2 Return on Equity ROE is a fundamental indication of a company’s ability to increase its earnings per share and thus the quality of its stock, because it reveals how well a company is using its money to generate additional earnings. ROE allows investors to compare a company’s use of their equity with other investments, and to compare the performance of companies in the same industry. ROE can also help to evaluate trends in a business. Businesses that generate high returns on equity are businesses that pay off their shareholders handsomely and create substantial assets for each dollar invested as mentioned by Peter S. 1999). To calculate ROE, divide the net income shown on the income statement by shareholders’ equity, which appears on the balance sheet: Net income / owners’ equity 1. 3 Return on Assets A Company’s profitability expressed as a percentage of its total assets. Return on assets measures how effectively a company has used the total assets at its disposal t o generate earnings. Because the ROA formula reflects total revenue, total cost, and assets deployed, the ratio itself reflects a management’s ability to generate income during the course of a given period, usually a year. Ross (2002) Naturally, the higher the return the better the profit performance. ROA is a convenient way of comparing a company’s performance with that of its competitors. ROA should have a positive relationship with the stock market return. To calculate ROA, divide a company’s net income by its total assets, then multiply by 100 to express the figure as a percentage: Net income / total assets 1. 4 Profit Margin Profit Margin is a company’s net profit or loss as a percentage of total sales for a given period, typically a year. This ratio shows how efficiently management uses the sales revenue, thus reflecting its ability to manage costs and overhead and operate efficiently. It also indicates a firm’s ability to withstand adverse conditions such as falling prices, rising costs, or declining sales. Ross (2002) The higher the figure, the better a company is able to endure price wars and falling prices. Investors tend to prefer a higher percentage of profit margins, which considered being an indication of a positive relationship between profit margin and stock market return. The calculation is very basic: Net profit / total sales (2) Liquidity Ratios These are ratios that measure the liquidity of the firm. Firms have to ensure that they have the liquidity required to meet all their commitments. To the extent a firm has sufficient cash flow; it will be able to avoid defaulting on its financial obligations and, thus avoid experiencing financial distress. 2. 1 Current Ratio Current ratio is the company’s liquidity and its ability to meet its short-term debt obligations. By comparing a company’s current assets with its current liabilities, the current ratio reflects its ability to pay its upcoming bills in the unlikely event of all creditors demanding payment at once. Current liabilities are debts that are due within one year from the date of the balance sheet as mentioned by Charles P. (2002). The basic source from which to pay these debts is a current asset. As long as firms are searching for no risks by increasing current assets, profitability will be getting shrunk. So that current ratio should have a negative relationship with stock market return. Working capital is also called net current assets or current capital, and is expressed as: Current assets / Current liabilities 2. 2 Quick Ratio How quickly a company’s assets can be turned into cash, which is why assessment of a company’s liquidity also is known as the quick ratio, or simply the acid ratio. Regardless of how this ratio is labeled, it is considered a highly reliable indicator of a company’s financial strength and its ability to meet its short-term obligations. Because inventory can sometimes be difficult to liquidate, the quick-test ratio deducts inventory from current assets before they are compared with current liabilities-which is what distinguishes it from the current ratio. Potential creditors like to use the quick-test ratio because it reveals how a company would fare if it had to pay off its bills under the worst possible conditions. Indeed, the assumption behind the quick-test ratio is that creditors are howling at the door demanding immediate payment, and that an enterprise has no time to sell off its inventory, or any of its stock. This ratio should have also negative relationship like the current ratio with stock market return. The quick-test is computed by subtracting inventories from current assets and dividing the difference by current liabilities: (Current assets – Inventory) / Current liabilities . 3 Operating Cash Flow Ratio Traditional working capital ratios indicate how much cash the company had available on a single date in the past. Cash flow ratio, on the other hand, tests how much cash was generated over a period of time and compare that to near-term obligations as published by John R. and Jeanne H. (1998). This ratio should str engthen the investors’ confidence toward the firm, therefore it should be positively related with stock market return. The numerator of the OCF ratio consists of net cash provided by operating activities. This is the net figure provided by the cash flow statement after taking into consideration adjustments for non-cash items and changes in working capital. The denominator is all current liabilities, taken from the balance sheet: Cash flow from operations / Current liabilities (3) Leverage Ratios 3. 1 Debt-to-Equity Ratio How much money a company owes compared with how much money it has invested in it by principal owners and shareholders. The debt-to-equity ratio reveals the proportion of debt and equity a company using to finance its business. It also measures a company’s borrowing capacity. The higher the ratio, the greater the proportion of debt but also the greater the risk. Mishkin (2001) describes the debt-to-equity ratio as â€Å"a great financial test† of long-term corporate health, because debt establishes a commitment to repay money throughout a period of time, even though there is no assurance that sufficient cash will be generated to meet that commitment. Creditors and lenders, understandably, rely heavily on the ratio to evaluate borrowers. As long as this ratio is considered to be low, investors’ confidence will be increased which negatively related with the stock performance. The debt-to-equity ratio is calculated by dividing debt by owners’ equity, where equity is, typically, the figure stated for the preceding calendar or fiscal year. Debt, however, can be defined either as long-term debt only, or as total liabilities, which includes both long- and short-term debt. The most common formula for the ratio is: Long term liabilities / owners’ equity (4) Coverage Ratios 4. 1 Interest Coverage The amount of earnings available to make interest payments after all operating and non-operating income and expenses—except interest and income taxes—have been accounted for. Interest coverage is regarded as a measure of a company’s creditworthiness because it shows how much income there is to cover interest payments on outstanding debt. Banks and financial analysts also rely on this ratio as a rule of thumb to gauge the fundamental strength of a business as argued Eugene F. & Joel H. (1998). Investors also rely on this ratio to examine the strength of a firm’s financial statement while this ratio should have a positive relationship with stock market return. Interest coverage is expressed as a ratio, and reflects a company’s ability to pay the interest obligations on its debt. It compares the funds available to pay interest—earnings before interest and taxes, or EBIT—with the interest expense. The basic formula is: EBIT / interest expense (5) Efficiency Ratios Ratios of turnover are constructed to measure how effectively the firm’s assets are being managed. 5. 1 Asset Turnover The amount of sales generated for every pound’s worth of assets over a given period. Asset turnover measures how well a company is leveraging its assets to produce revenue. A well-managed manufacturer, for example, will make its plant and equipment work hard for the business by minimizing idle time for machines. The higher the number the better-within reason. As a rule of thumb, companies with low profit margins tend to have high asset turnover; those with high profit margins have low asset turnover. This ratio can also show how capital intensive a business is. Some businesses-software developers, for example-can generate tremendous sales per dollar of assets because their assets are modest. At the other end of the scale, heavy industry manufacturers need a huge asset base to generate sales as refered by Eugene F. & Joel H. (1998). As long as the plant and equipment work hard and sales are increasing that would be an indication of a good sign. Consequently, this ratio should be a positively related with stock market return. Asset turnover’s basic formula is simply sales divided by assets: Sales revenue / Total assets 5. 2 Accounts Receivable Turnover This ratio explains the number of times in each accounting period, typically a year that a firm converts credit sales into cash. A high turnover figure is desirable, because it indicates that a company collects revenues effectively, and that its customers pay bills promptly. A high figure also suggests that a firm’s credit and collection policies are sound. In addition, the measurement is a reasonably good indicator of cash flow, and of overall operating efficiency as hence by Mishkin (2001). This ratio should have a positive relationship with stock return. The formula for accounts receivable turnover is straightforward. Simply divide the average amount of receivables into annual credit sales: Sales / Account Receivables (B) Statistical Results

Drawbacks Podcasting

Podcasts and webcasts are easy ways to present and distribute information to listeners all around the globe. However there are several drawbacks to this form of media. The drawbacks can be divided into two sections. The first section can be directed towards the process of recording and producing the webcasts. In order to record a webcast you must have: recording equipment, a quiet room, and time. The second section is focused on the persons listening to the webcast. The webcast is strictly auditory and must be accessed on some media device.This can become a problem because some listeners need more than just audio they need other forms of material to help them retain the information. Also because webcasts must be viewed through a mp3 player or computer this can cause a distraction because of the temptation of using the device for something else. Recording and producing is the most difficult area of any webcast. To record a quality webcast that listeners will enjoy and respond to the p roducer must execute the following three steps: the correct recording equipment, a quiet recording area, and an abundance of time to prepare for recording.The equipment required is very important because it will greatly increase the effectiveness of the webcast. The equipment needed is a microphone, recording software, host website and high-speed internet connection. Without purchasing all of the necessary components it will be impossible to record a quality webcast. The next drawback is the necessity of silence when recording. This can be a setback because any exterior noise in the webcast can cause listeners to become distracted and not retain the information being given.The need for a quiet proper recording area could cause additional investments to be made to reserve a recording studio or alternate recording site. The last drawback to webcasting is the amount of time needed to write a script for the topic chosen. It can take several weeks of preparation to research the topic and begin to process the information to write it into script form. The information given must be presented well to the audience so that it will be easy to follow along and process the information clearly. The drawbacks of the second section are mostly focused on the persons listening to the webcasts.The webcast is only broadcasted in audio form and requires the use of an mp3 player or computer. The limitations of webcasting can affect the listeners ability to comprehend and retain the information given. Not everyone can effectively listen and learn from strictly an auditory source of information. Certain people learn more effectively through hands on activities or visually or from reading the material. Because of this webcasting may not be the best medium for sending important information for others to comprehend.Also a webcast must listened to on either an mp3 player or a computer. These devices can become a distraction to some users. These electronic devices may tempt the listener to go off task and begin listening or viewing other material. This would cause the webcast to not fully be comprehended and some valuable information to be unheard. All in all webcasting is the future of efficient business practices but it is not yet perfected. With the correct managing of these drawbacks given, businesses could begin to cut costs and use time more efficiently.

Coun Theory Essays

Coun Theory Essays Coun Theory Essay Coun Theory Essay Personal TheoryWorking OutlineJacinth SutphinLiberty UniversityCOUN 507November 23, 2013I. Introduction: A comprehensive theoretical approach for any  Christian counselor should always keep in mind the integration of psychology, theology, and spirituality. Knowing and understanding each individual’s issues of life requires us to  take into account  the mind, the body and the soul/spirit. Also taking into consideration the temporal systems, and the supernatural systems which influence a person. McMinn (1996) states, â€Å"the best interdisciplinary integration work usually comes from those who have formal or informal preparation in both psychology and theology† (p.9).II. What is Important for Understanding Human Personality A. Personality Our personality is molded by our life experiences in which we are conditioned. It is important to understand how personalities are developed and how we can assist our clients that are seeking our help. Hawkins (2006) presents a mo del of human personality through  his  concentric circles. Our personality takes into account five distinct factors: the core (God is in the center), then the Soul, Body, Temporal Systems, and on the outside Supernatural. In Matthew 22:37, Jesus said â€Å"Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind† (New International Version). Our heart is the center of our being and personality. B. Motivation Crabb(1977) states that â€Å"motivation, is a generalized drive to meet personal needs, is also a normal, necessary part of personality.†As I stated ealier, the heart is the center of our being and personality. Our heart is where we find our motivation and where our passions and emotions are rooted from. Jesus said, â€Å"Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest† (Matthew 11:28, New International Version). If we want to live and

APA Referencing †Citing a Newspaper Article

APA Referencing – Citing a Newspaper Article APA Referencing – Citing a Newspaper Article If you’ve been at college for a while, you might already be pretty good when it comes to citing sources. Maybe you know all about referencing books and academic journals. But have you given much thought to newspaper articles? OK, you’re not likely to cite a National Enquirer article called â€Å"BILL CLINTON CONFESSION: I HUNTED ALIENS† in a serious paper about astrobiology. Seems completely legit to us. But discussing politics, culture or social trends can require referring to current events, which usually means citing a newspaper. In today’s blog post, we explain exactly how to do this using APA referencing. In-Text Citations APA conventions for citing a newspaper article are similar to those used for other sources, with the author’s name and year of publication given in parentheses. If directly quoting an article from a print edition of a newspaper (they’re still a thing, you know), you should give page numbers, too: The Guardian reported the plan to secede â€Å"with or without the approval of Madrid† (Jones, 2016, p. 12). If the author is named in the text, simply give the year of publication immediately afterwards and any relevant page numbers after the quoted text: According to Sam Jones (2016), Catalonia is â€Å"is preparing to defy Spain’s constitutional court† (p. 11). If no author is named for an article, APA suggests including a shortened version of the article title in citations instead: Anne Bancroft was reported to sometimes burp in public (â€Å"I’m A Slob,† 1964). Yes, that last one was a genuine story. Although only insofar as anything in the National Enquirer can ever really be called â€Å"a genuine story.† It seems more plausible than the alien thing, at least. Reference List: Print Articles When an article is cited from a print edition of a newspaper the information to include in your reference list is: Author name and initial(s). (Year, month and day published). Article title. Newspaper, page numbers. For the Guardian article cited above, this would appear as follows: Jones, S. (2016, July 27). Catalonia tells Spain it will push for secession with or without assent. The Guardian, pp. 11-13. If no author is named, the full title of the article is used in its place: I’m a slob: I burp and slurp in public. (1964, December 20). National Enquirer, pp. 1-3. We promise that’s the last time we’ll mention the National Enquirer. Reference List: Online Articles The only difference when referencing the online version of a newspaper article is that you need to give the URL rather than page numbers: Author name(s) and initial(s). (Year, month and day published). Article title. Newspaper. Retrieved from URL The online version of the Guardian article above would therefore appear as: Jones, S. (2016, July 27). Catalonia tells Spain it will push for secession with or without assent. The Guardian. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/world/2016/jul/27/catalonia-independence-spain-democratic-mandate

The Cost of Benefiting From Corporate Social Responsibility Essay

The Cost of Benefiting From Corporate Social Responsibility - Essay Example Because the field is a relatively new effort by business and the effects of their actions are so far reaching, it is necessary to quantify what benefits a company derives from CSR as well as demonstrate to the public the benefit that society gains from it. The cost of CSR, sometimes met with a negative response, needs to be examined with an understanding that the benefits in some cases may be mutual and what may be good for society may also be good for business. Measuring the benefit that CSR has to a company has been complicated by the reluctance of business to embrace the concept and provide reasonable reports and audits. A forthcoming report from St. Andrews University contends that less than 4% of the world's major corporations produce CSR reports, and the results have been characterised by Rob Gray, professor from St. Andrews, as, "at best useless and at worst highly misleading" (qtd. in Edwards, 2006). There are, however, some economic indicators that can be used when comparing companies that have a strong CSR reputation to those that do not. Profits, revenues, customer loyalty, market response, worker safety, and legal liabilities can be examined for the impact they have on a business. Societal benefits that arise from worker and product safety, a clean environment, and ethical practices are readily apparent. However, more intangible benefits may not be as readily quantified, but may be reflected in better company reputation, brand l oyalty, and public perception. When measuring CSR as an overall effect on a company, there is some correlation between good company citizenship and lower profitability. Indicators that can be measured indicate an overall negative effect on top CSR companies and their annual net income growth (Laffer, Coors, & Winegarden, 2004, pg. 5). It may be misleading to infer that market leaders also have the most ambitious CSR programs, for as Laffer, Coors, and Winegarden, 2004, conclude, "It is likely, therefore, that the businesses that are inclined to engage in CSR initiatives tend to be those that are already financially successful and that can afford the added CSR overhead" (pg. 6). Short-term benefits from CSR that are realised by society may take place at the expense of a company's core mission of generating profits. However, when CSR traits are examined on an individual basis, the results may reveal benefits for both the company and society. Worker safety is a paramount consideration for a company with strong CSR traits. The demand of a safe workplace is a mainstay of worker advocates and has, in many cases, been forced upon business through increased regulation. Workers have benefited greatly from these actions as the work environment continues to improve. But has business also reaped rewards from investments in safety Or has safety had a negative effect on profit Alcoa, the world's largest aluminium producer, made a strong commitment to safety in 1987. Since then its accident rate has fallen by 90% and is 10 times better than its industry peers (Jackson & Nelson, 2004). During this same period, Alcoa has been able to outpace the industry and its nearest competitor, Alcan, in both revenue and profitability. Safety contributes to profitability through a

Why do I want to join the Doctorate (Phd) program for Business Personal Statement

Why do I want to join the Doctorate (Phd) program for Business - Personal Statement Example Contemporary universities have offered programs in diverse and multidimensional formats that ensure the holistic development of the students. In this regard, I am most enthusiastic and determined to pursue a Doctorate of Business Administration from Abu Dhabi University, one of the most prestigious universities in the country, deemed to fulfill both personal and professional goals. As I was remunerating on the career paths available for business doctorates, I was initially ambivalent from the following options: a profession that is purely in academics; an endeavor delving into a potentially rewarding career with a global organization; or eyeing a combination of a career that balances requirements between academics and consulting for businesses. After careful soul searching and weighing opportunities in conjunction with personal interests, I have decided on a career that further develops my business acumen in the field I am currently in. I am currently the Group CEO of a prominent Rea l Estate company called "Dubai Properties Group" since 200; and previous to that I worked as the CEO for Tatweer (another Real Estate company in Dubai) from 2006 to 2009. Working in this capacity made me recognize the need to hone my interpersonal, informational and decisional skills. As CEO, I have intermittently assumed the roles of the taskmaster, mediator, motivator and organizational designer. To expand my perspectives on presiding over the total enterprise, I have recognized the need to pursue higher education focusing on marketing and management to address the needs of the company, in response to competitive pressures and of changes in diverse factors of the external environment. In this regard, I would particularly be interested into conducting a research on the future directions open to real estate companies given the recent slum the resulted from the financial crisis that was globally entrenched. A potential research study on the problems that continue to besiege real esta te companies in our country with the aim of providing strategies to address weaknesses and threats would assist in the improvement of the real estate industry, in general. Pursuant to Abu Dhabi University’s mission of producing â€Å"global leaders who understand the challenges of our time and make positive contributions to national and global prosperity†¦ not limited to educating students but also to transforming the UAE into a vibrant, prosperous and strong nation† (Abu Dhabi University: Chancellor Welcome, par. 1), I plan to be an active contributor to the transformation of the real estate industry into a more dynamic and productive sector. My role as a CEO required me to be heavily involved, since 2009, in restructuring the organization, development of a prudent governance framework, corporate governance, development of a strategic 5 year business plan with explicitly defined organizational mission, objectives and values. Through pursuing the doctorate degree in business administration, I would be accorded the perfect opportunity to develop policy making skills and strategic development of plans and prospects that would be deemed significant and crucial in responding to the needs of more sophisticated clientele. As I reviewed the program profile, I was immediately attracted to its goal of supporting â€Å"the ability of candidates to develop their knowledge and provide them with a sound understanding of theories in addition to applying them, while helping centers of higher education, consultants and academics specialized in business admin