Defensive companies are firms where sales, earnings and cash flows are extremely uncertain and not necessarily related to the economy. sales, earnings and cash flows are likely to withstand changes caused by the economic environment. sales, earnings and cash flows are heavily influenced by aggregate business activity. sales, earnings and cash flows are growing exponentially.

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

When used-car dealers signal the quality of a used car with a warranty, a. buyers believe the signal because the cost of a false signal is high b. it is not rational to believe the signal because some used-car dealers are crooked c. the demand for lemons is eliminated d. the price of a lemon rises above the price of a good used car because warranty costs on lemons are greater than warranty costs on good used cars

Which of the following comes after a period of recession in the business cycle? a. stagflation b. a drought c. a boom d. recovery