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Corporate Finance (304-0-20)

Instructors

Torben Andersen
Office Hours: Please email to schedule an appointment.
<p>Professor Andersen has published widely in asset pricing, empirical finance, and empirical market microstructure. His work centers on the modeling of volatility fluctuations in financial returns with applications to asset and derivatives pricing, portfolio selection, and the term structure of interest rates. His current work explores the use of large sets of high-frequency data for volatility forecasting, portfolio choice and risk management. He has received grants from the National Science Foundation, the Sloan Foundation, and the Institute for Quantitative Research in Finance (the Q-Group). He served as the editor-in-chief for the Journal of Business and Economic Statistics in 2004-2006, Co-Editor for the Journal of Financial Econometrics, 2009-2014, and has served on the editorial board of leading journals, including the Journal of Finance, Review of Financial Studies, Econometric Theory, and Management Science.</p>

Meeting Info

Frances Searle Building 1441: Tues, Thurs 9:30AM - 10:50AM

Overview of class

*INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO CHANGE*

The instructor of this course is Torben Andersen.

Corporate Finance with Professor Andersen covers managers' and investors' most fundamental finance decision: how to value a project or an asset. Managers must determine the value of building a factory, entering a new market, or purchasing an entire firm, when deciding in which projects to invest. Similarly, individuals must assess the value of financial securities to decide how to invest their wealth. Corporate Finance teaches methods for valuing projects or assets. These valuation tools lay the foundation for all work in capital markets and corporate finance.

Registration Requirements

Prerequisites: ECON 201, 202, STAT 210 or equivalent, MATH 212 or 220, and BUS INST 301.
Students may not receive credit for both this course and ECON 360-1. Not for students who have previously taken KELLG_FE 310-0.

Class Materials (Required)

There will be a study.net course packet available for purchase online. Approximate cost will be: $20

Lecture slides, topic videos, cases, and readings as assigned. Lecture slides, video links, and readings
will be posted on the course website. Cases will be distributed via the Study.Net link on Canvas.
All course materials are the intellectual property of the instructor. You may not distribute class materials
electronically or in any form to anyone - inside or outside of Northwestern. In particular, you may not
share course materials with other students or with your employers after graduating.

Class Materials (Suggested)

Please check with the professor for more information regarding the textbook.

Title: CORPORATE FINANCE
Edition: 6
Author: Berk & DeMarzo
ISBN: 9780137844906
Publisher: PEARSON
Estimated Price (eBook): $10.99/mo
Recommended, but optional.

https://www.pearson.com/en-us/subject-catalog/p/corporate-finance/P200000009791/9780137844906

Class Notes

This class does not have a wait list and we do not issue permissions to exceed enrollment capacity. If the class fills up before your registration time, we suggest checking CAESAR regularly for an available seat. Roster changes frequently occur during the first two weeks of registration and just before the start of a new quarter.

For more information about the course, please refer to the sample syllabus on the Kapnick Center website: https://businessinstitutions.northwestern.edu/courses/course-descriptions/index.html

*IMPORTANT DATES for SPRING 2026:

  • First day of class: Thursday, April 2, 2026

  • Last Day of Class: Tuesday, June 2, 2026

  • Final Exam (In-Person): Week of Monday, June 8, 2026; Final Exam Week (regular final exam schedule per the Registrar's office: https://www.registrar.northwestern.edu/calendars/final-exam-schedules/)

Please plan accordingly, as the exam dates cannot be rescheduled. If you cannot be at the exams, you may take the course in a different quarter.

Class Attributes

Attendance at 1st class mandatory

Enrollment Requirements

Enrollment Requirements: PRE-REG:Reserved for Business Institutions Program majors & minors. Prerequisite: Students must have credit for ECON 201, ECON 202, STAT 210, MATH 218-1 or 220-1, and BUS_INST 301, or equivalent courses. Students that previously took KELLG_FE 310-0 may not register for this course.

Associated Classes

DIS - Tech Institute Lecture Room 3: Tues 5:00PM - 5:50PM