Answer: 14.36%
Step-by-step explanation:
The sustainable growth rate will be calculated thus:
Firstly, we will calculate the return on equity(ROE) which will be:
= Profit margin × (1/Capital intensity ratio) × (1 + Debt equity ratio)
= 6.5% (1/0.74) × (1 + 0.8)
= 0.065 × 1.35 × 1.8
= 0.158
Then, we'll calculate the plowback ratio which will be:
= 1 - (16000/78000)
= 1 - 0.2051
= 0.7949
Therefore, the growth rate will be:
= (ROE × Plowback ratio) / [1 - (ROE × Plowback ratio)]
= (0.158 × 0.7949) / [1 - (0.158 × 0.7949)]
= 0.1256 / 0.8744
= 0.1436
= 14.36%
The sustainable growth rate is 14.36%