Answer:
The after-tax cost of debt : 3.90%.
Explanation:
The semi-annual coupon = 1,000 x 5% /2 = $25.
The before-tax cost of debt, denoted as i, is the yield to maturity of the company's debt, which is calculated as below:
(25/i) x [1 - (1+i)^-40] + 1,000/(1+i)^40 = 854 <=> i = 3.147%.
=> Because the debt is semi-annual compounded, we have the: Effective annual rate = Before-tax cost of debt = ( 1+ 3.147%)^2 -1 = 6.39%.
=> After tax cost of debt = Before tax cost of debt x ( 1 - tax rate) = 6.39% x ( 1 - 0.39) = 3.90%.
So, the answer is 3.90%.
