Corporate Finance Study Aids and Formula Sheets
By Antoine Marchand · Last reviewed
These are study aids, not substitutes for the books. For the books themselves, see the corporate finance reading list.
The quick references
Corporate Finance (QuickStudy guide)
Laminated quick reference · $
Beats the book when: You know what NPV and WACC mean but need the exact formula in front of you during a problem set.
Pairs with: Principles of Corporate Finance, Financial Intelligence
Finance Equations & Answers (QuickStudy guide)
Formula sheet · $
Beats the book when: You are working through a case company's statements and need every ratio definition on one sheet.
Pairs with: Financial Intelligence, How to Read a Financial Report
Schaum's Outline of Financial Management
Solved-problem outline · $$
Beats the book when: You follow the lectures but freeze on exam-style questions and need many worked examples.
Pairs with: Principles of Corporate Finance
When a quick reference beats the book
Principles of Corporate Finance is the right book for learning the subject. It is the wrong book to have open at eleven at night when you need the formula for the cost of equity and cannot remember which chapter it is in. That is the job of a reference.
A laminated guide or formula sheet wins when the question is "what is the formula" and you already know the answer to "why". It is faster to scan than an index, it fits inside the textbook, and it does not tempt you into rereading a chapter you have already read.
A solved-problem outline wins in a different situation: you understand the lectures, but exam questions still stop you. The gap is practice, not theory, and a book of worked problems closes it faster than rereading. Check that the outline's notation matches your course before you rely on it; finance books do not all write the same formula the same way.
Neither replaces the course text. If the concept itself is shaky, a cheat sheet will only help you get the wrong answer faster. For the ideas behind the numbers, Financial Intelligence is the gentler companion, and the corporate finance hub ranks the rest.
How to use these in the last week before an exam
Start by writing your own one-page sheet from memory: the formulas for NPV, IRR, WACC, CAPM and the main ratios. Then check it against the reference. The gaps you find are your revision list.
Spend most of the week on problems, not reading. Work timed questions from your course pack first, then from the outline. When you get one wrong, find the step where you went wrong and redo only that type of question.
The day before, stop doing new problems. Go through the formula sheet once, slowly, and make sure you can say in a sentence what each formula is for. If the exam allows a crib sheet, write it yourself; copying the laminated card teaches you less than building your own.
Questions people ask
Is a corporate finance cheat sheet enough to pass the course?
No. A formula sheet helps you apply what you already understand. If you cannot explain why a project with a positive NPV adds value, go back to the textbook chapter first.
Which corporate finance study aid should I buy if I can only get one?
If your exam is problem-based, the solved-problem outline. If it is open-book or case-based, the laminated formula guide, because you can find a formula on it in seconds.
Are these useful after the course ends?
The ratios sheet is. It is worth keeping next to annual reports and board packs. The others are mostly exam tools.