What is it function of?

[musicgold]

Hi,

Are the following sentences used in verbal communication correct?

1. I just wish to know the factors a company’s leverage is function of.

2. A company’s leverage? What is it function of?

3. What are the factors a company’s leverage is function of?

Thanks.

MG.

[Marius Hancu]

1. I just wish to know the factors a company’s leverage is a function of.

2. A company’s leverage: what is it a function of?

3. What are the factors a company’s leverage is a function of?

[musicgold]

MH,

Thanks. Which one of these sounds the most natural to you?

[Marius Hancu]

Could you tell me the factors a company’s leverage is a function of?

[OddThomas]

Because these sentence choices feel very tortured to me, and they probably do so to musicgold, I want to recommend another angle.

If this were truly mathematics, we could view this as f(x,y,z)=L, where x, y, and z are the factors and L is the company's leverage. We would pose some mathematical problem in equation form to ferret out x, y and z, and be done with it.

But since we are speaking of a business problem, we want to use English. The language of leverage includes assets, debt, equity, earnings per share, earnings before interest and taxes, and the like. Everyone in finance understands the general language, and that leverage is a function of all of these variables, so I recommend a simpler sentence.

Let's drop out the phrases involving "function of":
I just wish to know the factors of a company’s leverage.
What are the factors of a company’s leverage?

[musicgold]

OT,

Thanks.


Let's drop out the phrases involving "function of":

I just wish to know the factors of a company’s leverage.
What are the factors of a company’s leverage?I think, your sentences don't convey what I wanted to ask. I wish to know what factors cause a company's leverage to differ from another company's (i.e. determinants of leverage).

For example, one of the answers to my questions could be - The leverage of a company is mainly determined by its fixed cost strucutre.

Because these sentence choices feel very tortured to me, and they probably do so to musicgold
Yes. I, myself, did not like those sentences, but did not know any better alternative.

[OddThomas]

Now we're getting somewhere. At first, your questions were too rambling. When I rewrote them, I caused you some difficulty because I took away your main point. Then, when pressed, you wrote an excellent question:I wish to know what factors cause a company's leverage to differ from another company's (i.e. determinants of leverage).
That is the question to ask. :)

[musicgold]

OT,

Thanks.