Table of Contents

1. Are you more or less optimistic about the U.S. economy compared to last quarter?	1
1b. Rate your optimism about the U.S. economy on a scale from 0-100, with 0 being the least optimistic and 100 
being the most optimistic.	2
Respondent is more optimistic: Why?	3
Respondent is less optimistic: Why?	6
No change in respondent optimism: Why?	11

2. Are you more or less optimistic about the financial prospects for your own company compared to last quarter?	12
2b. Rate your optimism about the financial prospects for your own company on a scale from
0-100, with 0 being the least optimistic and 100 being the most optimistic.	13

3. What are the top three concerns your corporation faces? (rank #1, #2, #3)	14
3. What are the top three concerns your corporation faces? REVERSED SCALE & WEIGHTED BY NUMBER OF RESPONDENTS (Higher number = greater weighted importance)	15
3. What are the top three concerns your corporation faces? (rank #1, #2, #3) --- "Other" Specified	16

4. Relative to the previous 12 months, what will be your company's PERCENTAGE CHANGE during the 
next 12 months? (e.g., +3%, -2%, etc.) [Leave blank if not applicable]	18
4. Relative to the previous 12 months, what will be your company's PERCENTAGE CHANGE during the 
next 12 months? (M&A activity)	19
4. Relative to the previous 12 months, what will be your company's PERCENTAGE CHANGE during the 
next 12 months for:   [Unweighted - Sorted]	20
What key factors explain your repurchase decisions? (Positive change)	21
What key factors explain your repurchase decisions? (No change)	22
What key factors explain your repurchase decisions? (Negative change)	23
4. Relative to the previous 12 months, what will be your company's PERCENTAGE
CHANGE during the next 12 months?  [All Companies - Windsorized - Revenue Weighted - Sorted]	24
4. Relative to the previous 12 months, what will be your company's PERCENTAGE
CHANGE during the next 12 months?  [All Companies - Windsorized - Employee Weighted - Sorted]	25
4. Relative to the previous 12 months, what will be your company's PERCENTAGE
CHANGE during the next 12 months?  [Public Companies - Windsorized – Revenue Weighted]	26

5a. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act reaches its five-year anniversary this July. How would you characterize the 
effectiveness of the legislation on a scale from 1 to 5?	27
5b. How would you characterize the need to repeal or modify certain aspects of Sarbox on a scale from 1 to 5? Reform is:	28
5c. Compared to your cost of Sarbox compliance in the first year, how much does it cost your company now?	29
5c. Compared to your cost of Sarbox compliance in the first year, how much does it cost your company now?	30
5d. Overall, do you think that the benefit to shareholders has outweighed the costs of implementing Sarbox?	31

6a. Do you expect the recent surge in M&A activity to slow down in the next year?	32
6b. If Yes, what will cause the M&A boom to weaken? [check all that apply]	33
6b. If Yes, what will cause the M&A boom to weaken? OTHER specified	34

7. Some lawmakers are calling for increased transparency of hedge funds' operations and motives. What is your 
opinion of the current state of hedge fund regulation? [choose best response]	35

8. On May 21, 2007 the annual yield on 10-yr treasury bonds was 4.8%. Please complete the following:	36
Revenue Weighted: 8. On May 21, 2007 the annual yield on 10-yr treasury bonds was 4.8%.	37
Employee Weighted: 8. On May 21, 2007 the annual yield on 10-yr treasury bonds was 4.8%.	38

9. To what degree do you personally affect the investment decisions of your firm?	39

10. For the investments that your company makes this year, what do you expect the internal rate of return (IRR) to be?	40

11. How do you rate your ability to choose which investment projects will turn out to be profitable to your firm?	41

Industry	42
Industry (Other specified)	43
Sales Revenue	45
Weighted Sales Revenue (Millions)	46
Number of Employees	47
Weighted Number of Employees	48
Headquarters	49
Ownership	50
Foreign Sales	51
1

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

1. Are you more or less optimistic about the U.S. economy compared to last quarter?

	 	Number	Percent	95% CI
	3=More optimistic	126	26.3 %	± 4.1 %
	2=No change	211	44.0 %	± 4.6 %
	1=Less optimistic	143	29.8 %	± 4.2 %
	Total	480	100.0 %

	Mean = 1.96
	SD = 0.75

	Missing Cases = 4 
	Response Percent = 99.2 %

2

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

1b. Rate your optimism about the U.S. economy on a scale from 0-100, with 0 being the least optimistic and 100 being the most optimistic.

	Minimum = 4

	Maximum = 100

	Mean = 65.03

	Median = 70

	Variance (Unbiased) = 263.22

	Standard Deviation (Unbiased) = 16.22

	Standard Error Of The Mean  = 0.76

	95 Percent Confidence Interval Around The Mean = 63.54 - 66.53

	99 Percent Confidence Interval Around The Mean = 63.07 - 67.00

Valid Cases = 453 
Missing Cases = 31 
Response Percent = 93.6%

3

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

Respondent is more optimistic: Why?

less chance that Democrats can hurt US	
	
Business performance in our sector of the Financial Services remains strong	
	
More orders from the last six weeks	
	
continued low interest rates	
	
I think we will exit Iraq.	
	
Hosuing will rebound and oil will moderate	
	
The USD exchange rate is helping exports	
	
housing, energy shocks are fully reflected; positive momentum to ensure toward 08 election cycle	
	
Strong financial markets and ability for U.S. Consumers to absorb price shocks on fuel	
	
More commercial development occuring in our region.	
	
Low inflation, slow growth	
	
Lowered fears of inflation. Strong spend in light of subprime fears.	
	
it currently seems more resiliant.	
	
Sub prime lending will not be drag anticipated	
	
Inflation remains low;  FED rate cut more possible	
	
Consumers are still willing to spend!	
	
Earnings reports, stock market performance	
	
construction slow down 1st qt - expect to pick up as this starts busy season for suppliers due to weather.	
	
Slow down due to correction of housing prices less severe than expected	
	
market performance / resiliance	
	
employee is increase & personal income and worst of the housing slump is behind us	
	
political changes	
	
no reason to suspect things are overheated in the us or disadvantaged versus the global economy	
	
less housing risk	
	
INterest rates have stabilized and the economy has been able to absorb the gas price increases which should stabilize	
soon.	

4

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

Respondent is more optimistic: Why?

Looks like housing is close to bottom nationwide (except FL)	
	
1st quarter results were pretty good and Wall Street is looking good.	
	
I've seen changes globally and in earning statements of selective industries that are favorable.	
	
Elections in the future, expect favorable business climate	
	
Stock Market	
	
soft landing achieved	
	
The world economy is getting stronger and the US will benefit along with it.	
	
because housing has not had as big a drag on economy as initially expected	
	
the increase in fuel prices and the housing market have not created a significant problem for businesses/consumers that	
is yet evident in the jobs data	
	
Goldilock effect is wearing off.  Recovery from February 27 drop.  Record M&A.	
	
We seem to be in period of sustainable growth.	
	
housing situation further along	
	
Consumer confidence is up and inflation has remained low.	
	
believe that economic signals are more supportive of positive growth	
	
Better housing market and good corporate earnings.	
	
The economy has seemingly absorbed higher energy prices and lower housing prices with less difficulty than	
anticipated.	
	
Doom and gloom has not come true	
	
job market seems hot, still overheated real estate market continues to cool	
	
China reigning in its stock market & price of gas stabilizing/dropping.	
	
Beginning of stabilization in the housing sector and constained inflation.	
	
allowed foreign immirgrants more leeway to work in the US	
	
More focus on 'greening' which should develop a new industry	
	
Strong stock market performance, continuing low intgerest rates, increased M&A activity	
	
The market is going well, job growth continues and individuals are buying somewhat smarter. With credit card interest	
reates going up consumers are a little less excited about using credit.	

5

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

Respondent is more optimistic: Why?

housing market has not collapsed, stock markets are up	
	
recession didn't happen	
	
Corporate profits are up and the market appears to be immune to the housing problems.  Global competition remains	
tough.	
	
Minimal impact of subprime loan losses on overall economy; continued strength in Corporate earnings	
	
Due to consumer spending levels and change of federal government's outlook on the economy.	
	
trends in the market and seems like more job opportunities are becoming available	
	
We are experiencing strong growth in volumes.  I also believe the housing market has begun a slight recovery and will	
continue to improve.	
	
GDP, housing starts, inflation	
	
I see actual business activity levels exceeding analyst predictions	
	
some of the larger companies are showing improved performance	
	
Possibility of interest rate decreases by Fed.	
	
interest rates, inflation	
	
A major component about the dragging economy is housing which seems to be getting a bit stronger	
	
Hopefully reached the bottom of the housing and mortgage market	
	
Based on continued positive economics trends, stock market growth, and personal experience with my own company	
	
Rebound in mfg activity	
	
Housing downturn is not as bad as expected	
	
Customer order rates have renmained strong.	
	
technology firms expanding, China down trend not affection US stock market to a negative degree	
	
Real estate showing signs of improvement	
	
Econony has absorbed the oil prices and continues to produce decent earnings levels	
	
Recent reductions in 1Q GDP were related to inventory levels much lower than estimated.  That suggests much higher	
GDP in 2Q and 3Q to meet demand plus replenish inventories.	
	
Slowing growth, poor housing market may lead Fed to reduce interest rates.	

6

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

Respondent is less optimistic: Why?

Drop in housing market and weaker dollar, both look like longer term trends than before.	
	
high price of commodities	
	
Inflated stock market Enercy pricing  global stability	
	
Price of fuels	
	
Price of gas, Iraq and King George Bush	
	
Declining industrial activity	
	
Inflation looms as taxes and interest rates promise to rise.	
	
Contiunued pressure on energy prices will drag the economy into a recession... The stock market is over-valued, not	
unlike 2001	
	
Continued waekness in housing and high gas prices	
	
Rise in fuel price	
	
Gas prices	
	
US record deficits and spending	
	
Rising energy and subprime market decline	
	
Energy prices	
	
weaker retail demand that has been seen over the last quarter	
	
more signs of slowing; impacts seem broader	
	
effect of commodity prices and decline of housing market	
	
ongoing consumer weakness, which will be exacerbated by high gas prices	
	
Continued deficit, rising interest, high oil price, Iraq war	
	
Bush issues	
	
continued unrealistic growth in the stock market	
	
reaction to negative media attention	
	
Fuel prices (inflation concerns), earnings reports (including future guidance) being released	
	
Impact of housing slump, increase in oil prices, metal prices	
	
retail pressures - gas prices, etc.	

7

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

Respondent is less optimistic: Why?

Escalating fuel prices, general inflation concerns in component prices for the manufacturing sector.	
	
General slowdown in consumer spending will have modest short term impact on economic growth	
	
Trend in oil & gas prices has reversed	
	
China, energy and interestrates	
	
Housing is declining and O&G increasing which'll impacts spending, believe this'll offset more positive employment core	
inflation data	
	
rising oil prices	
	
economic indicators	
	
Food, Utility Cost, State taxation, Fuel cost.	
	
Despite the housing market troubles, a 'soft landing' appears likely.	
	
home sales, interest rates,Q1 growth	
	
1. Continued liqudity in money markets 2. Energy costs	
	
extended housing slump	
	
Higher fuel prices, housing slow down, possible change in China Currency rates.	
	
world conflict	
	
Gas prices, slowing consumer spending, etc.	
	
Mismanagement by the executive office	
	
Stock market volatility	
	
Growing inflation due to increasing demand for and cost of energy	
	
Continuing increase in fuel prices.	
	
political unrest in usa	
	
oil prices, iraq war and middle east tensions, china's unlimited growth	
	
trade deficit, countries increasing reserves with non USD, gas prices	
	
Energy prices	
	
rising oil prices	
	
Fuel Prices, exchange rates, housing sales	

8

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

Respondent is less optimistic: Why?

Materially eroded with inflation pressures and oil prices	
	
Overall trend of layoffs, purchases from China, etc.	
	
Later in the cycle	
	
Geopolitical concerns, Excessively high fuel costs, turbulence in the subprime lending market.	
	
gas prices and cost of consumer utilities	
	
the economy appears to be slowing down	
	
Housing, Trade friction	
	
fuel prices without clear future energy policy and continued violence in Iraq	
	
Increasing gasoline prices	
	
More spending on the war approved without conditions	
	
There is continued softness in the real estate industry.	
	
Gas prices and potential impact on inflation	
	
Housing and U.S. Deficit	
	
housing	
	
Lower comsumer spending (housing related and higher fuel costs)	
	
Housing, oil price, Iraq and tensions in the Mideast shouldweigh further on the economy	
	
War in Iraq, lack of leadership in our government, oil prices, China, negative balance of trade	
	
Impact of gasoline prices and residential slowdown	
	
housing trends, gas prices, etc	
	
Widening trade deficit, impending energy crisis	
	
Fuel costs, continued soft housing market	
	
housing, debt	
	
Global risk - energy; middle east	
	
The Housing sector continues to decline.	
	
Growth and stocks remain strong, but the double whammy of energy costs and (in the US) housing deflation are	
definitely already putting a damper on consumer attitudes.	

9

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

Respondent is less optimistic: Why?

continuing reductions in housing	
	
Gasoline prices	
	
Energy costs; Global competition	
	
Rising gas prices, continued sluggish home market	
	
Concern with weakening dollar	
	
housing market impact, high gas prices	
	
gasoline prices at pump	
	
Continuing rising prices, especially oil and gasoline.	
	
High cost of energy, ineffective foreign policy	
	
Higher energy costs	
	
decrease in house sales may put some pressure on individuals who migh have impact in their finances, delaying	
purchases of consumer goods.	
	
Downurn in GDP, increse in gas prices, decrease in retail sales	
	
Democrats in charge - potential tax increases and meddling	
	
Worry about Private Equity debt and Hedge Funds	
	
Housing slump, continued high spending on Iraq war	
	
Food and Fuel Prices	
	
Residential Housing	
	
retail sales are sluggish	
	
Interest rates rising. Consumer spending flat. Price of gasoline up.	
	
Oil prices	
	
Housing	
	
I have lowered my expectations based on continued increases in gasoline and petroleum as well as a lack of an exit	
strategy for the Iraq War	
	
Governments are increasing investments in risker markets.	
	
Gas prices increases, drain of war in Iraq on USA resources.	
	
Continuing war in Iraq-lack of political leadership	

10

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

Respondent is less optimistic: Why?

Large twin deficits	
	
Worried that high gas prices, interest rates and inflation will push US into a recession.	
	
Energy costs have not subsided and housing remains weak	
	
More mfg moving overseas	
	
Too much debt and trade deficit is imbalanced. Very scary.	
	
monetary pressions	
	
continue housing price/subprime lending problems and some retail softness at Wal-Mart, others.	
	
Housing slowdown and increase in gasoline prices.	

11

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

No change in respondent optimism: Why?

i am a little concerned about the slowdown, yet i feel the run up in the stock market makes people few better off and jobs	
appear to be strong still...we are at an inflection point...reminds me a bit of 1992-93 economic situation	
	
Uncertainty about the tax cuts cloud the planning for the future, so I am expecting a slight slowing of the economy.	
	
no change	
	
No, I certainly believe there has not been enough changes in government policies that make US economy improve	
	
UNTIL THE HOUSING MARKET REDUCES IT'S INVENTORY, IT WILL PUT A CRIMP ON CONSUMER SPENDING	
	
Do not beleive it has changed significantly	
	
na	
	
America ( and to an even greater extent, other western nations)continue to 'ignore' the significant threat of terrorism --	
both within the US and elsewhere in the world.	
	
Stock Market performance	
	
NO, the fundamentals are the same.	
	
I think that the looseness of the private rquity/hedge funds will collapse and places the markets at risk.	
	
Polictical candidates my stupid statements	
	
More volatility associated with china	

12

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

2. Are you more or less optimistic about the financial prospects for your own company compared to last quarter?

	 	Number	Percent	95% CI
	3=More optimistic	212	44.1 %	± 4.6 %
	2=No change	151	31.4 %	± 4.3 %
	1=Less optimistic	118	24.5 %	± 4.0 %
	Total	481	100.0 %

	Mean = 2.20
	SD = 0.81

	Missing Cases = 3 
	Response Percent = 99.4 %

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Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

2b. Rate your optimism about the financial prospects for your own company on a scale from 0-100, with 0 being the least optimistic and 100 being the most optimistic.

	Minimum = 8

	Maximum = 100

	Mean = 70.14

	Median = 75

	Variance (Unbiased) = 333.51

	Standard Deviation (Unbiased) = 18.26

	Standard Error Of The Mean  = 0.86

	95 Percent Confidence Interval Around The Mean = 68.46 - 71.82

	99 Percent Confidence Interval Around The Mean = 67.93 - 72.35

Valid Cases = 452 
Missing Cases = 32 
Response Percent = 93.4%

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Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

3. What are the top three concerns your corporation faces? (rank #1, #2, #3)

(N=484)

	Mean & SD	1st	2nd	3rd	Total	
	1.74	88	52	41	181
Consumer demand	0.81	18.2%	10.7%	8.5%	37.4%

	1.80	41	32	22	95
Interest rates	0.79	8.5%	6.6%	4.5%	19.6%

	1.81	66	45	38	149
Skilled labor shortage	0.82	13.6%	9.3%	7.9%	30.8%

	1.89	38	37	27	102
Cost of non-fuel commodities	0.79	7.9%	7.6%	5.6%	21.1%

	1.95	36	9	32	77
Other:	0.94	7.4%	1.9%	6.6%	15.9%

	2.00	68	75	68	211
Cost of labor (wages, salaries, bonuses)	0.80	14.0%	15.5%	14.0%	43.6%

	2.05	41	51	48	140
Cost of fuel	0.80	8.5%	10.5%	9.9%	28.9%

	2.11	17	22	24	63
Foreign competition	0.81	3.5%	4.5%	5.0%	13.0%

	2.16	37	55	62	154
Regulation	0.79	7.6%	11.4%	12.8%	31.8%

	2.16	9	18	16	43
Political stability	0.75	1.9%	3.7%	3.3%	8.9%

	2.17	36	63	63	162
Health care costs	0.77	7.4%	13.0%	13.0%	33.5%

	2.30	7	17	20	44
Currency values	0.73	1.4%	3.5%	4.1%	9.1%

	2.71	1	2	11	14
Terrorism	0.61	0.2%	0.4%	2.3%	2.9%

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Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

3. What are the top three concerns your corporation faces? REVERSED SCALE & WEIGHTED BY NUMBER OF RESPONDENTS (Higher number = greater weighted importance)

	Mean	SD	Total

Cost of labor (wages, salaries, bonuses)	0.87	1.13	483

Consumer demand	0.85	1.20	483

Skilled labor shortage	0.67	1.11	483

Health care costs	0.61	0.97	483

Regulation	0.59	0.97	483

Cost of fuel	0.57	0.98	483

Cost of non-fuel commodities	0.45	0.93	483

Interest rates	0.43	0.94	483

Other:	0.33	0.84	483

Foreign competition	0.25	0.70	483

Currency values	0.16	0.54	483

Political stability	0.16	0.57	483

Terrorism	0.04	0.24	483

16

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

3. What are the top three concerns your corporation faces? (rank #1, #2, #3) --- "Other" Specified

'desperate' competition	
Ability to respond to changes in the market	
Advertisers going else where	
Advertising Market	
antipiracy	
Attract & keep talent	
business demand	
business demand	
Capital equipment demand	
Capital markets	
Capital spending	
Captial Purchasing	
Cash burn rate	
catastrophic loss	
Combining Like-kind Operations	
Competition	
Competition	
Competition	
competition	
competition	
Construction Cost	
consumer perception	
cost of building supplies	
Cost of keeping up with technology	
Customer needs	
Deficit Reduction Act	
digesting acquisition	
DOMESTIC COMPETITION	
Domestic Competition	
Domestic Competition	
Domestic competition	
Domestic competition	
Domestic competition	
domestic competition	
effectively managing global growth	
equity market decline	
Gereral economic downturn	
glut of real estate for sale	
Gov't pricing	
Health of the economy	
hedge fund activism	
Housing Market	
Housing Starts	
Intellectual Property rights protection	
Internal Efficiency	
lack of projects	
Legal	
M&A/Integration resource constraints	
management	
Market pressures	
Medical Supplies	
Medicare reimubursement	

17

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

3. What are the top three concerns your corporation faces? (rank #1, #2, #3) --- "Other" Specified

national Disasters	
new business growth	
non performance from management	
Overexpansion	
pension funding	
Performance	
Price competition	
public funding	
R&D Costs	
Raw material supply	
real estate values	
skilled management shortage	
slowing revenue growth	
Softening Insurance Market	
steel prices	
stock market	
strike	
Supply chain shortages	
tort reform	
Uncertainty	
Weather - drought	
Weather - drought in Southeast	
Year over year sales growth	

18

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

4. Relative to the previous 12 months, what will be your company's PERCENTAGE CHANGE during the next 12 months? (e.g., +3%, -2%, etc.) [Leave blank if not applicable]

	Mean	SD	95% CI	Median	Minimum	Maximum	Total

Earnings	10.66	31.23	7.43 - 13.89	6	-70	300	359

Number of foreign/off-shore outsourced
employees	9.80	35.54	5.07 - 14.53	0	-15	400	217

Capital spending	9.73	39.77	5.60 - 13.86	3	-85	400	356

Health care costs	8.82	10.47	7.76 - 9.88	8	-15	150	374

Dividends	7.75	19.96	3.65 - 11.85	0	0	100	91

Share repurchases	6.51	29.52	2.05 - 10.98	0	-20	300	168

Technology spending	5.17	14.30	3.65 - 6.70	4	-90	100	337

Wages/Salaries	4.50	9.75	3.55 - 5.44	3.80	-35	150	411

Cash on the balance sheet	4.49	29.56	1.08 - 7.91	0	-90	300	288

Marketing/advertising spending	4.13	10.82	2.91 - 5.35	2	-25	100	303

Productivity (output per hour worked)	3.47	3.99	3.02 - 3.93	3	-15	20	299

Number of domestic employees	3.38	13.76	1.93 - 4.82	2	-50	100	348

Prices of your products	2.19	5.83	1.59 - 2.79	3	-30	30	365

Inventory	1.72	16.06	-0.33 - 3.76	0	-50	128	237

19

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

4. Relative to the previous 12 months, what will be your company's PERCENTAGE CHANGE during the next 12 months? (M&A activitity)

	M&A activity	Number	Percent	95% CI
	Increase	98	36.3 %	± 3.7 %
	No change	152	56.3 %	± 4.3 %
	Decrease	20	7.4 %	± 2.0 %
	Total	270	100.0 %

	Missing Cases = 214 
	Response Percent = 55.8 %

20

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

4. Relative to the previous 12 months, what will be your company's PERCENTAGE CHANGE during the next 12 months for:   [Unweighted - Sorted]

(N=484)

	Mean & SD	Positive	Zero	Negative	Total
	  	1	0	-1	  	
	0.94	357	13	4	374
Health care costs	0.27	95.5%	3.5%	1.1%	100.0%

	0.93	392	10	9	411
Wages/Salaries	0.33	95.4%	2.4%	2.2%	100.0%

	0.78	240	53	6	299
Productivity (output per hour worked)	0.46	80.3%	17.7%	2.0%	100.0%

	0.62	235	79	25	339
Technology spending	0.62	69.3%	23.3%	7.4%	100.0%

	0.58	262	53	50	365
Prices of your products	0.72	71.8%	14.5%	13.7%	100.0%

	0.57	266	35	59	360
Earnings	0.76	73.9%	9.7%	16.4%	100.0%

	0.48	228	73	57	358
Capital spending	0.75	63.7%	20.4%	15.9%	100.0%

	0.46	177	88	38	303
Marketing/advertising spending	0.71	58.4%	29.0%	12.5%	100.0%

Number of foreign/off-shore outsourced	0.46	105	106	6	217
employees	0.55	48.4%	48.8%	2.8%	100.0%

	0.43	41	50	1	92
Dividends	0.52	44.6%	54.3%	1.1%	100.0%

	0.37	206	65	77	348
Number of domestic employees	0.82	59.2%	18.7%	22.1%	100.0%

	0.29	137	100	52	289
Cash on the balance sheet	0.75	47.4%	34.6%	18.0%	100.0%

	0.29	98	152	20	270
M&A activity	0.60	36.3%	56.3%	7.4%	100.0%

	0.17	37	128	7	172
Share repurchases	0.48	21.5%	74.4%	4.1%	100.0%

	0.06	84	84	69	237
Inventory	0.80	35.4%	35.4%	29.1%	100.0%

21

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

What key factors explain your repurchase decisions? (Positive change)

stock is cheap given business outlook	
	
better shareholder value than acquisitions	
	
Cash available from sale of subsidiary	
	
High cash-on-hand vs. low debt levels	
	
provide value to shareholders via stock repurchase	
	
NA	
	
Share price in relation to long-term value; alternative uses of cash and internal rate of return on the alternative use	
	
Cash available and undrlying price	
	
Retirement of senior persons	
	
Enormous cash surplus from products sale	
	
Contractual obligation	
	
Legally required	
	
increased ROI values	
	
Opportunity cost	
	
Private company - passive shareholders looking for liquidity.	
	
We are an S-Corp ESOP and are working toward 100% of shares being owned by the ESOP Trust.  This is accomplished	
by buying back all shares not held in the ESOP Trust	
	
Stock price under-valued.	
	
lower stock price and capital needs	
	
RETURN VALUE TOSHAREHOLDERS	
	
Value of the stock	
	
Share price	
	
Retirement.	
	
NPV of cash flows &gt; Market value.	
	
Cash available from a pending divestiture	

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Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

What key factors explain your repurchase decisions? (No change)

Not previously undertaken by Board	
	
Available cash	
	
Capital investment plans	
	
still continuing to purchase at same rate as last year	
	
Availability of cash, and relatively low equity valuation	
	
We are privately-held, so this is a moot point for us.	
	
No applicable.	
	
market conditions; offset dilution from share based comp programs	
	
We have nothing to repurchase.	
	
Not applicable	
	
N/A	
	
The equity level allowed in rates by our utility regulatory commissions.	
	
Expect stock price to remain at relatively high levels	
	
downsizing	
	
Not public.  Partnership.  Will be some transfers but no repurchases	
	
N/A	
	
Stock price and cash availability	
	
comparison to returns available on alternative investment alternatives	
	
Availability of cash on hand	
	
Attempt to encourage family members not in the business to exit from their ownership position.	
	
n/a	
	
Private Co	
	
Consistently repurchasing but becoming more opportunistic.	
	
Valuation & Free Cash Flow	
	
Demographics / product demand	
	
Other investment opportunities i.e. capex or m&a	

23

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

What key factors explain your repurchase decisions? (Negative change)

We completed a significant repurchase in the last 12 months and do not plan to offer another in the coming year.	
	
availability	
	
maintaining stable return on equity	
	
IPO Transaction at parent company in May 2007	
	
Our company is going to be privately owned.	
	
Relative share price; other uses of cash; interest rates; accretion to EPS	

24

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

4. Relative to the previous 12 months, what will be your company's PERCENTAGE CHANGE during the next 12 months?  [All Companies - Windsorized - Revenue Weighted - Sorted] 

	Mean	SD	95% CI	Median	Minimum	Maximum

Earnings	7.41	15.02	7.20 - 7.62	8	-44.80	65.55

Dividends	5.24	10.20	5.02 - 5.46	1	0	45.73

Capital spending	5.16	19.31	4.88 - 5.44	3	-63.60	83.74

Share repurchases	4.22	13.00	3.97 - 4.47	0	-20	54.66

Technology spending	3.85	6.42	3.76 - 3.95	3	-25.60	37.27

Cash on the balance sheet	3.52	17.21	3.24 - 3.80	1	-48.30	59.59

Marketing/advertising spending	2.67	7.61	2.55 - 2.79	2	-25	34.48

Prices of your products	2.30	4.38	2.23 - 2.36	3	-11.40	16.50

Inventory	-0.62	8.21	-0.77 - -0.47	0	-26.40	30.43

25

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

4. Relative to the previous 12 months, what will be your company's PERCENTAGE CHANGE during the next 12 months?  [All Companies - Windsorized - Employee Weighted - Sorted]

	Mean	SD	95% CI	Median	Minimum	Maximum

Health care costs	7.34	3.87	7.29 - 7.39	7	-11.40	26.34

Number of foreign/off-shore outsourced employees	7.05	12.55	6.86 - 7.23	4	-15	65.52

Wages/Salaries	4.21	4.01	4.16 - 4.26	4	-22.80	34.32

Productivity (output per hour worked)	3.55	3.33	3.50 - 3.60	3	-7.29	14.97

Number of domestic employees	0.41	6.73	0.33 - 0.50	1	-26.10	33.81

26

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

4. Relative to the previous 12 months, what will be your company's PERCENTAGE CHANGE during the next 12 months?  [Public Companies - Windsorized - Revenue Weighted] 

	Mean	SD	95% CI	Median	Minimum	Maximum

Earnings	8.61	13.33	8.38 - 8.84	8	-30	65.55

Dividends	4.85	9.25	4.64 - 5.05	1	0	45.73

Cash on the balance sheet	2.89	17.90	2.52 - 3.26	0	-48.30	59.59

Share repurchases	5.70	15.06	5.35 - 6.05	0	-20	54.66

27

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

5a. The Sarbanes-Oxley Act reaches its five-year anniversary this July. How would you characterize the effectiveness of the legislation on a scale from 1 to 5?

	 	Number	Percent	95% CI
	5=Very Effective	13	2.7 %	± 1.7 %
	4=	79	16.6 %	± 3.5 %
	3=	192	40.3 %	± 4.5 %
	2=	151	31.7 %	± 4.3 %
	1=Not Effective	42	8.8 %	± 2.7 %
	Total	477	100.0 %

	Mean = 2.73
	SD = 0.93

	Missing Cases = 7 
	Response Percent = 98.6 %

28

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

5b. How would you characterize the need to repeal or modify certain aspects of Sarbox on a scale from 1 to 5? Reform is:

	 	Number	Percent	95% CI
	5=Badly Needed	166	34.7 %	± 4.4 %
	4=	194	40.6 %	± 4.5 %
	3=	75	15.7 %	± 3.4 %
	2=	35	7.3 %	± 2.5 %
	1=Not Needed	8	1.7 %	± 1.5 %
	Total	478	100.0 %

	Mean = 3.99
	SD = 0.97

	Missing Cases = 6 
	Response Percent = 98.8 %

29

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

5c. Compared to your cost of Sarbox compliance in the first year, how much does it cost your company now?

	 	Number	Percent	95% CI
	1=Less	128	29.8 %	± 4.1 %
	2=About the Same	252	58.7 %	± 4.6 %
	3=More	49	11.4 %	± 2.9 %
	Total	429	100.0 %

	Mean = 1.82
	SD = 0.62

	Missing Cases = 55 
	Response Percent = 88.6 %

30

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

5c. Compared to your cost of Sarbox compliance in the first year, how much does it cost your company now?

	Mean	SD	Median	Total

Less -- by this percent	-26.69	17.50	-25	124

More -- by this percent	32.19	50.08	20	47

31

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

5d. Overall, do you think that the benefit to shareholders has outweighed the costs of implementing Sarbox?

	 	Number	Percent	95% CI
	5=Benefits greatly outweigh costs	9	1.9 %	± 1.5 %
	4=	53	11.3 %	± 3.0 %
	3=Costs the same as benefits	85	18.2 %	± 3.5 %
	2=	204	43.6 %	± 4.5 %
	1=Costs greatly outweigh benefits	117	25.0 %	± 4.0 %
	Total	468	100.0 %

	Mean = 2.22
	SD = 1.01

	Missing Cases = 16 
	Response Percent = 96.7 %

32

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

6a. Do you expect the recent surge in M&A activity to slow down in the next year?

	 	Number	Percent	95% CI
	No slow down, M&A will stay strong for at least one year	261	54.9 %	± 4.6 %
	Yes slow down, but not until 2008	153	32.2 %	± 4.3 %
	Yes slow down, but not until Fall 2007	46	9.7 %	± 2.8 %
	Yes slow down, starting this summer	15	3.2 %	± 1.8 %
	Total	475	100.0 %

	Missing Cases = 9 
	Response Percent = 98.1 %

33

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

6b. If Yes, what will cause the M&A boom to weaken? [check all that apply]

	 	Number	Percent	95% CI
	Private equity will push up the price of targets to make
	   acquisitions unattractive	135	60.5 %	± 6.7 %
	Best deals already done, so remaining deals less profitable	74	33.2 %	± 6.5 %
	Weak economic growth	71	31.8 %	± 6.5 %
	Increase in interest rates	51	22.9 %	± 5.9 %
	Increased regulatory oversight	30	13.5 %	± 4.9 %
	Decrease in stock market	25	11.2 %	± 4.6 %
	Other:	10	4.5 %	± 3.4 %
	Total	396

	Number of Cases =223
	Number of Responses =396
	Average Number Of Responses Per Case = 1.8
	Number Of Cases With At Least One Response =208
	Response Percent = 93.3 %

34

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

6b. If Yes, what will cause the M&A boom to weaken? OTHER specified

a recent deal blows up	
Confusion and questionable direction in the political leadership	
credit available	
Elections	
FAILED DEALS	
less liquidity	
NO NEED	
Private equity may begin to collapse	
run out of stupid lenders	
tighter credit	
Unrealistic Expectations by both Buyers and Sellers	

35

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

7. Some lawmakers are calling for increased transparency of hedge funds' operations and motives. What is your opinion of the current state of hedge fund regulation? [choose best response]

	 	Number	Percent	95% CI
	3=Stricter regulation of hedge funds is needed	266	56.0 %	± 4.6 %
	2=Current regulation is adequate	195	41.1 %	± 4.5 %
	1=Current regulation is too strict, and should be relaxed	14	2.9 %	± 1.8 %
	Total	475	100.0 %

	Mean = 2.53
	SD = 0.56

	Missing Cases = 9 
	Response Percent = 98.1 %

36

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

8. On May 21, 2007 the annual yield on 10-yr treasury bonds was 4.8%. Please complete the following:

	Mean	SD	95% CI	Median	Minimum	Maximum	Total

Over the next 10 years, I expect the average
annual S&P 500 return will be: There is a 1-in-10
chance it will be less than:	3.17	4.70	2.73 - 3.62	4	-25	50	425

Over the next 10 years, I expect the average
annual S&P 500 return will be: Expected return:	8.33	5.89	7.78 - 8.87	8	3	100	449

Over the next 10 years, I expect the average
annual S&P 500 return will be: There is a 1-in-10
chance it will be greater than:	11.94	7.65	11.21 - 12.66	11	3	100	425

Over the next year, I expect the average annual
S&P 500 return will be: There is a 1-in-10 chance it
will be less than:	0.53	6.90	-0.12 - 1.19	3	-25	25	424

Over the next year, I expect the average annual
S&P 500 return will be: Expected return:	7.37	3.72	7.02 - 7.71	7	-5	23	449

Over the next year, I expect the average annual
S&P 500 return will be: There is a 1-in-10 chance it
will be greater than:	12.00	5.24	11.50 - 12.50	11	-5	30	422

37

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

Revenue Weighted: 8. On May 21, 2007 the annual yield on 10-yr treasury bonds was 4.8%. Please complete the following:

	Mean	SD	95% CI	Median	Minimum	Maximum

Over the next 10 years, I expect the average annual S&P
500 return will be: There is a 1-in-10 chance it will be less
than:	3.06	3.14	3.02 - 3.10	3.50	-6.04	12.38

Over the next 10 years, I expect the average annual S&P
500 return will be: Expected return:	7.97	2.69	7.94 - 8.01	8	3	19.87

Over the next 10 years, I expect the average annual S&P
500 return will be: There is a 1-in-10 chance it will be
greater than:	11.76	3.83	11.71 - 11.81	11	3	26.93

Over the next year, I expect the average annual S&P 500
return will be: There is a 1-in-10 chance it will be less
than:	0.03	6.31	-0.05 - 0.11	2	-13	14.05

Over the next year, I expect the average annual S&P 500
return will be: Expected return:	7.42	3.44	7.38 - 7.47	7	0.08	14.66

Over the next year, I expect the average annual S&P 500
return will be: There is a 1-in-10 chance it will be greater
than:	12.22	4.64	12.16 - 12.28	12	1.73	22.27

38

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

Employee Weighted: 8. On May 21, 2007 the annual yield on 10-yr treasury bonds was 4.8%. Please complete the following:

	Mean	SD	95% CI	Median	Minimum	Maximum

Over the next 10 years, I expect the average annual S&P
500 return will be: There is a 1-in-10 chance it will be less
than:	3.33	3.22	3.29 - 3.37	4	-6.04	12.38

Over the next 10 years, I expect the average annual S&P
500 return will be: Expected return:	7.95	2.54	7.92 - 7.97	8	3	19.87

Over the next 10 years, I expect the average annual S&P
500 return will be: There is a 1-in-10 chance it will be
greater than:	11.78	3.88	11.74 - 11.83	12	3	26.93

Over the next year, I expect the average annual S&P 500
return will be: There is a 1-in-10 chance it will be less
than:	-0.04	6.41	-0.11 - 0.04	2	-13	14.05

Over the next year, I expect the average annual S&P 500
return will be: Expected return:	7.28	3.46	7.24 - 7.32	7	0.08	14.66

Over the next year, I expect the average annual S&P 500
return will be: There is a 1-in-10 chance it will be greater
than:	12.11	4.69	12.05 - 12.17	12	1.73	22.27

39

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

9. To what degree do you personally affect the investment decisions of your firm?

	 	Number	Percent	95% CI
	7=A Lot	117	24.6 %	± 4.0 %
	6=	86	18.1 %	± 3.6 %
	5=Moderate Amount	88	18.5 %	± 3.6 %
	4=	41	8.6 %	± 2.7 %
	3=A Little	74	15.6 %	± 3.4 %
	2=	24	5.1 %	± 2.1 %
	1=Not At All	45	9.5 %	± 2.8 %
	Total	475	100.0 %

	Mean = 4.75
	SD = 1.95

	Missing Cases = 9 
	Response Percent = 98.1 %

40

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

 10. For the investments that your company makes this year, what do you expect the internal rate of return (IRR) to be? 

	Mean	SD	95% CI	Median	Minimum	Maximum

Worst case:  There is a 1-in-10 chance that the actual
(realized) IRR will be less than  _____ %	6.26	4.55	5.81 - 6.71	5	0	25

Best Guess: I expect the IRR to be _____%	13.17	8.20	12.39 - 13.95	12	0	120

Best case:  There is a 1-in-10 chance that the actual
(realized) IRR will be greater than  _____ %	19.34	10.96	18.26 - 20.42	19	0	100

41

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

11. How do you rate your ability to choose which investment projects will turn out to be profitable to your firm?

	 	Number	Percent	95% CI
	7=Excellent	19	4.1 %	± 2.0 %
	6=	120	26.0 %	± 4.0 %
	5=	145	31.4 %	± 4.2 %
	4=Average	138	29.9 %	± 4.2 %
	3=	22	4.8 %	± 2.1 %
	2=	13	2.8 %	± 1.7 %
	1=Poor	5	1.1 %	± 1.4 %
	Total	462	100.0 %

	Mean = 4.82
	SD = 1.14

	Missing Cases = 22 
	Response Percent = 95.5 %

42

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

Industry

	 	Number	Percent	95% CI
	Manufacturing	119	24.9 %	± 4.0 %
	Banking/Finance/Insurance	66	13.8 %	± 3.2 %
	Other	64	13.4 %	± 3.2 %
	Retail/Wholesale	59	12.4 %	± 3.1 %
	Healthcare/Pharmaceutical	46	9.6 %	± 2.8 %
	Service/Consulting	41	8.6 %	± 2.7 %
	Mining/Construction	26	5.5 %	± 2.2 %
	Communications/Media	21	4.4 %	± 2.0 %
	Transportation/Energy	19	4.0 %	± 2.0 %
	Tech [Software/Biotech]	16	3.4 %	± 1.8 %
	Total	477	100.0 %

	Missing Cases = 7 
	Response Percent = 98.6 %

43

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

Industry (Other specified)

Agriculture	
Agriculture	
agriculture	
Art Auction	
biofuels	
BOTTLING	
Business Aviation	
Catering	
Commercial Construction	
Commercial Real Estate	
commerical construction property mgt	
conglomerate	
data	
Distribution	
Education	
Education	
Education	
Education	
Education	
Education	
Electrical Engineering	
Energy	
Engineering	
Engineering & Construction	
Food Processing	
Forest Products	
Gaming	
Home Building	
Hospitality	
Hospitality,Travel, Mktg	
Information Services	
medical transcription	
multi-company, multi-industry holding corp	
Newspaper Distribution	
non profit	
not for profit	
Oilfield Services	
private investors	
Real Estate	
Real Estate	
Real Estate	
Real Estate	
Real Estate	
Real Estate - REIT	
Real Estate Development	
Real Estate/Hospitality	
real estate	
real estate/management company	
Residential Mortgage	
Restaurants	
semiconductor	
semiconductor mfg	

44

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

Industry (Other specified)

Sports/Entertainment	
Telecommunications	
telecommunications	
timber	
Utility	
Waste Paper Broker	
Waste Services	
Water Utility	
youth care	

45

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

Sales Revenue

	 	Number	Percent	95% CI
	Less than $25 million	35	7.5 %	± 2.5 %
	$25-$99 million	94	20.0 %	± 3.7 %
	$100-$499 million	130	27.7 %	± 4.1 %
	$500-$999 million	46	9.8 %	± 2.8 %
	$1-$4.9 billion	87	18.6 %	± 3.6 %
	$5-$9.9 billion	31	6.6 %	± 2.4 %
	More than $10 billion	46	9.8 %	± 2.8 %
	Total	469	100.0 %

	Missing Cases = 15 
	Response Percent = 96.9 %

46

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

Weighted Sales Revenue (Millions)

	Minimum = 25

	Maximum = 11000

	Mean = 2302.14

	Median = 300

	Variance (Unbiased) = 12062141.59

	Standard Deviation (Unbiased) = 3473.06

	Standard Error Of The Mean  = 160.37

	95 Percent Confidence Interval Around The Mean = 1987.81 - 2616.47

	99 Percent Confidence Interval Around The Mean = 1889.18 - 2715.09

	Skewness = 1.63

	Kolmogorov-Smirnov Statistic For Normality = 7.00

Quartiles

	 1 = 62
	 2 = 300
	 3 = 3000

Valid Cases = 469 
Missing Cases = 15 
Response Percent = 96.9%

47

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

Number of Employees

	 	Number	Percent	95% CI
	Fewer than 100	57	13.3 %	± 3.0 %
	100-499	102	23.7 %	± 3.8 %
	500-999	48	11.2 %	± 2.8 %
	1,000-2,499	58	13.5 %	± 3.1 %
	2,500-4,999	43	10.0 %	± 2.7 %
	5,000-9,999	32	7.4 %	± 2.4 %
	Over 10,000	90	20.9 %	± 3.6 %
	Total	430	100.0 %

	Missing Cases = 54 
	Response Percent = 88.8 %

48

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

Weighted Number of Employees

	Minimum = 100

	Maximum = 12000

	Mean = 3848.95

	Median = 1750

	Variance (Unbiased) = 21465855.55

	Standard Deviation (Unbiased) = 4633.13

	Standard Error Of The Mean  = 223.43

	95 Percent Confidence Interval Around The Mean = 3411.03 - 4286.87

	99 Percent Confidence Interval Around The Mean = 3273.62 - 4424.28

	Skewness = 0.96

	Kolmogorov-Smirnov Statistic For Normality = 6.05

Quartiles

	 1 = 300
	 2 = 1750
	 3 = 7500

Valid Cases = 430 
Missing Cases = 54 
Response Percent = 88.8%

49

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

Headquarters

	 	Number	Percent	95% CI
	Midwest US	126	26.3 %	± 4.1 %
	Northeast US	124	25.9 %	± 4.0 %
	Pacific US	71	14.8 %	± 3.3 %
	South Atlantic US	65	13.6 %	± 3.2 %
	South Central US	47	9.8 %	± 2.8 %
	Europe	19	4.0 %	± 2.0 %
	Mountain US	12	2.5 %	± 1.7 %
	Asia	9	1.9 %	± 1.5 %
	Central/South America	4	0.8 %	± 1.4 %
	Canada	2	0.4 %
	Total	479	100.0 %

	Missing Cases = 5 
	Response Percent = 99.0 %

50

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

Ownership

	 	Number	Percent	95% CI
	Private	239	53.3 %	± 4.6 %
	Public, NYSE	127	28.3 %	± 4.1 %
	Public, Nasdaq/AMEX	49	10.9 %	± 2.9 %
	Nonprofit	25	5.6 %	± 2.2 %
	Government	8	1.8 %	± 1.5 %
	Total	448	100.0 %

	Missing Cases = 36 
	Response Percent = 92.6 %

51

Duke University/CFO Business Outlook Survey - U.S. - Spring, 2007

Foreign Sales

	 	Number	Percent	95% CI
	0%	173	36.1 %	± 4.4 %
	1-24%	192	40.1 %	± 4.5 %
	25-50%	69	14.4 %	± 3.3 %
	Over 50%	45	9.4 %	± 2.8 %
	Total	479	100.0 %

	Missing Cases = 5 
	Response Percent = 99.0 %