Zynga and Concentrations Revisited
In August 2012, I wrote a post entitled “Zynga and the High Cost of Concentrations.” This post takes a look at Zynga today.
Category Archives: Business Value
Why the Focus on EBITDA?
There is a fascination in the business world with something called EBITDA. Look on the audited financial statement of any company and you won’t find any such thing. But everyone, or almost everyone, is talking about EBITDA when they talk about business earnings. EBITDA is an acronym for Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization. It is important because, as we will see, EBITDA is the initial source of all reinvestment in a business and for all returns to shareholders. Investors and analysts focus on EBITDA because when buying a business or when valuing a business, it is necessary to make judgments about its ability to generate cash flow sufficient to meet all of the needs of the business and and to provide adequate returns to shareholders.
What Creates Value in Your Business?
The business press is often confusing regarding value and businesses. We can read articles on one strategy or another, on supply chain management, on accounts receivable or inventory management, on productivity, and on many other topics that seem to relate to the value of businesses. When we read these articles, however, it is helpful to keep in mind that the story of the value of any business must ultimately be described using three factors. Keeping this in mind helps to place all else into appropriate perspective.
Five Important Valuation Issues
Last month (April 2014) attended and spoke at the Joint Conference of the AICPA and the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers in Las Vegas. It was a fun conference that had record attendance for this bi-annual event. While in Las Vegas, I had a chance to attend one show with a Memphis theme and another with […]
What is Transferable Business Value?
There are two kinds of value for your business: 1) Value to you as an owner, and 2) Transferable value. These concepts are important to understand as we talk about successful ownership and management transitions.
Tokyo Report: The Value of a Brand is in or at the Margin of a Business
I spoke at the 2013 RICS Asia Valuation Conference in Tokyo this morning (November 6, 2013). The theme of the conference was “Asset Valuation: The Lifeblood of Global Financial Markets.” My general session talk was titled “The Value of Brands Is In or At The Margin.”
International Valuation Standards Council’s Annual Meetings in Tokyo
The International Valuation Standards Council (IVSC) is having its Annual General Meeting in Tokyo this week. The Professional Board and Standards Board will hold their public meetings this week. The Board of Trustees will also meet and participate in the Annual General Meeting. In addition, there will be a meeting of the IVSC Advisory Forum, […]
Growing Your Business! Personally
The Tennessee Chapter of the National Speakers Association held a meeting recently in Nashville. The speaker was former National Speakers Association president, Mark LeBlanc, author of what has been called “the little blue book,” Growing Your Business! Mark’s audience is comprised of small business owners and those in professional practices, or a group of businesses […]
FedEx & the U.S. Postal Service: Does Customer Concentration Affect Value?
According to recent news reports, FedEx might lose its contract with the U.S. Postal Service. Does that affect FedEx’s value? What effect does customer concentration have on a private company’s value?
Appropriate Period of Historical Financial Analysis
Some time ago, an attorney called saying he was in the midst of a negotiation with the Internal Revenue Service regarding the enterprise value of a business. The company was in a cyclical industry and the appraiser had used a ten year analysis of historical earnings in developing his estimate of earning power for capitalization. […]