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A value-minded owner should search for ways to lower the company’s perceived risks to potential buyers or investors by: Creating a formal business plan. Forecasts and projections facilitate due diligence and demonstrate management depth. But buyers might critique a seller’s business plan and modify them with their own assumptions. Budgeted and actual results should be… Continue >>>
In October of 2003, I co-chaired a valuation roundtable session with Dr. Shannon Pratt, a highly regarded individual within the business appraisal profession. A question was asked regarding the use of market data in the market approach as it applies to the valuation of closely held companies. I thought it would be helpful to revisit… Continue >>>
The question that arises most often for many small business owners and others interested in purchasing a business is “what is a reasonable price for this business?” To some degree, every business is unique and therefore, there is no one-size-fits-all formula to determine the value. Years ago, I was visiting with a dentist who was… Continue >>>
Webster’s dictionary defines “concentration” as the act or process of concentrating, especially the fixing of close, undivided attention. In business valuation context, it is assessing a company’s risk profile and financial outlook. The presence of substantial concentrations (i.e., risks) frequently results in a lower value, than what otherwise might be expected. Concentrations, from a conceptual… Continue >>>
Startup type businesses get valued at various stages in their evolution. The key point here is startups need to undergo a series of valuation exercises at regular intervals; and the exercise is typically performed with limited financial data being available for the appraiser to use (with limited data being the norm). There are many approaches… Continue >>>
In finance, we use words like price and value, as if they were interchangeable. I have been guilty of this myself at times. It is worth noting, price and value not only come from different processes, but are determined by different variables and yield different numbers at the same point in time. The essence of… Continue >>>
Assessing risk is a crucial part of valuing a closely-held business. Business appraisers use risk assessments in the income approach to estimate rates of return (discount rates) and in the market approach to select valuation multiples. All else being equal, the higher a company’s risk, the lower its value, conversely lower risk (value drivers) increases… Continue >>>
The term “value” means different things to different individuals. I’m not sure who made that statement many years ago, but it still holds true today. The perceived value depends on the interpretations, circumstances and role of the shareholder(s). Without carefully defining the term “value”, a conclusion reached in a valuation report will have no meaning.… Continue >>>
What is the process to complete a business valuation? Valuing a privately held business is not an exact science. To do it accurately requires experience and the ability to examine all the risk factors and value drivers involved. A business valuation typically takes three to five weeks to complete, depending on the size and scope… Continue >>>
At least weekly we are asked to look through a valuation report, and find ourselves saying, “what in the world…?” Most often, the document supplied to us for review, cites earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) with adjustments to historical financial information. Adjustments can be perfectly acceptable, as owners run excess personal expenses… Continue >>>
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