Keys to Exit Excellence: Act Now, Begin the Grooming Process, Proactively Identify Potential Acquirers, and Create Value in Your Practice    Donald J. Korn writes in The Journal of Accountancy that it's critical to be proactive in building an exit plan.  Here he talks to a number of experts on the topic—including NACVA member Marty Abo, who recently was featured in Smart CEO Magazine—and collects tips on be ...

Successful Exit Key to Current Performance—and Future Sponsorship Opportunities Chris Manderson at PE Hub writes that  in the private equity world today, sponsors’ track records in successfully exiting investments are a major factor in fundraising.  If sponsors cannot exit previous investments and provide returns, they will find it much more difficult to raise subsequent funds: ...

Why Choosing Good Counsel to Help with Exit Planning Can Be the Most Important Decision a Business Owner Makes Venture Resources believes many business owners don’t fully appreciate the complexities and factors that are present in the deal structuring and business selling process, including understanding how to project the company’s future, applying alternate deal structures, and maximizing current business ...

Study:  More Deals Occur in Countries That Follow Similar Financial-Reporting Standards   At CFO.com Kathleen Hoffelder reports that dissimilar national accounting standards and the lack of adherence to international financial reporting rules seem to be a major deterrent to companies eyeing targets beyond their borders, according to a recent academic study. Moreover, cross-border acquisitions by companies o ...

The U.S. Must Cut $800 or $900 billion From Our Annual Government Spending to Maintain Mid-term Economic Solvency.  And That's Just the Beginning.     Flooding the system with trillions of dollars and deficits has bought the U.S. economic stagnation, writes Rob Slee in an August 20, 2012 post at MidasNation.   "What a lost opportunity. One thing we learned in MidasNation over the past few years is that when ...

Acquiring Companies Need to Conduct a Brand Valuation Post-Acquisition to Comply with IFRS.  Here's Why it Makes Sense to Do it Before the Acquisition.   As all companies complying with IFRS must carry out a brand valuation post acquisition for compliance, there’s a strong argument for carrying out the necessary due diligence and valuation beforehand, explains the marketing director of Intangible Business, ...

Beyond Deal Price, Consider Deal Structure, Earnouts, and Appropriate Standard of Value    When one company is acquiring another, the deal price is often the primary factor considered. Too many times, however, critical issues are overlooked, explains Sean R. Saari, CPA/ABV, CVA, MBA.  Smart Business spoke with Saari about five questions any business valuation any acquirer needs to consider:   ...

Plan for Death, Disability, and a Partner Wanting Out.  Here's Why.    John P. Napolitano,  CEO of U.S. Wealth Management in Braintree, Mass., and 2012 president of the Financial Planning Association of Massachusetts, explains why it's critical to think about the future, even if you're overwhelmed with work today: ...

This Long Term Plan Is of Particular Use to Owners of Illiquid Privately Held Companies Consultants can help business owners planning a sale by helping them understand how a charitable remainder trust might help. These trusts can significantly reduce owed taxes and ensure owners receive regular income in return for donating cash, securities, or real estate to a charity. It’s of particular use for owners of ...

Shared Values and Employee Practices Drive Increased Productivity, Loyalty, and Best Customer Service The shared values and practices of employees in a company have real value that can be just as critical to a company’s success as its physical assets and market potential. Employees who passionately enjoy their work tend to be more productive, have increased employer loyalty, and offer better customer servic ...

Intangible Assets, Switching Costs, Network Economies, and Cost Advantage Provide a Critical Edge Ron Stacey contends the answer is not a dominant market share, efficiency, or even a talented management team. Companies with lasting advantage tend to be strengthened by intangible assets, switching costs, network economies, and cost advantage. Find out why.  ...

Of an Estimated $72B Raised by U.S. Buyout Sponsors Through Mid-Year, 43% Has Gone to Mega-Funds  PE Hub opines that while many LPs claim they favor small- to mid-sized business investments, that this year the numbers are beginning to tell a different story.   There is increased investment in buyout funds doing deals of $1 billion or more in size.   It may be that mega-funds  while less are simply the only ...

It’s Prime Time for Estate Planning Market volatility may be tough on the nerves, opines the Wall Street Journal, but it could be a boon for wealthy families looking to shelter assets from taxes while helping their children.  Here’s how to  devise strategies on discounts, GRATs, and loans.  Additional advice:  take advantage of low interest rates and exploit the federal gift-tax exemption. ...

Six Critical Questions to Ask Would-be Buyers When prospective buyers call, it’s critical owners use the opportunity to capture valuable information about the market, who active buyers are, and what’s driving the value of their company. MidCap Advisors suggests six critical questions to discern what profit levels and growth rates a buyer is looking for and, most importantly, how a buyer approaches valuing c ...

Ron Stacey considers Return on Invested Capital (ROIC) and growth using EBITDA as a proxy for cash flow. ROIC, Stacey writes, is a critical value driver that’s probably the single most important factor for a given cost of capital.  But calculation is never simple: “People always want a formula, but it doesn’t work that way,” Warren Buffet once noted. “You have to estimate total cash generated from now to et ...

Bankers Say M&A 'Good for Good Companies' Which Can Often be Sold for 9-10x Earnings  Luisa Beltran at PE Hub wonders:   "Is there an M&A slowdown?"    ...

Main Street Businesses: Smart Strategies for Exit Plan Main Street businesses are those with less than $3 million in annual sales and less than 20 employees. While Main Street businesses are the backbone of the U.S. economy, the U.S. Small Business Administration reports that four out of five of these businesses liquidate when the owner decides to retire rather than ending in a profitable sale to a new owne ...

Terri Eyden at AccountingWeb analyzes new research from the American Accounting Association and finds that M&A restatements are common.  Excerpt: ...

Who Are America’s Wealthiest People? Small- and medium-sized businesses are the engines that drive the American economy. An IRS study of everyone who died with a net worth of at least $600,000 (and thus was required to file an estate tax return) showed America’s wealthiest citizens all have one thing in common: they all held significant blocks of stock in closely held private companies.  In a nutshell, the ...

Competitive Intelligence is Key to Smart Acquisitions Part of growth is acquisition.  To do smart acquisitions, you need insight into a business owner’s thoughts—specifically, her concerns vis-à-vis selling the businesses. These are not questions with simple yes or no answers; it’s more critical to figure out what an owner thought was missing in previous acquisition overtures. What, aside from price, will i ...