A Premium Multiple is Hard to Come By and Harder to Keep;  Owners Should Worry More About Improving Performance  Susan Nolen Foushee, Tim Koller, and Anand Mehta make the case in McKinsey Quarterly that executives considering company value often worry too much about their company's multiple (e.g., a P/E ratio, or EV/EBIDTA, etc.) instead of focusing on company growth.   It isn't that multiples aren't legiti ...

Federal Cases Examine Bankruptcy, Valuation Standards The Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit weighs in on penalties for “gross valuation misstatement” in Gursthaw v. Commissioner, and the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Eastern District of Tennesee rules on the value of mortgage liens In re: Williams. ...

More Than Just Valuation: How to Seize Opportunities by Getting Out of Your Comfort Zone It’s a trap to define yourself as a valuator, rather than someone in the “problem-solving” business. Rand Curtiss explains why. ...

What Happens When a Business is In Over Its Head and Who is to Blame? When firms approach bankruptcy, a definition of what constitutes “deepening insolvency” becomes critical in establishing the legitimacy of litigation concerning damages, breach of fiduciary duty, and more. Michael J. Molder explains context, consequences, and case law on the matter. ...

Redefining the Value of Appraisals, and Helping Clients Understand Paul R. Hyde discusses how appraisals come in a variety of configurations based on client needs. Here are tips on how to balance these conflicting demands, and how best to set the expectation for work in valuation. ...

Implications of the SEC IFRS Work Plan for Private and Public Issuers; How Slow Adoption May Rewrite GAAP   Grant Thornton Audit Services has published a 16-page report providing background and context on IFRS in the United States.   The report explores how market forces press the issue, cover SEC final report highlights and reaction to the report, summarizes how some companies are preparing for IFRS today, ...

Although 2013 Rates Are Still Unclear, Smart Planners Are Making These Moves Today Laura Sanders at the Wall Street Journal reports that the annual scramble to make smart tax moves before December 31 is proving especially vexing this year, since Congress still hasn’t settled 2013 tax rates on income, investments, large gifts, and estates. Deductions and other breaks are in doubt.  And some questions—such as ...

Engage Employees with Teamwork and Consensus; Look Beyond Your Own Industry, and Execute Carefully In a recent issue of the Financial Planning Association’s Practice Management Solutions, Paul R. Brown identifies important factors successful business owners pay careful attention to when managing substantial change in their organizations successfully. Here’s what to pay attention to. ...

The Definition of Risk is Standard Deviation of Returns; Here’s What it Means, and What it Has to Do with “Total Beta” Is the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM) superior as a valuation modeling tool to Total Beta? Peter J. Butler and Gary Schurman think not. Here’s why: ...

Calculating Discounts Accurately Depends a Lot on Company Specifics. Here’s What You Need to Know Dennis Bingham and KC Conrad provide a thorough look at options for calculating a discount for lack of marketability (DLOM), including restricted stock studies, pre-IPO studies, theoretical and option pricing models, discounted cash flow (DCF), Mandelbaum factors, and more. ...

Lots of Room for Innovation on Security. M&A Pros: Here’s What to Watch! What’s an important sector to keep an eye on in terms of M&A? Mobile Security. Mobile devices face at least four threats: Fraud (stealing $$), data theft, and probing and nuisance attacks. There’s room for innovation on everything from voice encryption, payment card processing, digital rights management, user authentication, ap ...

First, Define a Computer Use Policy for Your Firm How can you best protect against IP theft—or simple misuse—by employees? Karl Epps explains that a solid first step is defining a computer use policy establishing approved policies and protocols for removable media, offsite storage, remote access, and laptops. Here’s an overview of common problem areas and software and policies that can help best address the ...

Cases in Ohio, Delaware Assess Acquisition Share Value, Family Business In Iacampo v. Oliver Iacampo, the Ohio Court of Appeals rules on the appropriate use of experts in valuing a family business, the nature of passive income, and financial help from the wife’s parents. In Delaware,  Gaerreald v. Just Care, Inc. turns on proper methods for determining share value, the value of an expert opinion, and defere ...

Here’s How a Systematic Review of Risk Can Help Valuators Assign Appropriate Discounts and Premiums Industry risk can vary widely from company to company and industry to industry. Here are 20 questions valuation analysts can use to identify risk related to market segment; competitive position; political, environmental, and legal factors; pricing trends; profit margins, and more. ...

Business Owners Need to Establish Clear Guidelines for Future Buyouts with Their Partners John Markel explains that it’s critical for partners to put together a buy-sell agreement that establishes in specific detail the standard of value, the level of value, and acceptable methods for funding a buyout. Here’s why. ...

CBO Details Penalties For Being Uninsured Under The Patient Protection And Affordable Care Act The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office recently reported an estimated six million people would be subject to the Obamacare tax, approximating $7 billion in taxes in 2016 with each of the 6 million people paying at least $695. ...

Typical Household Taxes Go Up by $2,000, Says Non-Partisan Tax Policy Center More than a dozen tax cuts are set to expire Dec. 31 and a couple of new taxes are scheduled to start with the new year, Catherine Rampell at The New York Times reports.  Here's more: ...

Should Valuators Give Citations to Specific Court Cases in Expert Reports? Different expert witnesses subscribe to different schools of thought about whether it’s best to make frequent and specific citations in an expert report or not. Charles Lunden lists 12 reasons supporting one set of conclusions. Find out more! ...

Fifth Circuit Disallows 40% Valuation Misjudgment Penalty, OKs 20% Negligence Penalty The Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit disallows a 40% valuation misjudgment penalty in Bemont Invs., LLC v. United States, but affirms a Texas Court’s 20% negligence penalty.  Judge Goeke at the Tax Court draws distinctions on when charitable deductions are allowable in Dunlap v. Commissioner. ...

Owners: Don't Exit Before You're Ready, Lock Yourself In, or Count on Future Consulting There is no single formula that will result in a happy retirement for business owners. Over 75 percent of business owners say they regretted selling their companies a year after the sale, according to a PwC study entitled “Whose Business is it Anyway?” But there are ways to improve the chances that consultants can help o ...