Corporate valuation underlies the interrelationship between corporate strategy, financial analysis and financial management. Acquisitions, mergers, ESOPs and private placements are becoming increasingly common in the middle-market as investment banks and non-bank entities become players in the field. Managers and financial professionals need to become conversant in corporate valuation methods in order to expand their relationships with customers and to create profitable opportunities for their organization.;This text provides a catalogue of valuation tools, together with guidance on analyzing and valuing a business. The author breaks down the topic to provide advice for any business, no matter how complex. He presents eight different methods of firm valuation and discusses the benefits and limitations of each method, supporting this information with examples from international markets.

In today's ultra-competitive global economy, intangibles are increasingly taking centre stage in firms' business strategies and investors' valuations. Physical and financial assets are becoming commodities, yielding at best a competitive return on investment. In their place, intangible assets such as patents, brands, unique business processes, breakthrough scientific discoveries and strategic alliances are what firms are using to create dominant market positions, control risk, generate abnormal profits, and achieve growth and wealth. The dramatic rise and fall of high-technology company valuations has brought the unusual economic characteristics of intangible assets into the public arena. The concurrent advantages and vulnerabilities of intangible-intensive companies has highlighted the importance of having an in-depth understanding of the economics of intangibles and developing tools to better manage and evaluate them. This reader provides that understanding by bringing together the best research and advocacy on intangibles.

An Introduction to Wavelets and Other Filtering Methods in Finance and Economics presents a unified view of filtering techniques with a special focus on wavelet analysis in finance and economics. It emphasizes the methods and explanations of the theory that underlies them. It also concentrates on exactly what wavelet analysis (and filtering methods in general) can reveal about a time series. It offers testing issues which can be performed with wavelets in conjunction with the multi-resolution analysis. The descriptive focus of the book avoids proofs and provides easy access to a wide spectrum of parametric and nonparametric filtering methods. Examples and empirical applications will show readers the capabilities, advantages, and disadvantages of each method.
*The first book to present a unified view of filtering techniques
*Concentrates on exactly what wavelets analysis and filtering methods in general can reveal about a time series
*Provides easy access to a wide spectrum of parametric and non-parametric filtering methods

This authoritative guide--the only in-depth survey of dividend policy--challenges the belief that corporate executives and financial analysts should dismiss dividend policy as irrelevant to shareholder wealth. Dividend policy does matter, say the authors, as they cite many classic and contemporary examples to show how dividend policy decisions play out in the marketplace. A carefully planned and executed policy is critical to maximizing shareholder wealth. This accessible, practical book covers every aspect of sound dividend planning and implementation. It includes a brief history of the evolution of dividends, statistics on dividends relative to profits and capital investments, their importance as a component of investor total returns, the relationship of dividends to share price, how management makes dividend decisions, and the impact of different tax regulations on dividend policies. The book focuses less on mathematics and more on the intuition of share valuation as a function of dividend policy. While the authors acknowledge the irrelevance of dividend policy in a world with perfect capital markets, they stress how market imperfections such as taxes, imperfect information, and agency issues can alter the dividend irrelevance conclusion. The book devotes special chapters to international dividend policy and to share repurchases as an alternative to dividend payouts. It concludes with the authors' recommendations on how managers should incorporate market imperfections most relevant to their firms in setting dividend policy. Dividend Policy is a must-have resource for all managers, executives, and institutional investors.

In 1995, Republicans came to power in the United States with an ambitious program proposing to embrace a degree of laissez- faire economics unknown for generations anywhere in the industrialized world. Simultaneously, politicians, entrepreneurs, and economists championed the new bastions of unregulated capitalism that sprung up in such unfamiliar precincts as Beijing and Moscow. Yet to date many free-market economic policies, be it in Prague or here in America, have not lived up to their initial promises. In fact, it has become a common joke in Russia that capitalism has succeeded in making communism look good, a feat unaccomplished by the Kremlin in its 70 year reign.

In Making Capitalism Work, Leonard and Mark Silk analyze the failures and successes of capitalism as seen most recently in the former Soviet Bloc, Japan, China, the European Community and the United States. While recognizing that capitalism has been successful in a number of countries, the authors point out that overly simplistic policies advocating an unfettered capitalism ignore too large a range of issues central to the formation of any moral economic system. Viewing capitalism as simply one of a number of economic systems, Leonard and Mark Silk address such issues as the obligation of the rich to the poor, the responsibility of the state to insulate its citizens from market fluctuations, the responsibility of present generations to provide for future ones, and whether economic systems can set the proper extent and limits of individual rights and freedoms.

An important, concise, thought-provoking book this is the last book Leonard Silk wrote before his death late last year and has been completed here by his son, Mark.

A global banking risk management guide geared toward the practitioner Financial Risk Management presents an in-depth look at banking risk on a global scale, including comprehensive examination of the U.S. Comprehensive Capital Analysis and Review, and the European Banking Authority stress tests. Written by the leaders of global banking risk products and management at SAS, this book provides the most up-to-date information and expert insight into real risk management. The discussion begins with an overview of methods for computing and managing a variety of risk, then moves into a review of the economic foundation of modern risk management and the growing importance of model risk management. Market risk, portfolio credit risk, counterparty credit risk, liquidity risk, profitability analysis, stress testing, and others are dissected and examined, arming you with the strategies you need to construct a robust risk management system. The book takes readers through a journey from basic market risk analysis to major recent advances in all financial risk disciplines seen in the banking industry. The quantitative methodologies are developed with ample business case discussions and examples illustrating how they are used in practice. Chapters devoted to firmwide risk and stress testing cross reference the different methodologies developed for the specific risk areas and explain how they work together at firmwide level. Since risk regulations have driven a lot of the recent practices, the book also relates to the current global regulations in the financial risk areas. Risk management is one of the fastest growing segments of the banking industry, fueled by banks' fundamental intermediary role in the global economy and the industry's profit-driven increase in risk-seeking behavior. This book is the product of the authors' experience in developing and implementing risk analytics in banks around the globe, giving you a comprehensive, quantitative-oriented risk management guide specifically for the practitioner. * Compute and manage market, credit, asset, and liability risk * Perform macroeconomic stress testing and act on the results * Get up to date on regulatory practices and model risk management * Examine the structure and construction of financial risk systems * Delve into funds transfer pricing, profitability analysis, and more Quantitative capability is increasing with lightning speed, both methodologically and technologically. Risk professionals must keep pace with the changes, and exploit every tool at their disposal. Financial Risk Management is the practitioner's guide to anticipating, mitigating, and preventing risk in the modern banking industry.

This comprehensive guide to all the essential legal and business considerations in financing the business activities of the modern corporation. Readers are provided with a clear and concise introduction to the legal and contractual framework that governs the major capital raising transactions in which a firm might be involved, with a particular emphasis upon the federal and state securities laws. An indispensable resource for consummating any private investment transaction, public offering, or commerical loan transaction, as well as dealing with disclosure requirements, the structuring of underwriting arrangements, and complying with public company responsibilities. Intended for entrepreneurs and managers at firms of all sizes.

It's not your imagination: the wealthy "do" get wealthier, while you still struggle from paycheck to paycheck. In this eye-opening money manual, seasoned certified public accountant Joseph Rouse explores why millions of hard-working, middle-class Americans like you have such a hard time making ends meet and then delivers a no-fail plan for taking charge of your financial destiny.

Rouse examines today's social, political, and economic realities that force most people to work long hours and even multiple jobs just to get by. And he tells how and why, if you aren't careful, you will most certainly lose your ability to retire at all.

Rouse's must-have guide to financial freedom delivers the tools and guidance you need to stop feeling helpless and start managing your finances with confidence. With his straightforward, solid, empowering approach, you will learn how to overcome every obstacle placed in your way by politicians, mass media, and your own temptations; destroy debt forever; and get on your way to building an impressive nest egg for yourself and your family.

At last, anyone and everyone can get ahead, achieve financial security, and enjoy a much-deserved, rich retirement

"Accounting for Improvement" offers concrete and constructive demonstrations of the possibilities of designing participative forms of organization. Field experiment cases illustrate how the operational level can assume a new significance in competitiveness and strategic positioning. In this way, the relevance of the accounting function to the improvement of productivity and quality is restored.

Several broadly applicable lessons can be learnt, among them: how companies can strengthen their competitive base by patient improvement; how people with operative jobs can take command of their work situation and improve it in quality as well as efficiency.

New bottom-up, people-orientated, empirically-founded approaches to decentralised participative management demonstrate a place for individuals and teamwork in today's "lost relevance" and "smart machine" environment.

In The Search for Value: Measuring the Company's Cost of Capital, Michael C. Ehrhardt analyzes the latest prescriptive techniques and models for determining the cost of capital. He provides a comprehensive framework for practitioners by detailing the various methods for accurately evaluating investment in projects, divisions, or entire companies. He begins with a general discussion of the cost of capital within the context of a firm's overall search for value and continues on to cover such topics as discounted cash flow analysis, flotation costs, long-term projects, and international projects, as well as situations in which traditional cash flow analysis may not apply, such as regulated companies. Ehrhardt moves easily through a variety of technical concepts, providing numerous step-by-step examples to explain how theoretical constructs can be applied to daily financial decisions. He also provides a particularly detailed analysis of estimating capital costs in multidivisional, multiproduct, and multinational firms. Each chapter features an extensive bibliography for further reading. Written for financial directors, planners, managers, and analysts as well as for those who study finance issues, this work successfully addresses the concerns of financial practitioners. In today's competitive business environment, the consequences of miscalculation can be devastating. Correctly evaluating the cost of capital and thereby determining the value-creating potential of investments is a business imperative. The Search for Value is a unique synthesis of the issues surrounding the cost of capital, presenting the most comprehensive treatment of the topic to date. Those who implement the ideas in thisbook will enjoy the returns made possible by accurate measurements of the cost of capital as an integral part of capital budgeting and strategic planning. The Search for Value launches the Harvard Business School Press's publication of the Financial Management Association Survey and Synthesis Series, which seeks to bridge the gap between academic research and practice in the field of finance.

Riahi-Belkaoui's research shows that U.S. firms, and possibly firms elsewhere, resort to the underutilization of their resources, a phenomenon known as organizational and budgetary slack. In this, the first exhaustive study of slack, the author identifies and explains the phenomenon and its causes, explicates the characteristics of organizations afflicted by it, and suggests ways to remedy it. In doing so, he also analyzes the role of the multidivisional structure and the performance plan in the creation of slack, and the distortion of information that accompanies it. A challenging study for organizational behavior theorists and for organization planners and top management in the private and public sectors.

In today's increasingly litigious climate, corporate directors can be held personally liable for the financial misconduct of corporate employees. In this comprehensive volume, Fertakis provides the practical information corporate board members need to correctly interpret the financial data and operating statements presented to them for review and approval. Written in a style accessible to directors who are not financial specialists, the book shows how to spot clues in financial statements to potentially serious underlying problems, how to evaluate and understand financial presentations, and how to obtain an accurate picture of a company's financial affairs.

The author, with the cooperation of the Brookings Institution and the Congressional Budget Office, analyzes the efficiency of the Small Business Administration. In the book's seven chapters Rhyne examines loan rate defaults, the subsidy issue, how banks respond to incentives to lend, and the philosophic question of the ultimate purpose of the SBA program. Coverage includes historical aspects, the life cycle of SBA loans, and various policy and financial issues of SBA programs. Rhyne is critical of the SBA loan guarantees; she presents recommendations for reforms and discusses the implications for other credit programs. . . . Original government data sources were used extensively in the research, making the work quite definitive as of the publishing date. Choice

The Small Business Administration (SBA) loan guarantee program--one of the mainstays of small business financing--has been both sharply attacked as wasteful and staunchly defended as essential during recent debates over the Federal budget. This book clarifies the reasons for the often heated debate and offers new insights into whether the program does indeed subsidize the weak or perform a valuable service in bridging the small business credit gap. Rhyne argues persuasively that despite recent program improvements, the SBA allows a hefty subsidy to continue by tolerating frequent, costly defaults. She recommends that the program seek to become financially self-sustaining, thereby adopting a simple market-making function rather than a credit allocation role.

The book with a brief history of the SBA program and its predecessor in the Reconstruction Finance Corporation. The author describes the prograM's political environment and demonstrates the central role of banks in the program. She then moves to a thorough analysis of the prograM's financial performance and assesses the impact of SBA loans on banks. Subsequent chapters examine the cost of the program to the SBA, the social goals of the program and how well it fulfills them, and the changes made in the program during the 1980s to improve its management efficiency. The final chapter explores policy changes that could improve the prograM's overall performance and offers recommendations for reform ranging from minor management improvements to major program restructuring. A landmark critique of a major governmental program and its impact on the business community, this book should be read by every banker, small business owner, and legislator with an interest in the fate of the SBA loan guarantee program, or in the government's role in credit allocation.

Elgar Advanced Introductions are stimulating and thoughtful introductions to major fields in the social sciences and law, expertly written by the world s leading scholars. Designed to be accessible yet rigorous, they offer concise and lucid surveys of the substantive and policy issues associated with discrete subject areas. This concise yet comprehensive introduction aims to outline the core principles of Cost-Benefit Analysis (CBA), laying them out in an accessible manner with minimum technical detail. The applied nature of the subject is emphasized by showing how each of the principles is applied to an actual public policy intervention, covering transport, education, health and the environment. Robert J. Brent demonstrates how economic efficiency and equity can be combined as social objectives to help determine decisions that can increase satisfaction for all. Covering the fundamental principles, this book presents applications for every concept discussed and lays the foundations for further study in the field. It combines distribution with efficiency as the objectives of public policy, compares the CBA methodology with competing methods of allocating resources that satisfy basic needs, and analyses CBA from the perspective of modern applied welfare economics. The main conclusion is that CBA is the basis for understanding any kind of public policy decision regardless of the field of study, be that government expenditure, taxation or regulation, and irrespective of the tangible or intangible outcome the policy is attempting to influence. Both accessible and erudite, the Advanced Introduction to Cost Benefit Analysis will be essential reading for students of health, education, transportation, public finance, regulation, environmental and development economics, and political science, as well as the general reader interested in understanding how public policy should be implemented. Furthermore, the insightful analysis will appeal to practitioners working in government, public institutions and NGOs.

Take control of your investment decisions The investment industry is in a state of inertia. Recent events highlight an overreliance on mathematical foundations and flawed investment models. Investors need to find new paths to effective wealth creation. The Empowered Investor provides a proven framework for wealth creation. Built around 7 key principles and practical real-world examples, the book provides insight into the limitations of traditional investment concepts, and illustrates how investors can take control of their investments. Instead of relying on often flawed financial advice, investors need to develop their own investment approach, drawing on their unique skill sets and experiences. This book: -Presents a practical strategy for wealth creation, based on practical experience and sound theoretical foundation; -Provides real world cases and excerpts from interviews with highly successful investors; -Demonstrates how investors can build on their core strengths, exploit opportunities and differentiate their investments; -Illustrates how to protect a portfolio from threats and risks This book will help you: -Build on your core strengths; -Identify and make the most of new opportunities; -Cultivate quality networks; -Differentiate your investments; -Protect yourself against threats and risks; -Understand and manage the time dimension; -Execute with efficiency. Written in a practical and straightforward manner, The Empowered Investor provides a robust strategic toolkit for investors, bringing the individual to the core of the investment strategy and creating new opportunities for wealth creation.

Managers in all types of organizations and at all levels of supervision have the responsibility to investigate using negotiation and ADR to determine how they can reduce the harmful impact of litigation. The book deals with recognizing and understanding the problems, costs and reasons behind excessive litigation. The author describes the strong relationship that occurs between improving one's negotiation skills and making use of formal ADR techniques designed to resolve disputes. This book is for managers at the higher levels of supervision and in both private and public organizations, in-house attorneys and attorneys from outside legal firms that service corporate accounts.

The author first addresses the issue of the history and reasons behind the proliferation and expense of lawsuits in the business world. A risk-return framework is presented to help managers assess the costs, both direct and indirect, of alternative actions they can take. The impact of wrongful-dismissal suits is given an in-depth discussion. After addressing the traditional client-lawyer model, the author offers tools such as the legal-dispute audit, the manager's dispute resolution decision tree, and detours to lawsuits. A thorough analysis of both negotiations and ADR techniques follows. The book concludes with chapters on arbitration, mediation, mini-trials, and private judging. A list of where to find service providers, professional societies, and research organizations is also included.

The question that faces governments and militaries the world over is how best to allocate resources for management of defence in the new age. This book, by Shri A.K. Ghosh who has an economics background, explores the framework for change in resource allocation and capability building. It emphasises the importance of introducing programming in Indian defence to serve as a link between defence planning and budgeting. The mismatch between defence planning and budgeting needs to be connected by the introduction of resource constrained budgeting, having a multi-year perspective. The RMA, force modernisation, cost-benefit analysis, management of risks, and internal and external audits are among the many issues the author has provided a perspective on. It is argued by the author that defence needs to be viewed as a giant business and, where possible, business practices should be introduced. The book is recommended reading for the planners and decision-makers of defence management and will benefit readers from the armed forces as well. The lay readers interested in the subject of national defence and security will also find it useful and interesting.