In these slides we discuss the practical and conceptual difficulty of finding an Optimal Capital Structure. We propose a normative approach we call Implicit Bankruptcy Costs Theory and how to proceed to find the optimal capital structure and value with period-to-period constant and variable...

In cash flow valuation, on grounds of simplicity, it is common to assume that the leverage is constant over time. With constant leverage, the return to levered equity is constant and consequently, the Weighted Average Cost of Capital (WACC) applied to the Free Cash Flow is constant. However,...

Vélez-Pareja and Tham, 2003a, Vélez-Pareja and Tham, 2003b and Tham and Vélez-Pareja, 2004 showed the matching between discounted cash flow (DCF) methods and value added methods. They departed from the net operating profit less adjusted taxes NOPLAT and net income when using market values to...

cash flow and time value of money. In this note we specify very clearly what has to be included in those cash flows and the reasons why they should be included. The main issue is related to the inclusion or exclusion of some items in the working capital and the current practice to consider that...

In “Consistency in Chocolate: A Fresh Look at Copeland’s Hershey Foods & Co Case” we showed the inconsistencies regarding the assumption of constant leverage and the inconsistency in the values for equity calculated with different approaches. In this second part we show the differences in...

In the latest edition of Principles of Corporate Finance (Brealey, Myers and Allen, 2006) the authors use a finite cash flow example to illustrate the valuation procedure for using the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) method with the free cash flow (FCF) and the Adjusted Present Value (APV). The two...

Practitioners and teachers very easily break some consistency rules when doing or teaching valuation of assets. In this short and simple note we present a practical guide to call the attention upon the most frequent broken consistency rules. They have to do firstly with the consistency in the...

This paper shows how to proceed to find the optimal capital structure and value with period-to-period constant and variable leverage, when the discount rate for tax shields is Ke, the cost of levered equity. Numerical procedures and recursive closed-form non-circular expressions for the...

In theory, different valuation methods, with consistent assumptions, must give identical results. Numerical examples that purport to illustrate the theory should demonstrate the identical results. Unfortunately, in popular textbooks it is all too easy to find numerical examples that are at odds...