Musings on Markets

FEBRUARY 27, 2023

Note that this framework applies for all businesses, from the smallest, privately owned businesses, where debt takes the form of bank loans and even credit card borrowing and equity is owner savings, the largest publicly traded companies, where debt can be in the form of corporate bonds and equity is shares held by public market investors.

Corporate Finance 52

Corporate Finance Finance Marketing Leverage 52

Musings on Markets

JANUARY 9, 2021

I spent the first week of 2021 in the same way that I have spent the first week of every year since 1995, collecting data on publicly traded companies and analyzing how they navigated the cross currents of the prior year, both in operating and market value terms.

Valuation 52

Valuation Currencies Numbers Corporate Finance 52

Musings on Markets

FEBRUARY 8, 2022

In the first few weeks of 2022, we have had repeated reminders from the market that risk never goes away for good, even in the most buoyant markets, and that when it returns, investors still seem to be surprised that it is there.

Hurdle Rate 67

Hurdle Rate Currencies Investments Corporate Finance 67

Musings on Markets

JANUARY 5, 2024

The numbers that I computed opened my eyes to how much perspective on the high, low, and typical values, i.e., the distribution of margins, helped in valuing the company, and how little information there was available, at least at that time, on this dimension.

Valuation 98

Valuation Financial Analysis Analyzing Data Profit and Loss 98

Musings on Markets

AUGUST 15, 2023

After the rating downgrade, my mailbox was inundated with questions of what this action meant for investing, in general, and for corporate finance and valuation practice, in particular, and this post is my attempt to answer them all with one post. Why does the risk-free rate matter? What is a risk free investment?

Investments 80

Investments Currencies Treasury Hurdle Rate 80

Musings on Markets

MARCH 8, 2023

This is the last of my data update posts for 2023, and in this one, I will focus on dividends and buybacks, perhaps the most most misunderstood and misplayed element of corporate finance. Viewed in that context, dividends as just as integral to a business, as the investing and financing decisions.

Hurdle Rate 91

Hurdle Rate Corporate Finance Investments Finance 91

Musings on Markets

JANUARY 6, 2023

Mean reversion : I am not a knee-jerk believer in mean reversion, but the tendency for numbers to move back towards averages is a strong one. Counter made-up numbers : It remains true that people (analysts, market experts, politicians) often make assertions based upon either incomplete or flawed data, or no data at all.

Valuation 52

Valuation Corporate Finance Financial Analysis Leverage 52

Barry Ritholtz

NOVEMBER 8, 2022

I went into what’s called corporate finance, what people would see now as sort of M&A department. CHANCELLOR: Well, I was actually in a sort of subgroup there, which was called corporate strategy. But I didn’t last very long there because I thought I didn’t like corporate finance.

Valuation 57

Valuation Finance Investments Banking 57