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For the second time in fourteen months, Christopher Owen, the second-generation owner of Owen's Precision Machining (OPM), found himself running out of cash. Owen wondered what he was doing wrong. How much additional money would he need to raise to get OPM through the next twelve months, and what could he change now to fix his company for the long term? Owen's thoughts also turned to the conversation he had last month with two Harvard Business School alumni who were searching for a manufacturing business to acquire after spending the early part of their career in manufacturing at GE's Aircraft Engine division in Lynn, MA. Their offer of $1.1 million, or 6.9x times 2011 EBITDA of $159,292, was a pleasant surprise, but Owen was not interested in getting out of his family's business. Given the current cash flow situation, should Owen reconsider the acquisition offer?

Landsbanki Islands, the oldest of Iceland's three major banks, faced a funding crisis in March 2008 as its home country spiraled into a financial crisis. The astonishing growth rate of Landsbanki and Iceland's other top banks during the previous few years begged the question of whether such expansion can occur without strategic missteps. As the crisis worsened, the bank's leaders were under pressure to keep the institution afloat. In this case students examine Landsbanki's history and financial data, the close connections between Iceland's major corporations and banks, and the country's monetary policies to consider the reasons for the collapse and what steps the bank's management should take.

Two partners acquired MC Tool in October 2007 for $5 million. The company was a machine shop that manufactured parts for a wide variety of applications in the energy, automotive and industrial equipment industries. In their first year of ownership, the partners focused on improving operations and enhancing sales with impressive results: sales doubled and EBTIDA increased by over 40%. But the "Great Recession" had an immediate impact in the fall of 2008 as customers cancelled orders and new sales became scarce. MC Tool's core business was cyclical and risky. The partners were considering transforming the business towards manufacturing more precise parts that would be less cyclical and less risky.

Damien Duff was worried. When he graduated from business school five years ago, Damien had had a plan - a good one. The problem, of course, was that plans rarely unfold as expected. Damien and his wife, Katrina, were now expecting their first child. As Damien wrestled with the reality of this news, he took a quick look at his financial plans. Damien knew his career was on track, but his debt load was much higher than anticipated and he hadn't started his retirement portfolio as planned. With a baby on the way, he knew the expenses would only accelerate. What to do - pay off the debt, start a registered education savings plan, or postpone the retirement savings plan still further?

Nalli Silk Sarees Private Limited was a family owned and operated business that retailed Indian ethnic wear. This 83-year old company had enjoyed impressive growth with a $95 million turnover, a 22 store retail footprint, and had outdone its competitors by being the only player in its segment to have a national presence. Headquartered in Chennai, India, the company built its unique national brand by emphasizing innovation, customer centric practices, quality and honesty across the store's retail operations. In 2011, with changing dynamics in the Indian apparel market, the company started to face intense competition from small and large Indian and foreign retailers. The company's chairman, Dr.Nalli Kuppusamy Chetty, announced a $25 million expansion plan and proposed the opening of 12 new stores over a period of two years. This case focuses on the company's pricing strategy, merchandising process and product assortments to support its own competitiveness and overall customer experience.

Founded in 1995 by Zhang Xin and her husband Mr. Pan Shiyi, SOHO China has developed into a world-class real estate development firm that has consistently delivered high-quality projects known for their cutting-edge designs and investment potential. Despite the tremendous success of the firm, Zhang Xin still looks at the future with great uncertainty. Average residential pricing in China has dropped, as government continues to put downward pressure on residential housing prices through restrictions on the number of apartments a resident is allowed to purchase, and aggressive promotion of affordable housing on the low-end of the market. Zhang Xin wonders what opportunities and threats such market conditions present to SOHO. On the sales and marketing front, SOHO China has historically been geographically-focused only on high-end, design-driven projects in Shanghai and Beijing. As the market became more competitive, Zhang Xin wondered what key strategic decisions in regards to design, financing, and sales the company would need to make in order to maintain its competitive advantage in China.

The protagonist is considering acquiring a timber property located in rural China, a region where almost no timberland investment has taken place. The question is how to value the property, including understanding the appropriate risk-adjusted return.

The protagonist is trying to decide whether to purchase and develop an aquifer lying beneath rural land near Fresno, California. The project could fill a void for local farmers as well as surrounding municipalities and a variety of other customers throughout California.

Spreadsheet Supplement for case UV2558.

Until 2002, Roche's treasury activities were decentralized. Then a number of external factors resulted in the multinational company recording a loss of CHF5,192 million. Determined to build a more robust centralized treasury system, Roche conceptualized and implemented an in-house bank (IHB) coupled with cash pooling from its affiliates worldwide.

This case explains how Lenovo succeeded in achieving its goals of financial globalization. This was largely accomplished through the combination of its corporate treasury centre and a re-invoicing structure. Lenovo's experience would be of special interest to both emerging market companies pursuing globalization strategies and multinational corporations interested in developing market businesses.

Based in Nairobi, Kenya, EcoPost manufactures construction posts out of the thousands of tons of plastic waste produced daily by the city. The posts, which are manufactured using second-hand industrial equipment, are frequently used to build fences, park benches, and other objects. Because lumber is very scarce in Kenya, and subject to theft and termite damage, the posts sell very well, and the company has trouble keeping up with demand. The company's directors are seeking financing to purchase new equipment and scale and diversify their production. However, they face many obstacles overcoming skepticism from investors, largely because of their relatively poor financial record keeping.

Spreadsheet Supplement for UV6617

Students must to decide whether Horizon Lines should seek Chapter 11 protection or attempt a voluntary financial restructuring. This case presents students with a wide range of financial restructuring alternatives to consider and should give them an appreciation of the advantages and disadvantages faced by a firm choosing to use the bankruptcy court. The case is best taught to experienced students who understand corporate finance fundamentals and, in particular, grasp the principes of valuation and capital structure. It is recommended that it be taught either just before or just after a Chapter 11 case such as "Delphi Corporation" (UVA-F-1617).

Excel spreadsheet for instructors.

This is the twelfth in a series of lecture notes which, if tied together into a textbook, might be entitled "Practical Regression." The purpose of the notes is to supplement the theoretical content of most statistics texts with practical advice based on nearly three decades of experience of the author, combined with over one hundred years of experience of colleagues who have offered guidance. As the title "Practical Regression" suggests, these notes are a guide to performing regression in practice. This technical note discusses time-series data. The note explains the concept of a time trend and how to capture the trend using regression. Most of the note is devoted to the problem of autocorrelation. The note concludes by discussing the use of leads and lags as predictor variables.

This is the first in a series of lecture notes which, if tied together into a textbook, might be entitled "Practical Regression." The purpose of the notes is to supplement the theoretical content of most statistics texts with practical advice based on nearly three decades of experience of the author, combined with over one hundred years of experience of colleagues who have offered guidance. As the title "Practical Regression" suggests, these notes are a guide to performing regression in practice. This technical note introduces students to the essential elements of convincing empirical research using regression. Students who read this note will be prepared to perform an unstructured research project. The note presents ten essential steps in research, starting with model development and ending with presentation of results. Coverage is given to important subjects such as identification and model robustness.

This is the second in a series of lecture notes which, if tied together into a textbook, might be entitled "Practical Regression." The purpose of the notes is to supplement the theoretical content of most statistics texts with practical advice based on nearly three decades of experience of the author, combined with over one hundred years of experience of colleagues who have offered guidance. As the title "Practical Regression" suggests, these notes are a guide to performing regression in practice. This technical note reviews the basic elements of regression analysis. Students who read this note will be able to explain the fundamental principals of regression, including (1) regression as an alegbraic equation; (2) dummy variables and nonlinear terms; (3) R-squared and goodness of fit; and (4) reporting the significance and economic importance of regression coefficients. Having completed this note, students will be prepared to study the special topics in regression that are covered in other notes in this series.

This is the fifth in a series of lecture notes which, if tied together into a textbook, might be entitled "Practical Regression." The purpose of the notes is to supplement the theoretical content of most statistics texts with practical advice based on nearly three decades of experience of the author, combined with over one hundred years of experience of colleagues who have offered guidance. As the title "Practical Regression" suggests, these notes are a guide to performing regression in practice. This technical note discusses fixed effects models. Though a unified example, the note shows how omitted variable bias can plague estimates in cross-section regressions and how focusing attention on intragroup ("within") variation over time can allow for identification of regression coefficients that are free of potential bias. The note demontrates the mathematical principles behind fixed effects modeling and also explains why, in some cases, it may be preferable not to include fixed effects.