個案總覽

A new ruling by the Securities and Exchange Commission has provided the International Business Machines Corporation (IBM) the opportunity to sell put options on its own shares. IBM's assistant treasurer is considering the merits of selling puts in conjunction with the company's ongoing need to repurchase its own shares to satisfy the needs of its Employee Stock Purchase Program (ESPP). The strategy under review is to use the income from the sale of the puts to offset the price of the shares repurchased each month for the ESPP. The student must assess the probability of the February 1992 puts being in the money and determine whether the risks of writing puts are sufficiently manageable to permit the writing of puts to become a viable, long-term strategy.

Kaiser Steel entered Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings in early 1987. Nine months later it still faces several difficult obstacles to reorganization, including litigation, environmental liabilities, and pension and medical benefits for retired employees. Students are asked to propose a plan for reorganizing Kaiser, including a business plan, a confirmable allocation of assets and/or new securities, and specific steps to implement their proposals and bring the company out of Chapter 11. Addresses conflicts among claimants to a bankrupt firm and the obstacles and opportunities presented to each claimant by U.S. Chapter 11 bankruptcy rules. May be used with Note on Bankruptcy in the United States.

First case in a series of six cases that follow the experience of a cable television company as it adjusts to the rapid rise and precipitous decline of the stock market in the late 1980s. In this case Don Jones, the company's founder and owner, sees the rise in public cable television company values as an opportunity to consolidate a degree of personal wealth. Concludes with Jones considering a range of harvesting strategies.

Second case in a series of six cases. This case describes the company as it adjusts to a stock market correction.

Third case in a series of six cases. This case describes the company as it adjusts to a credit market contraction.

Fourth case in a series of six cases. This case describes the company as it reaches financial crisis and manages constituencies.

Fifth case in a series of six cases. This case describes the company during voluntary restructuring.

Last case in a series of six cases. This case describes the company as it reflects back to lessons learned.

The newly privatized Chilean telephone company, Compania de Telefonos de Chile (CTC) must raise substantial new funds externally in order to finance its expansion program. This task is complicated by Chile's small, illiquid capital markets and the skeptical view of Latin American borrowers held by investors outside of the region. CTC's chief financial officer must determine if listing American Depository Receipts (ADRs) on the New York Stock Exchange is a viable financing option for the company.

Spreadsheet Supplement for case 293015

Describes a new investment which is linked to an index of commmodity futures prices. Explores how the index is constructed, how commodity futures (as opposed to other futures and spot prices) behave, and what the portfolio impacts of such an investment might be.

Describes how commodity futures work, what products and exchanges are available, and who the players in the commodity markets are. Also presents a careful discussion of the pricing of futures in commodity markets, focusing on cost of carry and risk premium approaches, and explaining backwardation and contango markets.

The corporate raiders of the 1980s have turned into corporate boardmembers of the 1990s. In this new role, the takeover experts are not plunderers, nor are they creating quick profit at the expense of companies' long-term health; rather, they are defying expectations and, in a number of important respects, successfully implementing the agenda of the gurus of good management. Setting the pace in this new arena is the leveraged buyout firm of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. KKR's partners hold board seats at nine different companies with $1 billion a year or more in sales. KKR is practicing a surprising amount of what might be regarded as a textbook version of sound management methods--including rigorously evaluating CEO performance, devising proper management incentives, and making budgets count.

The CFO of Fleetwood Enterprises is considering whether to recommend a large share repurchase to the board of directors. Fleetwood's core businesses, manufactured housing and recreational vehicles, are very sensitive to business cycles and oil prices. Following Iraq's invasion of Kuwait, Fleetwood's stock price dropped more than 20%, but Fleetwood appears strong enough to both survive a severe downturn and repurchase a large block of shares. Designed to permit a thorough review of basic capital structure, dividend payout, and share repurchase theories, in the context of a large firm facing both a potential crisis and a valuable opportunity.

An investment manager notices a large apparent discrepancy in the prices of two nearly-identical bonds issued in conjunction with a major leveraged buyout. The manager must figure out whether the instruments are mispriced relative to one another, and if so, how to capture arbitrage profits from the temporary anomaly. The case introduces students to a wide variety of instruments ranging from very simple treasury strips to P-I-K debentures. Encourages students to devise "arbitrage" positions and understand the degree to which these positions are riskless.

Parker Co., a U.S. based agricultural chemical company with $4 billion in sales, has agreed to a joint venture with Spencer, Inc., a smaller U.S. based company, to develop and market a new herbicide for corn. The two companies must consider marketing, tax, and liability issues to decide whether the new entity will be a corporation or a partnership. Demonstrates how various tax and non-tax factors affect the legal form of joint venture.

A group of investors is considering buying the sequel rights for a portfolio of feature films. They need to determine how much to offer to pay and how to structure a contract with one or more major U.S. film studios. The case contains cash flow estimates for all major films released in the United States during 1989. These data are used to generate estimates of the value of sequel rights prior to the first film's release. Designed to introduce students to real options and techniques for valuing them. It clearly illustrates the power of option pricing techniques for certain types of capital budgeting problems. Also illustrates the practical limitations of such techniques.

The CEO of Pinkerton, a security guard service firm, is considering options to alter the company's current restrictive and expensive capital structure. A leveraged recap and initial public offering are considered.

Spreadsheet Supplement for case 292136

Establishing competitive advantage and creating shareholder value both stem from a common economic framework. The stock market values the long-term productivity of companies. It is not necessary to depart from the shareholder-value model to improve a company's competitive position. Maximum returns for current shareholders will materialize only when managers maximize long-term shareholder value and deliver interim results that attest credibly to sustainable competitive advantage.