Publications

October 1987 (Revised July 1991)
Case

Tiffany & Co.

By: Samuel L. Hayes III

This premier retail jewelry company was bought from its parent, Avon, by a group of investors led by its own management in 1984. The company was highly leveraged, financially, and had to scramble to meet the cash flow and earnings requirements laid down by its lenders.... View Details

Keywords: Acquisition; Borrowing and Debt; Cash Flow; Price; Going Public; Apparel and Accessories Industry

May 1987 (Revised October 1996)
Case

Murray Ohio Manufacturing Co.

By: Krishna G. Palepu

After a record year in 1983, Murray Ohio's earnings declined in 1984. The company was faced with competition from cheap imports and was experiencing declining margins. Students are asked to analyze the company's 1984 financial statements and predict whether there is... View Details

Keywords: Financial Statements; Financial Reporting; Business Divisions; Cost Management; Spending; Decision Making; Change Management; Problems and Challenges; Management Systems; Manufacturing Industry

July 1986 (Revised July 1991)
Case

Nippon-WTI Ltd.

By: W. Carl Kester and Glynn Ferguson

A Japanese joint venture between a U.S. parent and a Japanese parent has proposed that 100% of the U.S. parent's product be produced in Japan rather than the 40% currently being manufactured there. This would require the U.S. parent to give up a dollar profit earned on... View Details

Keywords: Joint Ventures; Currency Exchange Rate; Profit; Product; Production; Strategy; Manufacturing Industry; Asia; Japan; United States

1984
Working Paper

Earnings Variability and Variance Bounds Tests for Rationality of Stock Market Prices

By: Robert C. Merton and Terry A. Marsh

January 1984 (Revised August 1988)
Background Note

Valuation Techniques

By: Howard H. Stevenson and Michael J. Roberts

Describes several approaches to valuation of a going concern: assets, earnings, and cash flow. View Details

Keywords: Valuation; Business Earnings; Assets; Cash Flow

Article

Wage-Employment Contracts

By: Jerry R. Green and Charles M. Kahn

This paper studies the efficient agreements about the dependence of workers' earnings on employment, when the employment level is controlled by firms. The firms' superior information about profitability conditions is responsible for this form of contract governance.... View Details

Keywords: Labor; Wages; Contracts

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January 1979 (Revised April 1986)
Case

Hanson Industries (C)

By: Samuel L. Hayes III

The management of Hanson is examining its near-term cash needs and the possible longer-term generation of earnings and cash. View Details

Keywords: Business Earnings; Cash

June 1977 (Revised September 1992)
Case

Sorenson Research Co. (Abridged)

By: Steven C. Wheelwright

Presents the issues facing a high volume, high margin (but lightweight) medical products business. The company is trying to improve its inventory control to reduce inventory investment and improve service. The present multi-site inventory system is described and major... View Details

Keywords: Business Earnings; Investment; Volume; Service Delivery; Supply Chain; Performance Improvement; Medical Devices and Supplies Industry

March 1969 (Revised January 2000)
Case

Industrial Products, Inc.

By: Joseph L. Bower and John W. Rosenblum

Involves the decision of whether to construct a new plant in another part of the country for a line of fire protection equipment. Capital funds set aside for the construction are blocked by Fireguard's continued record of substantial operating losses and divisional... View Details

Keywords: Decision Choices and Conditions; Factories, Labs, and Plants; Capital; Construction; Financing and Loans; Expansion; Business Earnings; Markets; Product; Manufacturing Industry

Forthcoming
Article

Bank Risk-Taking and the Real Economy: Evidence from the Housing Boom and Its Aftermath

By: Antonio Falato, Giovanni Favara and David Scharfstein

We present evidence that pressure to maximize short-term stock prices and earnings leads banks to increase risk. We start by showing that banks increase risk when they transition from private to public ownership through a public listing or an acquisition. The increase... View Details

Keywords: Ownership Type; Risk and Uncertainty; Financial Markets; Banks and Banking; Transition; Price