Publications

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January 2002 (Revised December 2002)
Background Note

A Note on the Value of Information in an Entrepreneurial Venture

By: Paul W. Marshall

Uses a decision analysis framework to analyze the value of gaming information before making a full investment in an entrepreneurial venture. View Details

Keywords: Decisions; Entrepreneurship; Investment; Framework; Business or Company Management

September 2009
Supplement

One South: Investing in Emerging Markets (B)

By: Nicolas P. Retsinas and Justin Seth Ginsburgh

A United States private equity fund, The Saboput Group, must decide whether to invest in a new technology park development in Chennai, India. The B case provides the reader with due diligence observations, which reveal numerous potential problems with the investment.... View Details

Keywords: Decisions; Private Equity; Investment; Foreign Direct Investment; Markets; Emerging Markets; Problems and Challenges; Partners and Partnerships; Valuation; Real Estate Industry; Chennai; United States

November 2000
Case

Wit Capital: Evolution of the Online Investment Bank (B)

Describes the evolution of Wit Capital from its origins as a small brewery to an online investment bank advising both small technology-based companies seeking to raise capital and large companies seeking to acquire Internet companies, as well as offering retail... View Details

Keywords: Internet and the Web; Disruptive Innovation; Service Delivery; Investment Banking; Entrepreneurship

13 Jun 2017
Research & Ideas

Why Global Investments Are Still a Good Bet

Photo by iStock Investors in global equity markets have traditionally hedged their bets, casting their investments far and wide across the world. That way, if the market in one country or region stagnated (think Japan in the 1990s or... View Details

Keywords: by Michael Blanding; Financial Services

Fast Answer

REITs (real estate investment trusts)

REITs, and publicly-traded real estate companies. S&P NetAdvantage: S&P's REIT Industry Survey provides a good overview of real estate investment trusts. Also available under Markets > Industry Survey in Capital IQ. To... View Details

August 2000 (Revised July 2002)
Background Note

Fundamental Enterprise Valuation: Return on Invested Capital (ROIC)

By: Carliss Y. Baldwin

A technical note that defines return on invested capital (ROIC). View Details

Keywords: Valuation; Business Ventures; Capital

December 2019
Article

Invest in Information or Wing It? A Model of Dynamic Pricing with Seller Learning

By: Guofang Huang, Hong Luo and Jing Xia

Pricing idiosyncratic products is often challenging because the seller, ex ante, lacks information about the demand for individual items. This paper develops a model of dynamic pricing for idiosyncratic products that features the optimal stopping structure and a seller... View Details

Keywords: Dynamic Pricing; Idiosyncratic Products; Item-specific Demand; Demand Uncertainty; Active Seller Learning; The Value Of Information; Price; Information; Value; Learning

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Investment analyst reports (equity research reports)

How do I find investment analysts' reports on companies, industries and geographies? Analyst Reports contain advice on whether to buy or sell the securities of specific companies or industries. They are produced by research analysts... View Details

18 Oct 2016
Op-Ed

Why Business Should Invest in Community Health

Children in the United States today are at risk to live shorter lives than their parents. This sobering assessment is one reason big box retailer Target is investing $40 million this year to improve the health of communities around the... View Details

Keywords: by John Quelch, Howard Koh, and Pamela Yatsko; Health

11 Jul 2012
News

A Hedge-Fund Manager With a Low Profile

Keywords: Hedge funds; value investing; Funds, Trusts, and Other Financial Vehicles; Finance

Fast Answer

Sustainable investing and ESG resources

Information Type Recommended Resources Overview & News ImpactAlpha
News and information covering the sustainable and impact investment markets. Our subscription includes the daily publication, The Brief, as well as their... View Details

Web

Alternative Investments Course | HBS Online

the next level by learning how to maximize investment portfolio value with alternative investments, including private equity and real estate. 5 weeks 6-7 hours per week 5 modules Self-Paced with regular... View Details

May 2015 (Revised September 2017)
Case

Generating Higher Value at IBM (A)

By: Benjamin C. Esty and E. Scott Mayfield

This case analyzes IBM's financial performance and its capital allocation decisions over a 10-year period from 2004-2013, during which IBM returned more than $140B to shareholders through a combination of dividends and share repurchases. During this time, CEO Sam... View Details

Keywords: Dividends; Share Repurchases; Earnings Guidance; Financial Statement Analysis; Financial Ratios; Payout Policy; Earnings Per Share (EPS); Earnings Management; Change Management; Leadership; Transformation; Financial Strategy

September 2011 (Revised February 2013)
Case

Trucost: Valuing Corporate Environmental Impacts

By: Michael W. Toffel and Stephanie van Sice

Trucost provided corporate environmental performance data and analysis to institutional investors and corporate managers, but after operating for a decade had yet to achieve profitability. Trucost was struggling to effectively differentiate its high quality products... View Details

Keywords: Competitive Strategy; Knowledge Use and Leverage; Distribution Channels; Investment; Measurement and Metrics; Corporate Social Responsibility and Impact; Information; Value; Environmental Sustainability; Financial Services Industry

September 2023 (Revised January 2024)
Case

Icahn Enterprises: Ponzi Scheme or Sound Investment

By: Aiyesha Dey, Jonas Heese and James Weber

Icahn Enterprises, a publicly traded limited partnership founded and operated by famed activist investor Carl Icahn, had earned above market returns for over a decade. Between 2018 and early 2023, it had a compound annual return of 31%. Icahn invested in undervalued... View Details

Keywords: Stock Shares; Investment Return; Business Model; Valuation; Financial Services Industry

September 2017
Supplement

Actera Group: Investing in Mars Cinema Group (B)

By: Victoria Ivashina and Eren Kuzucu

In summer of 2010, Murat Çavuşoğlu (HBS MBA 1994) led private equity firm Actera Group’s investment in Mars Cinema Group (Mars), the leading movie exhibitor in Turkey. Immediately after acquiring Mars and merging it with the second larger player in the market, AFM,... View Details

Keywords: Private Equity; Value Creation; Transformation; Valuation; Entertainment and Recreation Industry; Motion Pictures and Video Industry; Turkey