×




Escapes Outdoor Living Designs Inc. Net Present Value (NPV) / MBA Resources

Introduction to Net Present Value (NPV) - What is Net Present Value (NPV) ? How it impacts financial decisions regarding project management?

NPV solution for Escapes Outdoor Living Designs Inc. case study


At Oak Spring University, we provide corporate level professional Net Present Value (NPV) case study solution. Escapes Outdoor Living Designs Inc. case study is a Harvard Business School (HBR) case study written by Michael Sider, Richie Bloomfield. The Escapes Outdoor Living Designs Inc. (referred as “Escapes Outdoor” from here on) case study provides evaluation & decision scenario in field of Strategy & Execution. It also touches upon business topics such as - Value proposition, .

The net present value (NPV) of an investment proposal is the present value of the proposal’s net cash flows less the proposal’s initial cash outflow. If a project’s NPV is greater than or equal to zero, the project should be accepted.

NPV = Present Value of Future Cash Flows LESS Project’s Initial Investment






Case Description of Escapes Outdoor Living Designs Inc. Case Study


The owner of Escapes Outdoor Living Designs (Escapes) must decide what to do with his small landscaping and construction business. Escapes has been doing well, but has not had any sustainable growth over five years. The owner feels the business lacks focus and will need a good strategy in order to grow successfully. Facing problems with employee retention and shifting market opportunities, he has to perform an in-depth analysis of his current business to decide where it should go in the next few years or if it should be closed down altogether.


Case Authors : Michael Sider, Richie Bloomfield

Topic : Strategy & Execution

Related Areas :




Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 6% for Escapes Outdoor Living Designs Inc. Case Study


Years              Cash Flow     Net Cash Flow     Cumulative    
Cash Flow
Discount Rate
@ 6 %
Discounted
Cash Flows
Year 0 (10000477) -10000477 - -
Year 1 3453014 -6547463 3453014 0.9434 3257560
Year 2 3954528 -2592935 7407542 0.89 3519516
Year 3 3965202 1372267 11372744 0.8396 3329260
Year 4 3239278 4611545 14612022 0.7921 2565812
TOTAL 14612022 12672148




The Net Present Value at 6% discount rate is 2671671

In isolation the NPV number doesn't mean much but put in right context then it is one of the best method to evaluate project returns. In this article we will cover -

Different methods of capital budgeting


What is NPV & Formula of NPV,
How it is calculated,
How to use NPV number for project evaluation, and
Scenario Planning given risks and management priorities.




Capital Budgeting Approaches

Methods of Capital Budgeting


There are four types of capital budgeting techniques that are widely used in the corporate world –

1. Profitability Index
2. Internal Rate of Return
3. Net Present Value
4. Payback Period

Apart from the Payback period method which is an additive method, rest of the methods are based on Discounted Cash Flow technique. Even though cash flow can be calculated based on the nature of the project, for the simplicity of the article we are assuming that all the expected cash flows are realized at the end of the year.

Discounted Cash Flow approaches provide a more objective basis for evaluating and selecting investment projects. They take into consideration both –

1. Magnitude of both incoming and outgoing cash flows – Projects can be capital intensive, time intensive, or both. Escapes Outdoor shareholders have preference for diversified projects investment rather than prospective high income from a single capital intensive project.
2. Timing of the expected cash flows – stockholders of Escapes Outdoor have higher preference for cash returns over 4-5 years rather than 10-15 years given the nature of the volatility in the industry.






Formula and Steps to Calculate Net Present Value (NPV) of Escapes Outdoor Living Designs Inc.

NPV = Net Cash In Flowt1 / (1+r)t1 + Net Cash In Flowt2 / (1+r)t2 + … Net Cash In Flowtn / (1+r)tn
Less Net Cash Out Flowt0 / (1+r)t0

Where t = time period, in this case year 1, year 2 and so on.
r = discount rate or return that could be earned using other safe proposition such as fixed deposit or treasury bond rate. Net Cash In Flow – What the firm will get each year.
Net Cash Out Flow – What the firm needs to invest initially in the project.

Step 1 – Understand the nature of the project and calculate cash flow for each year.
Step 2 – Discount those cash flow based on the discount rate.
Step 3 – Add all the discounted cash flow.
Step 4 – Selection of the project

Why Strategy & Execution Managers need to know Financial Tools such as Net Present Value (NPV)?

In our daily workplace we often come across people and colleagues who are just focused on their core competency and targets they have to deliver. For example marketing managers at Escapes Outdoor often design programs whose objective is to drive brand awareness and customer reach. But how that 30 point increase in brand awareness or 10 point increase in customer touch points will result into shareholders’ value is not specified.

To overcome such scenarios managers at Escapes Outdoor needs to not only know the financial aspect of project management but also needs to have tools to integrate them into part of the project development and monitoring plan.

Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 15%

After working through various assumptions we reached a conclusion that risk is far higher than 6%. In a reasonably stable industry with weak competition - 15% discount rate can be a good benchmark.



Years              Cash Flow     Net Cash Flow     Cumulative    
Cash Flow
Discount Rate
@ 15 %
Discounted
Cash Flows
Year 0 (10000477) -10000477 - -
Year 1 3453014 -6547463 3453014 0.8696 3002621
Year 2 3954528 -2592935 7407542 0.7561 2990191
Year 3 3965202 1372267 11372744 0.6575 2607185
Year 4 3239278 4611545 14612022 0.5718 1852068
TOTAL 10452065


The Net NPV after 4 years is 451588

(10452065 - 10000477 )








Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 20%


If the risk component is high in the industry then we should go for a higher hurdle rate / discount rate of 20%.

Years              Cash Flow     Net Cash Flow     Cumulative    
Cash Flow
Discount Rate
@ 20 %
Discounted
Cash Flows
Year 0 (10000477) -10000477 - -
Year 1 3453014 -6547463 3453014 0.8333 2877512
Year 2 3954528 -2592935 7407542 0.6944 2746200
Year 3 3965202 1372267 11372744 0.5787 2294677
Year 4 3239278 4611545 14612022 0.4823 1562152
TOTAL 9480541


The Net NPV after 4 years is -519936

At 20% discount rate the NPV is negative (9480541 - 10000477 ) so ideally we can't select the project if macro and micro factors don't allow financial managers of Escapes Outdoor to discount cash flow at lower discount rates such as 15%.





Acceptance Criteria of a Project based on NPV

Simplest Approach – If the investment project of Escapes Outdoor has a NPV value higher than Zero then finance managers at Escapes Outdoor can ACCEPT the project, otherwise they can reject the project. This means that project will deliver higher returns over the period of time than any alternate investment strategy.

In theory if the required rate of return or discount rate is chosen correctly by finance managers at Escapes Outdoor, then the stock price of the Escapes Outdoor should change by same amount of the NPV. In real world we know that share price also reflects various other factors that can be related to both macro and micro environment.

In the same vein – accepting the project with zero NPV should result in stagnant share price. Finance managers use discount rates as a measure of risk components in the project execution process.

Sensitivity Analysis

Project selection is often a far more complex decision than just choosing it based on the NPV number. Finance managers at Escapes Outdoor should conduct a sensitivity analysis to better understand not only the inherent risk of the projects but also how those risks can be either factored in or mitigated during the project execution. Sensitivity analysis helps in –

What can impact the cash flow of the project.

What will be a multi year spillover effect of various taxation regulations.

Understanding of risks involved in the project.

What are the uncertainties surrounding the project Initial Cash Outlay (ICO’s). ICO’s often have several different components such as land, machinery, building, and other equipment.

What are the key aspects of the projects that need to be monitored, refined, and retuned for continuous delivery of projected cash flows.

Some of the assumptions while using the Discounted Cash Flow Methods –

Projects are assumed to be Mutually Exclusive – This is seldom the came in modern day giant organizations where projects are often inter-related and rejecting a project solely based on NPV can result in sunk cost from a related project.

Independent projects have independent cash flows – As explained in the marketing project – though the project may look independent but in reality it is not as the brand awareness project can be closely associated with the spending on sales promotions and product specific advertising.






Negotiation Strategy of Escapes Outdoor Living Designs Inc.

References & Further Readings

Michael Sider, Richie Bloomfield (2018), "Escapes Outdoor Living Designs Inc. Harvard Business Review Case Study. Published by HBR Publications.


Mandala Multifinance SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix

Financial , Consumer Financial Services


Samsung Electronics Co SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix

Technology , Communications Equipment


Solutions 30 SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix

Technology , Software & Programming


Watanabe Sato SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix

Capital Goods , Construction Services


Zhuguang SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix

Capital Goods , Construction Services


BGF SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix

Services , Retail (Grocery)


Pyxus SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix

Consumer/Non-Cyclical , Tobacco


SPAR Group SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix

Services , Retail (Grocery)


Delta Plus SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix

Consumer Cyclical , Apparel/Accessories


Achilles Corp SWOT Analysis / TOWS Matrix

Consumer Cyclical , Textiles - Non Apparel