Cirque du Soleil--The High-Wire Act of Building Sustainable Partnerships 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 Cirque du Soleil--The High-Wire Act of Building Sustainable Partnerships case study

At Oak Spring University, we provide corporate level professional Net Present Value (NPV) case study solution. Cirque du Soleil--The High-Wire Act of Building Sustainable Partnerships case study is a Harvard Business School (HBR) case study written by Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Maxime Aucoin. The Cirque du Soleil--The High-Wire Act of Building Sustainable Partnerships (referred as “Mgm Cirque” from here on) case study provides evaluation & decision scenario in field of Strategy & Execution. It also touches upon business topics such as - Value proposition, Financial management, Growth strategy, International business, Joint ventures, Leadership, Marketing.

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

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Case Description of Cirque du Soleil--The High-Wire Act of Building Sustainable Partnerships Case Study

The case describes the history and business model of Cirque du Soleil (CdS). The case allows for a rich discussion and analysis of Cirque du Soleil's business model with an emphasis on how it interacts with that of MGM Mirage. Le Cirque and MGM's business models complement one another: MGM makes important capital investments in theaters tailored to CdS's shows that are located in the middle of MGM casinos, CdS acts as a magnet for traffic for an exclusive clientele that spends large amounts of money at the casino. CdS's partnership with MGM has been tremendously profitable. This raises the question of why hold up and opportunism have not destroyed competitive advantage for both entities: What features in CdS and MGM Mirage's business models have resulted in such a successful partnership? The case is set at a juncture where Daniel Lamarre (CdS's CEO) is looking for new opportunities for growth. Lamarre is pondering the likelihood of success of Cirque's first resident show in Asia at Tokyo Disney Resort, its entry in the Macao market, and a new partnership with two subsidiaries of Dubai World, the sovereign wealth fund of the Emirate. The question is: Can Le Cirque find a new model of complementary relationships that will be as profitable as its relationship with MGM Mirage?

Case Authors : Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Maxime Aucoin

Topic : Strategy & Execution

Related Areas : Financial management, Growth strategy, International business, Joint ventures, Leadership, Marketing

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Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 6% for Cirque du Soleil--The High-Wire Act of Building Sustainable Partnerships Case Study

Years	Cash Flow	Net Cash Flow	Cumulative     Cash Flow	Discount Rate @ 6 %	Discounted Cash Flows
Year 0	(10009725)	-10009725	-	-
Year 1	3467908	-6541817	3467908	0.9434	3271611
Year 2	3953110	-2588707	7421018	0.89	3518254
Year 3	3940315	1351608	11361333	0.8396	3308364
Year 4	3238294	4589902	14599627	0.7921	2565032
TOTAL			14599627		12663262

The Net Present Value at 6% discount rate is 2653537

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.

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Capital Budgeting Approaches

Methods of Capital Budgeting

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

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

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. Mgm Cirque 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 Mgm Cirque have higher preference for cash returns over 4-5 years rather than 10-15 years given the nature of the volatility in the industry.

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Formula and Steps to Calculate Net Present Value (NPV) of Cirque du Soleil--The High-Wire Act of Building Sustainable Partnerships

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 Mgm Cirque 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 Mgm Cirque 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	(10009725)	-10009725	-	-
Year 1	3467908	-6541817	3467908	0.8696	3015572
Year 2	3953110	-2588707	7421018	0.7561	2989119
Year 3	3940315	1351608	11361333	0.6575	2590821
Year 4	3238294	4589902	14599627	0.5718	1851505
TOTAL					10447017

The Net NPV after 4 years is 437292

(10447017 - 10009725 )

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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	(10009725)	-10009725	-	-
Year 1	3467908	-6541817	3467908	0.8333	2889923
Year 2	3953110	-2588707	7421018	0.6944	2745215
Year 3	3940315	1351608	11361333	0.5787	2280275
Year 4	3238294	4589902	14599627	0.4823	1561677
TOTAL					9477091

The Net NPV after 4 years is -532634

At 20% discount rate the NPV is negative (9477091 - 10009725 ) so ideally we can't select the project if macro and micro factors don't allow financial managers of Mgm Cirque 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 Mgm Cirque has a NPV value higher than Zero then finance managers at Mgm Cirque 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 Mgm Cirque, then the stock price of the Mgm Cirque 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 Mgm Cirque 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 key aspects of the projects that need to be monitored, refined, and retuned for continuous delivery of projected cash flows.

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.

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.

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Negotiation Strategy of Cirque du Soleil--The High-Wire Act of Building Sustainable Partnerships

References & Further Readings

Ramon Casadesus-Masanell, Maxime Aucoin (2018), "Cirque du Soleil--The High-Wire Act of Building Sustainable Partnerships Harvard Business Review Case Study. Published by HBR Publications.