New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. (Abridged) 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 New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. (Abridged) case study

At Oak Spring University, we provide corporate level professional Net Present Value (NPV) case study solution. New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. (Abridged) case study is a Harvard Business School (HBR) case study written by H. Kent Bowen, Robert S. Huckman, Carin-Isabel Knoop, Matthew Preble. The New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. (Abridged) (referred as “Reebok Adidas” from here on) case study provides evaluation & decision scenario in field of Technology & Operations. It also touches upon business topics such as - Value proposition, Competitive strategy, Manufacturing, Product development, Supply chain, Technology.

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 New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. (Abridged) Case Study

Considers whether New Balance, one of the world's five largest manufacturers of athletic footwear, should respond to Adidas' planned acquisition of Reebok-a transaction that would join the second- and third-largest companies in the industry. Highlights the unique aspects of New Balance's strategy-focusing on fit and performance by offering long-lived shoes in a wide variety of widths and eschewing celebrity endorsement of its products-and discusses New Balance's operations decisions to support that strategy. These include significant use of domestic manufacturing at a time when nearly all other competitors sourced finished shoes from Asian suppliers and an emphasis on improving inventory management for its network of small and large retailers. Set just after the announcement of the Adidas-Reebok transaction in 2005, with New Balance having recently initiated a companywide effort to improve operational performance through the application of concepts from lean manufacturing and the Toyota Production System. Asks students to consider whether New Balance should change aspects of its operations strategy in light of the consolidation among its competitors or whether the Adidas-Reebok transaction represents an opportunity for New Balance to emphasize the importance of moving forward with its current approach.

Case Authors : H. Kent Bowen, Robert S. Huckman, Carin-Isabel Knoop, Matthew Preble

Topic : Technology & Operations

Related Areas : Competitive strategy, Manufacturing, Product development, Supply chain, Technology

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Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 6% for New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. (Abridged) Case Study

Years	Cash Flow	Net Cash Flow	Cumulative     Cash Flow	Discount Rate @ 6 %	Discounted Cash Flows
Year 0	(10005084)	-10005084	-	-
Year 1	3472135	-6532949	3472135	0.9434	3275599
Year 2	3967118	-2565831	7439253	0.89	3530721
Year 3	3972164	1406333	11411417	0.8396	3335105
Year 4	3240318	4646651	14651735	0.7921	2566635
TOTAL			14651735		12708061

The Net Present Value at 6% discount rate is 2702977

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

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. Reebok Adidas 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 Reebok Adidas 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 New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. (Abridged)

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 Technology & Operations 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 Reebok Adidas 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 Reebok Adidas 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	(10005084)	-10005084	-	-
Year 1	3472135	-6532949	3472135	0.8696	3019248
Year 2	3967118	-2565831	7439253	0.7561	2999711
Year 3	3972164	1406333	11411417	0.6575	2611762
Year 4	3240318	4646651	14651735	0.5718	1852662
TOTAL					10483384

The Net NPV after 4 years is 478300

(10483384 - 10005084 )

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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	(10005084)	-10005084	-	-
Year 1	3472135	-6532949	3472135	0.8333	2893446
Year 2	3967118	-2565831	7439253	0.6944	2754943
Year 3	3972164	1406333	11411417	0.5787	2298706
Year 4	3240318	4646651	14651735	0.4823	1562653
TOTAL					9509748

The Net NPV after 4 years is -495336

At 20% discount rate the NPV is negative (9509748 - 10005084 ) so ideally we can't select the project if macro and micro factors don't allow financial managers of Reebok Adidas 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 Reebok Adidas has a NPV value higher than Zero then finance managers at Reebok Adidas 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 Reebok Adidas, then the stock price of the Reebok Adidas 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 Reebok Adidas 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 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 will be a multi year spillover effect of various taxation regulations.

Understanding of risks involved in the project.

What can impact the cash flow of 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.

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 New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. (Abridged)

References & Further Readings

H. Kent Bowen, Robert S. Huckman, Carin-Isabel Knoop, Matthew Preble (2018), "New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. (Abridged) Harvard Business Review Case Study. Published by HBR Publications.