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Centerbridge Partners and Great Wolf Resorts: Buying from a Highly Regarded Competitor 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 Centerbridge Partners and Great Wolf Resorts: Buying from a Highly Regarded Competitor case study


At Oak Spring University, we provide corporate level professional Net Present Value (NPV) case study solution. Centerbridge Partners and Great Wolf Resorts: Buying from a Highly Regarded Competitor case study is a Harvard Business School (HBR) case study written by Josh Lerner, John Dionne, Amram Migdal. The Centerbridge Partners and Great Wolf Resorts: Buying from a Highly Regarded Competitor (referred as “Centerbridge Wolf” from here on) case study provides evaluation & decision scenario in field of Finance & Accounting. It also touches upon business topics such as - Value proposition, Costs, Entrepreneurial finance, Financial analysis, Financial markets, Negotiations.

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 Centerbridge Partners and Great Wolf Resorts: Buying from a Highly Regarded Competitor Case Study


The case examines the March 2015 Centerbridge Partners investment decision regarding whether to acquire Great Wolf Resorts, a North American family-oriented indoor water parks and hotel operator, from a private equity (PE) competitor, Apollo Global Management. The case allows for discussion of strategic and financing considerations by Centerbridge, a New York-based investment firm employing a flexible approach across investment disciplines: private equity (PE); credit, distressed strategies, and special situations; and real estate. Students are presented the opportunity to perform valuation analysis and compare two possible forms of financing for the potential acquisition: 1) traditional corporate debt and bond financing and 2) commercial mortgage-backed security (CMBS) financing. Strategically, the case poses the questions: Was Centerbridge valuing Great Wolf correctly? Would CMBS be the optimal financing structure, and why had no other firm contemplated this type of financing? Would the company, in partnership with Centerbridge, be able to execute on operational improvements and growth strategy? Was the purchase price multiple of 9.4x warranted in light of the opportunity set? Would an established PE firm like Apollo ever leave enough on the table for a successor private-equity owner to generate gains without necessary multiple expansion?


Case Authors : Josh Lerner, John Dionne, Amram Migdal

Topic : Finance & Accounting

Related Areas : Costs, Entrepreneurial finance, Financial analysis, Financial markets, Negotiations




Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 6% for Centerbridge Partners and Great Wolf Resorts: Buying from a Highly Regarded Competitor Case Study


Years              Cash Flow     Net Cash Flow     Cumulative    
Cash Flow
Discount Rate
@ 6 %
Discounted
Cash Flows
Year 0 (10006632) -10006632 - -
Year 1 3451342 -6555290 3451342 0.9434 3255983
Year 2 3958058 -2597232 7409400 0.89 3522658
Year 3 3950192 1352960 11359592 0.8396 3316657
Year 4 3223568 4576528 14583160 0.7921 2553368
TOTAL 14583160 12648666




The Net Present Value at 6% discount rate is 2642034

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






Formula and Steps to Calculate Net Present Value (NPV) of Centerbridge Partners and Great Wolf Resorts: Buying from a Highly Regarded Competitor

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 Finance & Accounting 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 Centerbridge Wolf 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 Centerbridge Wolf 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 (10006632) -10006632 - -
Year 1 3451342 -6555290 3451342 0.8696 3001167
Year 2 3958058 -2597232 7409400 0.7561 2992860
Year 3 3950192 1352960 11359592 0.6575 2597315
Year 4 3223568 4576528 14583160 0.5718 1843085
TOTAL 10434428


The Net NPV after 4 years is 427796

(10434428 - 10006632 )








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 (10006632) -10006632 - -
Year 1 3451342 -6555290 3451342 0.8333 2876118
Year 2 3958058 -2597232 7409400 0.6944 2748651
Year 3 3950192 1352960 11359592 0.5787 2285991
Year 4 3223568 4576528 14583160 0.4823 1554576
TOTAL 9465336


The Net NPV after 4 years is -541296

At 20% discount rate the NPV is negative (9465336 - 10006632 ) so ideally we can't select the project if macro and micro factors don't allow financial managers of Centerbridge Wolf 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 Centerbridge Wolf has a NPV value higher than Zero then finance managers at Centerbridge Wolf 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 Centerbridge Wolf, then the stock price of the Centerbridge Wolf 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 Centerbridge Wolf 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 –

Understanding of risks involved in the project.

What can impact the cash flow of the project.

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

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 Centerbridge Partners and Great Wolf Resorts: Buying from a Highly Regarded Competitor

References & Further Readings

Josh Lerner, John Dionne, Amram Migdal (2018), "Centerbridge Partners and Great Wolf Resorts: Buying from a Highly Regarded Competitor Harvard Business Review Case Study. Published by HBR Publications.


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