Cost of Capital at Ameritrade 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 Cost of Capital at Ameritrade case study

At Oak Spring University, we provide corporate level professional Net Present Value (NPV) case study solution. Cost of Capital at Ameritrade case study is a Harvard Business School (HBR) case study written by Mark Mitchell, Erik Stafford. The Cost of Capital at Ameritrade (referred as “Ameritrade Brokerage” 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, Financial analysis, Financial markets.

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 Cost of Capital at Ameritrade Case Study

Ameritrade Holding Corp. is planning large marketing and technology investments to improve the company's competitive position in deep-discount brokerage by taking advantage of emerging economies of scale. In order to evaluate whether the strategy would generate sufficient future cash flows to merit the investment, Joe Ricketts, chairman and CEO of Ameritrade, needs an estimate of the project's cost of capital. There is considerable disagreement as to the correct cost of capital estimate. A research analyst pegs the cost of capital at 12%, the CFO of Ameritrade uses 15%, and some members of Ameritrade management believe that the borrowing rate of 9% is the rate by which to discount the future cash flows expected to result from the project. There is also disagreement as to the type of business that Ameritrade is in. Management insists that Ameritrade is a brokerage firm, whereas some research analysts and managers of other online brokerage firms suggest that Ameritrade is a technology/Internet firm. To obtain executable spreadsheets (courseware), please contact our customer service department at custserv@hbsp.harvard.edu.

Case Authors : Mark Mitchell, Erik Stafford

Topic : Finance & Accounting

Related Areas : Costs, Financial analysis, Financial markets

---

Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 6% for Cost of Capital at Ameritrade Case Study

Years	Cash Flow	Net Cash Flow	Cumulative     Cash Flow	Discount Rate @ 6 %	Discounted Cash Flows
Year 0	(10029436)	-10029436	-	-
Year 1	3469275	-6560161	3469275	0.9434	3272901
Year 2	3959491	-2600670	7428766	0.89	3523933
Year 3	3956232	1355562	11384998	0.8396	3321729
Year 4	3239645	4595207	14624643	0.7921	2566102
TOTAL			14624643		12684665

The Net Present Value at 6% discount rate is 2655229

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. Payback Period
3. Net Present Value
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. Ameritrade Brokerage 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 Ameritrade Brokerage 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 Cost of Capital at Ameritrade

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 Ameritrade Brokerage 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 Ameritrade Brokerage 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	(10029436)	-10029436	-	-
Year 1	3469275	-6560161	3469275	0.8696	3016761
Year 2	3959491	-2600670	7428766	0.7561	2993944
Year 3	3956232	1355562	11384998	0.6575	2601287
Year 4	3239645	4595207	14624643	0.5718	1852278
TOTAL					10464269

The Net NPV after 4 years is 434833

(10464269 - 10029436 )

---

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	(10029436)	-10029436	-	-
Year 1	3469275	-6560161	3469275	0.8333	2891063
Year 2	3959491	-2600670	7428766	0.6944	2749647
Year 3	3956232	1355562	11384998	0.5787	2289486
Year 4	3239645	4595207	14624643	0.4823	1562329
TOTAL					9492524

The Net NPV after 4 years is -536912

At 20% discount rate the NPV is negative (9492524 - 10029436 ) so ideally we can't select the project if macro and micro factors don't allow financial managers of Ameritrade Brokerage 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 Ameritrade Brokerage has a NPV value higher than Zero then finance managers at Ameritrade Brokerage 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 Ameritrade Brokerage, then the stock price of the Ameritrade Brokerage 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 Ameritrade Brokerage 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.

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.

Understanding of risks involved in the project.

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 Cost of Capital at Ameritrade

References & Further Readings

Mark Mitchell, Erik Stafford (2018), "Cost of Capital at Ameritrade Harvard Business Review Case Study. Published by HBR Publications.