Hines Goes to Rio 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 Hines Goes to Rio case study

At Oak Spring University, we provide corporate level professional Net Present Value (NPV) case study solution. Hines Goes to Rio case study is a Harvard Business School (HBR) case study written by Arthur I Segel. The Hines Goes to Rio (referred as “Hines Project” from here on) case study provides evaluation & decision scenario in field of Innovation & Entrepreneurship. It also touches upon business topics such as - Value proposition, Project management.

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 Hines Goes to Rio Case Study

To maximize their effectiveness, color cases should be printed in color.The Torre Almirante office tower, Hines' newest project in Rio de Janeiro, was a 36-story, Class AA office tower with an adjoining 420-stall parking structure and a preserved 14-story historic facade. It was completely different from anything that had previously been built in the city. It was also the first time that a developer took the risk of publicly announcing to the Brazilian business community its intention and commitment to complete such a complex real estate project on schedule. It was an impressive and unprecedented enterprise, but at this stage, the project was enmeshed in some operational complications. Several project designs were not yet ready, and discussions among the different companies involved in the development had intensified in the past weeks. Robert A.M. Stern Architects, the New York-based design architect, was debating with Hines about issues ranging from the glass window specifications to the material for the gold leaf lobby ceiling. Pontual Arquitetura, the local production architect, was concerned about the fire protection system. In addition, Racional, the local general contractor, just pointed out a serious problem in the freight elevator shaft that could force Hines to modify substantial parts of the project and, consequently, trigger a new round of required approvals. Includes color exhibits.

Case Authors : Arthur I Segel

Topic : Innovation & Entrepreneurship

Related Areas : Project management

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Calculating Net Present Value (NPV) at 6% for Hines Goes to Rio Case Study

Years	Cash Flow	Net Cash Flow	Cumulative     Cash Flow	Discount Rate @ 6 %	Discounted Cash Flows
Year 0	(10027299)	-10027299	-	-
Year 1	3450817	-6576482	3450817	0.9434	3255488
Year 2	3971495	-2604987	7422312	0.89	3534616
Year 3	3939969	1334982	11362281	0.8396	3308074
Year 4	3239141	4574123	14601422	0.7921	2565703
TOTAL			14601422		12663881

The Net Present Value at 6% discount rate is 2636582

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. Internal Rate of Return
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. Timing of the expected cash flows – stockholders of Hines Project 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. Hines Project shareholders have preference for diversified projects investment rather than prospective high income from a single capital intensive project.

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Formula and Steps to Calculate Net Present Value (NPV) of Hines Goes to Rio

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 Innovation & Entrepreneurship 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 Hines Project 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 Hines Project 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	(10027299)	-10027299	-	-
Year 1	3450817	-6576482	3450817	0.8696	3000710
Year 2	3971495	-2604987	7422312	0.7561	3003021
Year 3	3939969	1334982	11362281	0.6575	2590594
Year 4	3239141	4574123	14601422	0.5718	1851989
TOTAL					10446314

The Net NPV after 4 years is 419015

(10446314 - 10027299 )

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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	(10027299)	-10027299	-	-
Year 1	3450817	-6576482	3450817	0.8333	2875681
Year 2	3971495	-2604987	7422312	0.6944	2757983
Year 3	3939969	1334982	11362281	0.5787	2280075
Year 4	3239141	4574123	14601422	0.4823	1562086
TOTAL					9475824

The Net NPV after 4 years is -551475

At 20% discount rate the NPV is negative (9475824 - 10027299 ) so ideally we can't select the project if macro and micro factors don't allow financial managers of Hines Project 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 Hines Project has a NPV value higher than Zero then finance managers at Hines Project 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 Hines Project, then the stock price of the Hines Project 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 Hines Project 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 can impact the cash flow of the project.

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

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 Hines Goes to Rio

References & Further Readings

Arthur I Segel (2018), "Hines Goes to Rio Harvard Business Review Case Study. Published by HBR Publications.