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Owner Earnings
Owner earnings is a valuation method detailed by Warren Buffett in Berkshire Hathaway's annual report in 1986. He stated that the value of a company is simply the total of the net cash flows (owner earnings) expected to occur over the life of the business, minus any reinvestment of earnings. Buffett defined owner earnings as follows: :"These represent (a) reported earnings plus (b) depreciation, depletion, amortization, and certain other non-cash charges... less (c) the average annual amount of capitalized expenditures for plant and equipment, etc. that the business requires to fully maintain its long-term competitive position and its unit volume... Our owner-earnings equation does not yield the deceptively precise figures provided by GAAP, since (c) must be a guess - and one sometimes very difficult to make. Despite this problem, we consider the owner earnings figure, not the GAAP figure, to be the relevant item for valuation purposes... All of this points up the absurdity ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Valuation (finance)
In finance, valuation is the process of determining the value of a (potential) investment, asset, or security. Generally, there are three approaches taken, namely discounted cashflow valuation, relative valuation, and contingent claim valuation. Valuations can be done for assets (for example, investments in marketable securities such as companies' shares and related rights, business enterprises, or intangible assets such as patents, data and trademarks) or for liabilities (e.g., bonds issued by a company). Valuation is a subjective exercise, and in fact, the process of valuation itself can also affect the value of the asset in question. Valuations may be needed for various reasons such as investment analysis, capital budgeting, merger and acquisition transactions, financial reporting, taxable events to determine the proper tax liability. In a business valuation context, various techniques are used to determine the (hypothetical) price that a third party would pay for a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fixed Asset
Fixed assets (also known as long-lived assets or property, plant and equipment; PP&E) is a term used in accounting for assets and property that may not easily be converted into cash. They are contrasted with current assets, such as cash, bank accounts, and short-term debts receivable. In most cases, only tangible assets are referred to as fixed. While IAS 16 (International Accounting Standard) does not define the term ''fixed asset'', it is often colloquially considered a synonym for property, plant and equipment. According to IAS 16.6, property, plant and equipment are tangible items that: (a) are held for use in the production or supply of goods or services, for rental to others, or for administrative purposes and (b) are expected to be used during more than one period. Fixed assets are of two types: * those which are purchased with legal right of ownership (in the case of property, known as ''freehold assets''), and * those for which the owner has temporary ownership ri ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Management Accounting
In management accounting or managerial accounting, managers use accounting information in decision-making and to assist in the management and performance of their control functions. Definition One simple definition of management accounting is the provision of financial and non-financial decision-making information to managers. In other words, management accounting helps the directors inside an organization to make decisions. This is the way toward distinguishing, examining, deciphering and imparting data to supervisors to help accomplish business goals. The information gathered includes all fields of accounting that educates the administration regarding business tasks identifying with the financial expenses and decisions made by the organization. Accountants use plans to measure the overall strategy of operations within the organization. According to the Institute of Management Accountants (IMA), "Management accounting is a profession that involves partnering in management decisi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cash Flow Forecasting
Cash flow forecasting is the process of obtaining an estimate of a company's future cash levels, and its financial position more generally. A cash flow forecast is a key financial management tool, both for large corporates, and for smaller entrepreneurial businesses. The forecast is typically based on anticipated payments and receivables. Several forecasting methodologies are available. Function Cash flow forecasting is an element of financial management. Maintaining a company's cash flow is a central part of managing the business and the financing of ongoing operations — particularly for start-ups and small enterprises. If the business runs out of cash and is not able to obtain new finance, it will become insolvent, and eventually declare Bankruptcy. Cash flow forecasting helps management forecast (predict) cash levels to avoid insolvency. The frequency of forecasting is determined by several factors, such as characteristics of the business, the industry and regulatory ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Business Valuation
Business valuation is a process and a set of procedures used to estimate the economic value of an owner's interest in a business. Here various valuation techniques are used by financial market participants to determine the price they are willing to pay or receive to effect a sale of the business. In addition to estimating the selling price of a business, the same valuation tools are often used by business appraisers to resolve disputes related to estate and gift taxation, divorce litigation, allocate business purchase price among business assets, establish a formula for estimating the value of partners' ownership interest for buy-sell agreements, and many other business and legal purposes such as in shareholders deadlock, divorce litigation and estate contest. Specialized business valuation credentials include the Chartered Business Valuator (CBV) offered by the CBV Institute, ASA and CEIV from the American Society of Appraisers, and the Certified Valuation Analyst (CVA) by the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bruce Greenwald
Bruce Corman Norbert Greenwald (born August 15, 1946) is an American economist and professor at Columbia University's Graduate School of Business and an advisor at First Eagle Investment Management. He is, among others, the author of the books ''Value Investing: from Graham to Buffett and Beyond'' and ''Competition Demystified: A Radically Simplified Approach to Business Strategy''. He has been referred to by ''The New York Times'' as "a guru to Wall Street's gurus" and is a recognized authority on value investing, along with additional expertise in productivity and the economics of information. Biography Greenwald received a B.S. in electrical engineering from MIT in 1967, a M.S. in electrical engineering and M.P.A. from Princeton University in 1969, and a Ph.D. from MIT in economics in 1978. Before arriving at Columbia in 1991, Greenwald was a research economist at Bell Laboratories and later Bell Communications Research, and an assistant professor at Harvard Business ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Wall Street
Wall Street is a street in the Financial District, Manhattan, Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. It runs eight city blocks between Broadway (Manhattan), Broadway in the west and South Street (Manhattan), South Street and the East River in the east with a length of just under 2,000 feet. The term "Wall Street" has become a Metonymy, metonym for the financial markets of the United States as a whole, the Financial services in the United States, American financial services industry, New York–based financial interests, or the Financial District. Anchored by Wall Street, New York has been described as the world's principal fintech and financial center. The street was originally known in Dutch language, Dutch as ''Het Cingel'' ("the Belt") when it was part of New Amsterdam during the 17th century. An actual city wall existed on the street from 1653 to 1699. During the 18th century, the location served as a slave market and Security (finance), securities ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Generally Accepted Accounting Principles
Publicly traded companies typically are subject to rigorous standards. Small and midsized businesses often follow more simplified standards, plus any specific disclosures required by their specific lenders and shareholders. Some firms operate on the cash method of accounting which can often be simple and straightforward. Larger firms most often operate on an accrual basis. Accrual basis is one of the fundamental accounting assumptions, and if it is followed by the company while preparing the financial statements, then no further disclosure is required. Accounting standards prescribe in considerable detail what accruals must be made, how the financial statements are to be presented, and what additional disclosures are required. The term ''generally accepted accounting principles'' (GAAP) was popularized in the late 1930s. Some important elements that accounting standards cover include identifying the exact entity which is reporting, discussing any "going concern" questions, specif ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Capital Expenditure
Capital expenditure or capital expense (abbreviated capex, CAPEX, or CapEx) is the money an organization or corporate entity spends to buy, maintain, or improve its fixed assets, such as buildings, vehicles, equipment, or land. It is considered a capital expenditure when the asset is newly purchased or when money is used towards extending the useful life of an existing asset, such as repairing the roof. Capital expenditures contrast with operating expenses (opex), which are ongoing expenses that are inherent to the operation of the asset. Opex includes items like electricity or cleaning. The difference between opex and capex may not be immediately obvious for some expenses; for instance, repaving the parking lot may be thought of inherent to the operation of a shopping mall. Similarly, the costs of software for a business (either software development or software as a service licensing) might fall into either opex or capex (that is, is it merely business as usual, or is it somet ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Warren Buffett
Warren Edward Buffett ( ; born August 30, 1930) is an American investor and philanthropist who currently serves as the chairman and CEO of the conglomerate holding company Berkshire Hathaway. As a result of his investment success, Buffett is one of the best-known investors in the world. According to ''Forbes'', as of May 2025, Buffett's estimated net worth stood at US$160.2 billion, making him the fifth-richest individual in the world. Buffett was born in Omaha, Nebraska. The son of U.S. congressman and businessman Howard Buffett, he developed an interest in business and investing during his youth. He entered the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania in 1947 before graduating from the University of Nebraska at 20. He went on to graduate from Columbia Business School, where he molded his investment philosophy around the concept of value investing pioneered by Benjamin Graham. He attended New York Institute of Finance to focus on his economics background and soon ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Amortization (business)
In accounting, amortization is a method of obtaining the expenses incurred by an intangible asset arising from a decline in value as a result of use or the passage of time. Amortization is the acquisition cost minus the residual value of an asset, calculated in a systematic manner over an asset's useful economic life. Depreciation is a corresponding concept for tangible assets. Methodologies for allocating amortization to each accounting period are generally the same as those for depreciation. However, many intangible assets such as goodwill or certain brands may be deemed to have an indefinite useful life and are therefore not subject to amortization (although goodwill is subjected to an impairment test every year). While theoretically amortization is used to account for the decreasing value of an intangible asset over its useful life, in practice many companies will amortize what would otherwise be one-time expenses through listing them as a capital expense on the cash ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
