Family Business Director

August 16, 2021 Performance Measurement Special Topics

Sanderson Farms Case Study

Cargill is one of the largest family businesses in the world. Earlier this year, we analyzed the Family Capital list of the world’s 750 largest family businesses; Cargill checked in at number 15 on that list, with annual revenue reported to be in excess of $110 billion. Cargill made headlines earlier last week for its acquisition (together with another family business, Continental Grain) of Sanderson Farms, a publicly traded poultry business (ticker: SAFM). It is not every day that family businesses acquire publicly traded companies, so the transaction is worth exploring a bit further.

August 9, 2021 Special Topics

The Potential Buyers of Your Family Business

An Overview of the Different Types of Buyers for Closely Held, Family Businesses

In this week’s Family Business Director, Tim Lee, ASA, Managing Director of Corporate Valuation and John T. (Tripp) Crews, III, Senior Financial Analyst, discuss internal and external exit options for you and your family business and summarize the possible buyers for your family enterprise.

August 2, 2021 Special Topics Taxes

Estate Planning Changes Update

It’s been over six months since we last took inventory of where we stood in the face of tax changes (increases) affecting estate planning. While we currently have some ideas on what to expect regarding the tax policy changes, the full picture remains murky. In this post, we try to clear up some of the murkiness by sharing what we are reading, listening to, and learning regarding tax changes and other factors affecting family businesses and estate plans.

July 26, 2021 Current Events Special Topics

5 Trends Facing Family Businesses Today

Back in the spring of this year, we discussed five broad economic indicators family businesses needed to keep their eye on. In this week’s post, we wanted to revisit those trends and see where we have come over the last four months, as well as what we are hearing from our clients on the ground.

July 19, 2021 Special Topics

A (Not So) Bold Prediction

The Rise of Non-Family Equity Capital in Family Businesses

In this post, we will take a quick look at the growing supply of capital seeking minority investments in family businesses, the sources of growing demand from family businesses for such investment capital, and how directors can best position their family businesses to thrive.

July 12, 2021 Special Topics

Customer Concentrations and the Value of Your Family Business

Does your family business have a significant customer concentration that is reducing the valuation multiple? If so, what steps are you and your fellow directors taking to mitigate this risk? In this post, we offer two strategies to mitigate the risk of customer concentration in your business.

July 2, 2021 Special Topics

Summer 2021 Reading

Family Business Director is off enjoying 4th of July festivities this week. For our readers that are looking for some beach reading, we thought we would direct your attention to some of our more popular posts in case you missed them the first time around.

June 28, 2021 Dividend Policy

Leveraging Private Companies to Accelerate Owner Liquidity and Returns

Leveraged Dividend Recapitalizations and Leveraged Share Repurchases

Now is an excellent time for closely held and family business boards to consider engaging in leveraged transactions to enhance shareholder liquidity and accelerate shareholder returns. The Biden Administration has not yet increased corporate or personal tax rates and interest rates are still low. Banks are seeking quality loans and your leveraged transaction might fit their bill. And perhaps your shareholders desire some liquidity from their ownership, even if you are not ready to don’t desire to sell your company.

In this post, two corporate finance tools available to owners of closely held and family businesses are discussed at length: Leveraged Dividend Recapitalizations and Leveraged Share Repurchases. These tools can be used to create liquidity outside the ownership of private businesses or interests in them.

June 21, 2021 M&A Shareholder Engagement Special Topics

Family Business Purpose and Transactions

In this post, we offer a unique perspective from Atticus Frank, CFA who worked in his family’s business for nearly three years prior to returning to Mercer Capital and joining the team’s Family Business Advisory Group. This post focuses on the wisdom, or lack thereof, of transactions. M&A decisions shouldn’t be undertaken without understanding the meaning of the family business to the family (Is the family business a growth engine, a store of value, a wealth accumulation vehicle, or a lifestyle vehicle). Atticus tackles the topic with a story about his family business.

June 14, 2021 Special Topics

Five Questions with Paul Hood

In this post, Travis Harms sat with Paul Hood, a recovering tax lawyer, to speak about one of the most important tasks a business owner will face: estate planning.