Business Valuations St. Louis: How to Value a Company

Business Valuations St. Louis: How to Value a Company? Why is the valuation process so complicated? Why do company valuations cost so much?

Some of the questions people ask me are related to how to value a company. Why is the valuation process so complicated? Why do valuations cost so much?

These are great questions, the valuation process is very complicated because there are several methods the valuation analyst needs to perform for each business valuation.

When the valuation expert gets accredited to perform business valuations there are certain rules and requirements that they must follow.

Each valuation expert will go through and review the company financials, explore the economy on a national level and local level, review other companies in the same industry and how they are performing, as well as review historically how the particular company has performed.

This process does take a tremendous amount of time, expertise, and knowledge in order to perform a thorough valuation of the company.

Each valuation expert will review the value of the company based on a market approach, income approach and cost approach.

The market approach is looking at what other companies in your same industry and of the same size in revenues or assets as your company, had been sold for within the past several years.

The valuation analyst will review the market comparables as they call them in order to determine what the approximate value would be of the company on the open market.

Then the valuation analyst will take a look at the companies historical operations including revenue or sales, cost of goods sold, operating expenses, and then if there are any nonrecurring or nonoperational expenses and income. This analysis is to determine what the financials will look like going forward.

Finally the valuation expert will consider what the company is worth on the balance sheet.
This means if you take the value of the assets and minus the value of the liabilities what is left is the value of the company.

Now really it’s not as easy as that, of course, but this gives you a general picture of what a business analyst needs to review in order to determine the value of a company.

If you would like to learn more about how to value a company, how to buy a business or how to find a qualified valuation appraiser – check out our videos at http://www.YouTube/BusinessValuationSTL

How to Sell a Business St. Louis: Do I Need a Business Broker or Transaction Attorney?

http://www.ValuationStLouis.com (314) 541-8163 How to Sell a Business St. Louis: Do I Need a Business Broker or Transaction Attorney? What is the process for selling a business? How do I find business brokers and lawyers?

Hi, my name is Melissa Gragg, I am an accredited valuation analyst at Bridge Valuation Partners in St. Louis, MO.

Business owners always have questions about how to sell a business: one of the main questions is “Do I need a business broker or transaction attorney?

People just want to know the M&A process even if they are not ready to sell in the next year or two. Being prepared to sell your business before you are actually ready will put you ahead of the game and then you will know what to do when an opportunity appears.

Selling your business is not an easy matter, especially if it is your first time.

There are simple cheap ways you can list your business for sale on various directories, but this is just to post basic information about your business for potential buyers surfing the internet.

Most people talk with a business broker or mergers and acquisitions specialist. You are hiring an advocate, someone who is going to work to get you the highest price for your company.

There are many reasons to hire a business broker – the biggest one is that they act as a 3rd party mediator in a sense. You will be doing some hard negotiating at times and it is good to have someone who will be able to really stand on your offer and requirements for the deal.

As the business owner, it is hard to really stand by what you want because you are emotionally connected to your business, you don’t want to pass up an opportunity and sometimes the dollars are so big that you may back down on certain issues when you don’t have to.

The business broker’s job is to create an environment where the buyers are competing to buy your company. The business broker usually gets paid based on your final deal, but sometimes they will also want a retainer to work for you.

The sale process could take a year or more to finalize, so be patient if you want to get the best price for your company.

You will probably end up hiring a transaction attorney as well, this person could be a recommendation from your business broker, accountant or banker and will help you understand all of the contracts involved in your deal.

Working with a business broker and transaction lawyer will put two very experienced professionals on your side. Don’t rely on a handshake and someone’s good word. Protect what you have built and get the highest price when you are ready to sell.

If you would like to learn more about business valuations, how to value a company, how to sell a business or how to find a qualified valuation appraiser – check out our additional videos at http://www.YouTube.com/businessvaluationstl

Family Law St. Louis: When Do I Need a Business Valuation?

http://youtu.be/B2qKt-Be5UI

Business owners always have questions about what happens to the family business when one owner is getting divorced or involved in a family law issue: one of the main questions is “when do I need a business valuation?

There are times when a couple may or may not need a company valuation.

Here are some things to consider if you own a business and your marriage is ending:

1. Was any of the business or marital property owned prior to the marriage?

2. Is there a buy-sell agreement that deals with how the business is valued in the event of a divorce?

3. Has there been any written offers to purchase the business within the past 3 to 5 years?

4. Do you and your spouse disagree on the value or what the business is worth?

5. Have you had any prior valuations done for the company?

6. Will you be going to family law court to settle the matter?

All of these questions are very important to determine whether you need a valuation performed for the business.

Basically if there is a buy-sell or other agreement which clearly states how to value the company, there are prior transactions for the business which could provide an indication of the value AND you both agree that the value is reasonable, then you may NOT need a valuation.

If on the other hand there is no info to help value the company, or the business was owned prior to the marriage — AND you and your spouse are fighting about everything including the value of the business — then you should consider hiring a valuation expert.

The valuation expert is a 3rd party expert, who can look at all the financial issues, apply valuation methods, provide a report if needed and then testify in court about the final value.

Divorce is a negotiation and if you know the numbers for all of the different pieces of property, then you will be equipped to handle the discussion and settle the matter quickly.

If you would like to learn more about business valuations, how to value a company for family law and divorce litigation, or how to find a qualified valuation appraiser – check out our additional videos at http://www.YouTube/businessvaluationstl

or visit our website at http://www.valuationstLouis.com

Welcome to the Valuation Appraiser Blog

Hi, I am Melissa Gragg, President of Bridge Valuation Partners in St. Louis, Missouri. I started this blog to share information about how to value a company, how to buy or sell a business and general valuation information. Let me give you some background on my experience and how I work with business owners and attorneys to determine the value of a business or litigation case.

After earning my Masters in Finance from Saint Louis University I worked in the investment banking world as part of team assisting in the buying and selling of businesses. I searched for market transactions in order to determine the market value of a business, developed written material summarizing the operations of the company for sale, researched buyers for the company and then maintained relationships with venture capital firms in order to understand their buying parameters.

The most important part of my job was working with the business owner and preparing them for the emotional aspects of selling their company as well as the strategic complications. Selling a company is a process and preparing for the changes and challenges ahead is a big part of the deal.

After a few years I went to work for a regional accounting firm in the business valuation and litigation support department. I worked with business owners to transfer shares of the company to their children and grandchildren in the form of gifting. In order to gift shares of stock to another person, a business valuation must be prepared. This report aids in the preparation of the gift tax return and establishes the value of the shares at the time of the gift.

I also have extensive experience when valuation concepts are entwined in a litigation as well, whether lost profits, lost wages or separation of marital assets. I work with attorneys to help them understand the value of a lawsuit and develop financial models to support the calculation in court. I have testified in deposition and trial as well. My experience has also lead me to conduct fraud investigations for a variety of government entities and private companies.

I stepped away from valuations for several years to help my family start a business in the health care arena and in 2011 started my own valuation and litigation support firm.

Now I have the experience of being an entrepreneur and business owner which allows me to understand the responsibility and professional drive the position requires. I relate to business owners and can assist them in the different stages of development, valuation and eventual sale.

I work with business owners, merger & acquisition professionals, accounting firms as well as other valuation providers and have an extensive network of experts who serve as my “partners”. I look forward to helping others understand how to value a company.