...The Boston Beer Company BEM106 Final Project Brian Cleary Sarah Luxenberg Peter Seidel Bill Van de Water May 28, 2004 Overview The Boston Beer Company has had amazing success in its transition from a small scale microbrewer to a large scale national brewery. Almost all of the company’s success is due to the Samuel Adams Lager product line, which has hardly changed from the founding of the company in 1984, to the IPO in 1995, to the present day. In fact, much of the appeal of Samuel Adams comes from its microbrew image and the founder, Jim Koch’s, commitment to the brewing process and a premium beer. In recent years, however, the company has implemented a new strategy for growth which has included introducing a light beer that will have more mainstream appeal. While this has increased profits for the company, it has also left the company vulnerable to entry by diluting its brand name. For this reason, the company’s strategy for the immediate future has to make a significant shift, from a strategy of growth to a strategy of protection. It must focus on maintaining its current profits by preventing entry both from small breweries looking to copy the BBC’s strategy and from large breweries looking to use their expansive resources to steal some of BBC’s market share. History of Boston Beer The Boston Beer Company began as a microbrewery in Boston, Massachusetts in 1984. Its first cases of beer were only sold to Boston bars, but the company quickly branched out geographically...
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...Company Analysis The Boston Beer Company- Britton McGlachlin As a relatively new entrant into the beer brewing industry, the United States has often been poked fun at and considered to be an inferior beer brewing country among global competitors. Up until 1984, most domestic beer options were pale lagers produced by the mass market brewers. If a person wanted to get a full and flavorful beer, it was considered that importing was the only option with beers such as Heineken and Beck’s establishing themselves as the premium beer leaders. American craft beers were virtually non-existent other than a few small basement and kitchen operations, and there were no widely distributed micro brewed, now known as craft, beers available. (History) In the early 1980s, Jim Koch, a would be sixth generation beer brewer, was convinced that he could find a niche in the competitive beer market for a high-quality American beer. In 1984, Koch used his great-great grandfather’s 150 year old recipe called “Louis Koch Lager” to brew his first batch of what eventually became Samuel Adams Boston Lager. (About) Jim began to take bottles of his beer bar-to-bar for tasting and received excellent feedback about the quality and flavor of his beer, which used all natural ingredients with no adjuncts. In 1985, Jim decided to debut in the Boston market with small batches focusing primarily on quality. Six weeks after its introduction, Samuel Adams was selected as “The Best Beer in America” in The Great...
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...Marketing Program Product Strategy Product Line. According to The Boston Beer Company’s 2012 Annual Report, they are the largest craft beer in the United States. They sold over fifty different beers under the Samuel Adams brand, ten flavored malt beverages under the Twisted Tea brand, five hard cider beverages under the Angry Orchard brand, and five beers under Alchemy & Science (2). The suggested retail price depends on each product. Product Quality. Boston Beer Company employed over fifteen brew masters to monitor, operate, and control the production of its beers and ciders. In order to ensure the quality flavor of each brand, each product is tested, tasted, and evaluated to meet the Company’s standards. The Company includes on each product a clear and legible “Freshness” label to ensure their customers that they are enjoying the freshest beer. They use sufficient quantities of ingredients which include, two row varieties of barley for their malt, noble hops for superior taste and aroma, strains of yeast which is stored and protected, and different varieties of apples to be used in their ciders (2). Packaging. The Boston Beer Company maintains competitive packaging materials in the form of shipping cases, six pack carriers, and crowns. They distribute their products to different vendors in all forms of packaging (2). Price Strategy The Boston Beer Company maintains competitive pricings in the United States. Their products range in price depending on the product...
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...YifengBao Boston Beer Company The Appendix 1 below presents the strategic group model of beer industry. In my perspective, Boston Beer Company fits the position with moderate high price and high percentage of alcohol volume. Since the strategic group model contains the variables of two competitive characteristics which are average price and percentage of alcohol by volume in the industry, the positions that companies locate in the model are suited to tackle competitive pressures. We could conclude that both of the prices and quality are key competitive elements in beer industry. Boston Beer Company follows the combination strategy with low-cost and differentiation strategies. The case introduced that the company invested in efficiency initiatives to lower costs and increase margins during the its development. Facing the competitive environment in the craft brewery industry, the Boston Beer Company has promoted some specializations of their products, which are popular in the industry. The company brews over 50 beer flavors, for example, Samuel Adams Cherry Wheat beer is one of the most popular beers in the company. Also, the company promotes other alcoholic beverages that are with high popularity among consumers. In addition, the company pays much attention on the brand recognition. The Boston Beer Company has tried to expand the brand to other countries outside the United State and made their products be recognized nationwide. Furthermore, the fact that the Boston Beer Company...
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...Commitment Product Line The Boston Beer Company has been able to grow at a fairly rapid pace without compromising its high standards (Cioletti, 2006). One of the Boston Beer Company’s main strengths is its strong commitment to its product line. It has many recipes that never make it to retail due to these standards. The brewer is reinventing old beers while maintaining its signature beer standard. Size There is strength in Boston Beer Company’s size. While still significantly smaller than a mass producer, it is the largest domestic craft beer producer. Sales of Samuel Adams Boston Lager (Samuel Adams) grew 5% annually over the past decade. This contributed to 6.6% growth overall for Boston Beer Co. This allows the company to have a larger distribution network than that of other craft beer producers and it is able to have a larger advertising budget. The company is the only craft beer that is sold in all 50 states, which is of major importance for name recognition. Furthermore, this contributed to the brand prospering so quickly in the beginning (Jannarone, 2011). Strong Word-of-Mouth Advertising The Boston Beer Co. has benefited from strong word-of-mouth advertising. The CEO, Jim Koch, never thought his beer company would grow so fast or so quickly. Koch’s five-year brewing goal was met in the first five months and his ability to maintain this growth made the company the size it is today (Cioletti, 2006). From helping others pair the correct beer with the type of meal...
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...copies or request permission to reproduce materials, call 1-800-545-7685 or write Harvard Business School Publishing, Boston, MA 02163. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, used in a spreadsheet, or transmitted in any form or by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise—without the permission of Harvard Business School. 1 The Boston Beer Company, Inc. Making a buck at craft brewing has been as easy as falling off a barstool the last few years. So Wall Street is now bellying up for a couple of IPO brewers. They’d better start chugging; the party won’t last long. The intoxicating roundup of offerings began in August when Redhook Brewing, a specialty beermaker started in Seattle by former wine marketer Paul Shipman and Starbucks co-founder Gordan Bowker, tapped the market. The stock was priced at $17, never traded below $24.75 and was recently at $27.25. Again, investors went on a bender last month when Pete’s Brewing Company hit the market. The stock, priced at $18 a share, closed its first day of trading at $25.25 and hasn’t sold below $23.75 yet. Boston Beer, of Sam Adams fame, will roll out in mid-December; the Northwest’s Hart Brewing, which makes Pyramid Ales, is not far behind. 1 Eileen Gunn Fortune Magazine, December 11, 1995 Company Background History Boston Beer Company (BBC) was founded in 1984 by Jim Koch, who was the sixth generation of his German family to become a brewmeister...
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...Cited: Page 89 Introduction Boston Beer Company (SAM) is one of the fastest growing breweries in the United States of America currently holding the largest market share of craft brewers in the country, and 6th largest of all brewers. Founded in 1984 in Boston, Massachusetts and staying true to both its local and family roots, this high quality beer has become an icon throughout the nation. Another extremely successful and predominant corporation in the beverage-alcohol industry is that of Anheuser-Busch Inbev SA (BUD) which will serve for the purposes of this paper as a benchmark for how a firm should be performing and operating in this field. Being that Anheuser-Busch has been operating since 1852, has 13 breweries nation-wide, and is one of the most iconic breweries in the world, it truly is a unique comparison of “David vs. Goliath” for these two companies. The History of the Boston Beer Company Jim Koch, founding member of The Boston Beer Company, has a long proud history of brewing a robust, full flavored beer in his family. In fact, it was his great-great grandfather Louise Koch, who concocted the original recipe for the brands metaphorical bread and butter “Samuel Adams Boston Lager” which is by far the bestselling brand in the portfolio of beers the company holds and distributes. The “Sam Adams” name (also the inspiration for the NYSE ticker the company holds “SAM”) was dubbed after the American patriot from Boston of the same name because of...
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...Boston Beer Equity Valuation Valuation Date: April 1, 2005 Jason Boney jboneyttu@yahoo.com Jordan Gristy jgristy@yahoo.com Preston Madden preston.e.madden@ttu.edu Heath Stanley charles.h.stanley@ttu.edu Boston Beer Co. Equity Valuation Table of Contents Executive Summary Business and Industry Analysis Competitive Advantages Five Forces Model Industry Competitive Analysis Accounting Analysis Key Accounting Policies Degree of Accounting Flexibility Evaluation of Accounting Strategy Accounting Quality of Disclosure Red Flags Quantitative Analysis Ratio Analysis Liquidity Profitability Capital Structure Forecasting Balance Sheet Income Statement Statement of Cash Flows Forecast Summary Valuation Analysis Method of Comparables Valuation Tools Discounted Free Cash Flow Residual Income Long Run Residual Abnormal Earnings Growth (AEG) Conclusion of Valuation Work Cited Appendix 4 7 8 9 15 17 17 20 22 23 23 25 29 29 31 34 37 37 38 39 40 41 41 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 52 3 Boston Beer Co. By Valuation Proclamation Heath Stanley, Jordan Gristy, Preston Madden, Jason Boney Investment Recommendation: Buy, Undervalued Stock Ticker and Exchange Current Price (4-1-05) 52 week price range Revenue (2004) Market Capitalization Shares Outstanding 3-month Avg. Daily Volume Percent Institutional Ownership Book Value Per Share ROE ROA Est. 5yr EPS Growth Rate Cost of Capital Est. Beta Estimated 5-year -0.201 3-year 0.098 2-year 0.434 Published Beta 0.35 Kd WACC SAM-NYSE $22.14...
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...Case: Boston Beer Company Address the following questions in a 4-5 page write-up of the Boston Beer Company Case to explore the issue of Initial Public Offerings. 1) What do you think of Boston Beer’s business model relative to the traditional beer companies’ business model? Relative to Redhook and Pete’s? (Hint: consider their brewing, production, distribution, marketing strategies. How is each firm attempting to achieve its own sustainable comparative advantage in the market place?) 2) Evaluate Boston Beer’s performance relative to its peers (Compare BBC's ratios to the ratios of its peers in exhibit 4). (Hint: how do differences in operating strategies translate into differences in financial ratios? Are there any downside risks to BBC's contract brewing strategy?) 3) What is your assessment of the intrinsic value of Boston Beer’s stock at the time of the case? What should be its IPO price? (Some hints below: First, you should look at the P/E multiples for Pete's and Redhook around the IPO time for BBC. You should also look at the average amount the price seems to jump on the day of the IPO, and the EPS of BBC for 1994 and 1995. From this, you should figure out what the implied price per share for BBC should be in this market environment. Second, you should try to justify this price per share by doing FCF analysis. Create a ten year pro-forma spreadsheet, projecting out barrels of beer each year, revenue per barrel, revenue...
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...Anheuser-Busch and Miller Brewing Company that were profitable, publicly traded firms—but there was something different about Alridge: it embodied the ethos and grassroots beginnings of the microbrew movement, and Shipman was confident that widespread market demand for craft beer was set to explode. He and the team had steadily developed their premium-quality handmade ales for nearly fifteen years, and their loyal customer base was strong. In the last year alone, he’d forged alliances with both Starbucks (for the purposes of co- branding a coffee- flavored brew) and A-B that had purchased a capped 25% interest in AB in exchange for access to its national distribution networks and accounting systems. Shipman had overseen significant capacity increases, with plans on the horizon for yet another brewery in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. He had worked hard to position AB favorably for expansion, and the public offering would provide the necessary capital. But how would the “microbrew” feel of AB translate to the largescale commercialization and growth pressures of the open market? Producing and distributing microbrews on a large scale was a new concept—and like any new concept, it would have to be sold. Shipman hoped to sell craft beer—and lots of it—in the heartland of America. Revolutionary Beginnings Shipman thought back through the determined, tumultuous beginnings of the company he had helped to found after graduating from the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia in 1980....
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...IPO Pricing for Boston Beer Company Inc. Case Summary We address the following key questions regarding Boston Beer Company (BBC) to explore the issues surrounding its Initial Public Offering. First of all, we determine the fair value of BBC to be $211 million based on a DCF valuation of projected future cash flows and explain our key assumptions and potential problems arising from those assumptions. Second, we find BBC’s fair value to be $314 million by relative valuation and discuss how differences in operating strategies might translate into differences in financial ratios. Third, we determine BBC’s IPO price to be $15 per share. Finally, we look at the craft brewer industry as a whole and we find that it may be overvalued by the market. PART I: DCF Valuation In our intrinsic valuation approach, Boston Beer Company’s future free cash flows of the next ten years are projected in the spreadsheet. Present value of the company at the end of 1995 is calculated by discounting ten year’s free cash flows and terminal value by weighted average cost of capital. As we can see from the spreadsheet, the company fair value is $210.78 million. Subtracting the debt level of $1.95 million, the equity value is therefore $208.83 million. Appendix 1 includes the full valuation model we used. The key assumptions we made and the calculation methods we used are listed as follows: BBC’s annual sales growth rates from 1992 to 1994 are 63.55%, 60.14% and 48.84% respectively. The unaudited...
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...The Importance Of Marketing In Your Business By Carael Knight Ads by Google Small order business www.hktdc.com Meet quality suppliers in Hong Kong Int'l Lighting Fair 2012. 6-9 Apr Create More Value www.thepartnershipmodel.com Develop stronger relationships with your customers and suppliers What do customers want? ey.com/global-insurance-survey-2012 How insurers can meet evolving customer needs. The true definition of marketing is setting up automatic, repeatable systems that create an environment where people want to buy from you instead of you having to sell them. Just as a bee is lured to the nectar of a flower, business people are lured to money. Entrepreneurs are the honeybees of our economy. Ultimately the goal of an entrepreneur is to extend the life of his or her enterprise for a lifetime. As a business owner, your ultimate product is a satisfied customer. Some facts about the Internet and search engines: Over 80 percent of Internet users use search engines to find information A typical search can often generate thousands if not millions of results Only those websites listed in the top 100 will ever see any significant traffic Each day, millions of online businesses are competing for those top 100 spots The best marketing advice I can give you is find the right audience, ask people what they what, and after that, simply give it to them. Marketing is the science behind encouraging interested people to buy. The success of any business basically comes down to...
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...IPO Pricing for Boston Beer Company Inc. Case Summary We address the following key questions regarding Boston Beer Company (BBC) to explore the issues surrounding its Initial Public Offering. First of all, we determine the fair value of BBC to be $211 million based on a DCF valuation of projected future cash flows and explain our key assumptions and potential problems arising from those assumptions. Second, we find BBC’s fair value to be $314 million by relative valuation and discuss how differences in operating strategies might translate into differences in financial ratios. Third, we determine BBC’s IPO price to be $15 per share. Finally, we look at the craft brewer industry as a whole and we find that it may be overvalued by the market. PART I: DCF Valuation In our intrinsic valuation approach, Boston Beer Company’s future free cash flows of the next ten years are projected in the spreadsheet. Present value of the company at the end of 1995 is calculated by discounting ten year’s free cash flows and terminal value by weighted average cost of capital. As we can see from the spreadsheet, the company fair value is $210.78 million. Subtracting the debt level of $1.95 million, the equity value is therefore $208.83 million. Appendix 1 includes the full valuation model we used. The key assumptions we made and the calculation methods we used are listed as follows: BBC’s annual sales growth rates from 1992 to 1994 are 63.55%, 60.14% and 48.84% respectively...
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...30 Stephen E. Barndt aul Shipman, Chief Executive Officer of Redhook Ale Brewery, knew that he needed to reevaluate his strategy and its execution. Redhook's rapid growth had ended shortly after it invested in a major increase in production capacity. Operating at about 50% of production capacity, the company suffered a net loss in 1997 that continued into 1998. Redhook brewed only specialty beer, referred to as craft beer. Craft beer is a more flavorful, fuller bodied premium beer. follows traditional old world brewing methods. and uses high-quality materials. The company started as a microbrewery but grew continually and reached national status by the end of 1996. Shipman, one of Redhook's founders, had guided the company from a small player in one city to a leading position as a national competitor and aimed at dominating the craft beer segment of the domestic beer industry. The company's three small-batch breweries. two in the Pacific Northwest and one in the Northeast, had a combined design capacity of 575.000 barrels (each containing 31 gallons) per year of Redhook branded beer to tap a growing market for craft beer. However, growth in the craft beer market attracted attention, and competition grew from other microbreweries, brewpubs, regional specialty brewers, and from large mass-market brewers. With increased competition, 1996 saw the beginning of a downturn with a reduction in sal•• ~and profitability. P I Ccmpany History Redhook was started in 1981 by Paul...
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...IPO’s price per share will be based off of Boston Beer’s credibility, investor sentiment, and oversubscription of consumer shares. Case 1 Table 1 Year | 1994 | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | GROWTH | 0.40 | 0.40 | 0.30 | 0.20 | 0.10 | See Graph | INFLATOR | 0.39 | 0.39 | 0.29 | 0.19 | 0.09 | 0.04 | SALES | 114,833 | 160766 | 225073 | 292594 | 351113 | 386225 | Interest | 0.115 | | | | | | for 1997, and 10% for 1998. Graph 1 plots the growth scenarios for the year 1999 on the horizontal axis against the IPO price per share on the vertical axis. A 4%, 5%, 6%, and 7% growth rate should see a corresponding price per share of $7.09, $8.46, $10.47, and $13.74, respectively. The first two numbers ($7.09 and $8.46) are below the underwriters estimates, while the last two numbers ($10.47 and $13.74) are within the underwriters estimate of $10-$15 per share. Case 2 analyzes a moderate growth rate for the company. As shown in the Table 2, growth in 1995 is 50% then declines to 40% in 1996, 30% in 1997, and 10% in 1998. Graph 2 shows 4%, 5%, 6%, and 7% growth rate for 1999 that should see a corresponding price per share of $9.88, $11.71, $14.42, and $18.82, respectively. The three higher growth rates are within the underwriter’s $10-$15 price per share estimate, while the lowest growth rate, 4%, is not. Case 3 Table 3 Case 3 will analyze growth starting in 1995 based off of Boston’s previous growth with barrels of beer shipped. This case begins with a 1995 growth...
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