One of the reforms mandated by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010 (“Dodd-Frank”) is the endorsement in law and regulation of the role of Municipal Advisors in the issuance of municipal bonds and other related… Read More >
Intergenerational Transfers of Businesses
On August 4th of this year, the Internal Revenue Service issued proposed regulations under Internal Revenue Code Section 2704 designed to limit consideration of marketability and control factors in the valuation of family-held business interests in estate, gift and generation-skipping… Read More >
Bond Buyer Reports on Bid Rigging
The Bond Buyer of Thursday, February 25, 2016 brought a reminder that The Big Short (see our commentary released February 24, 2016) is not the only story of Wall Street malfeasance leading up to the Great Recession. The headline on… Read More >
Jim White Examines The Big Short
After being asked several times my opinion on The Big Short (“Short” for short in this writing), a few days ago I went to see the movie. Short is based on the book of the same name by Michael Lewis,… Read More >
Uber: A Test for Birmingham
The local media have reported that conversations have restarted between the Birmingham City Council and Uber, the ride sharing service that is the prime exemplar of the “sharing economy.” A deal with Uber involving a revised city transportation ordinance would… Read More >
Birmingham Area Economic Report, Q2 2014
This report is the first in a series of reports that we expect to issue quarterly, reinstituting the Porter, White & Company Birmingham Area Economic Report, which was initially published in the early 1980’s. Interim releases will comment on local… Read More >
Barron’s Explains Dimensional Fund Advisors
In its first issue of the year 2014, Barron’s published a cover story on Dimensional Fund Advisors (DFA), an investment management firm whose funds Porter, White & Company has frequently recommended. DFA funds are not generally available to the public… Read More >
This Sucker Will Go Down
“If money doesn’t loosen up, this sucker will go down.” –George W. Bush “I believe this was the greatest economic statement of all time.” –Warren Buffett A few weeks ago, Warren Buffett paid former President George W. Bush a high… Read More >
Insights for Companies in Distress
Forward-looking financial statements are associated with many significant financial transactions. Credible financial projections are particularly important when a business encounters financial difficulty, and frequently become a necessary condition of forbearance by a creditor, or of new or additional financing by… Read More >
Pictures of Risk and Return
The most important decision made by an investor in marketable securities is how to allocate investment capital among debt and equity. To help our investment advisory clients make the debt-equity decision, we present information in thought-provoking formats, such as the… Read More >
What’s My Company Worth?
Most owners of private businesses think about the value of their businesses from time to time. Business value is not just a measure of accomplishment for an owner-entrepreneur. It is an important factor in planning for the future, whether with… Read More >
Investment Expenses
Investment expenses can be a significant drag on investment performance. Some investment expenses are easily identified, and others are hidden from view. Authoritative studies of total investment expenses are scarce. The following table presents estimates developed by William J. Bernstein,… Read More >
