Where:
- Fixed Capital Investment – refers to the
investment made in order to purchase new equipment required for the
project. This cost also encompasses installation and shipping costs
involved with purchasing equipment. This is often considered to be
a long-term investment.
- Working Capital Investment – refers to the
investment made at the beginning of the project to cover the
initial operating expenses of the project (for example, raw
materials inventory). This part of the initial outlay is often
considered to be a short-term investment.
- Salvage Value – refers to the cash proceeds
collected from the sale of old equipment or assets. Such proceeds
are only realized if a company actually decides to sell off older
assets. For example, if the project was an overhaul of a production
facility, this might involve selling off old equipment. However, if
the project is centered around expanding into a brand new
production facility, there may not be any older equipment to be
sold. Thus, the term only applies in cases where there the company
is selling off older fixed assets in connection with beginning the
new project. The salvage value is often quite close to the
prevailing market value for the particular asset.
- Book Value – refers to the net book value of
the old assets. The book value refers to how much a given asset is
worth on the company’s accounting records (i.e., how much it’s been
depreciated). It is different from the salvage value, as it does
not represent a cash inflow or outflow. It is only used to
calculate any gains or losses from the sale of old assets.
- Tax Rate – refers to the effective tax rate in
the jurisdiction where the company is reporting its earnings.
- (Salvage Value – Book Value) x (Tax Rate) –
refers to any gains or losses realized on the sale of older
equipment. For instance, if an old piece of machinery is sold for
more than its book value, the company will realize a capital gain
and be charged taxes on this gain. Conversely, if the piece of
machinery is sold for less than its book value, the company will
experience a loss but also a tax benefit.
Initial Outlay Example
Jane’s Kitchen sells fresh baked cookies on a busy street. Jane
currently uses a single oven, which cannot keep up with the store’s
demand. Jane is considering buying a new, better oven that will
produce enough cookies to meet the demand. She also decides to sell
off her old oven since it will no longer be needed.
The existing oven is currently worth $1,000. Jane negotiates a
deal with a smaller bakery to sell them her old oven for its market
price of $1,500. The new oven will cost Jane $5,000. In
anticipation of increased production, Jane decides to stock up on
ingredients and buys $800 worth of flour. Her business’ tax rate is
35%. What is her initial outlay?
The first step is to identify the following numbers:
Fixed Capital Investment = $5,000
Working Capital Investment = $800
Salvage Value = $1,500
Book Value = $1,000
Tax Rate = 35%
Then, we can input the numbers into our formula:
Thus, the initial outlay is $4,475. Given all
the information, Jane can go on to calculate the project’s NPV and
other metrics. Then she can make an informed decision about whether
or not to move forward with this project.