The concept of brand equity emerged inthe eightiesto justify the long term value of marketing investments. Brand equity signify the value that a brand adds to a product and is the result of the marketing of a brand. One of the most widely used strategies to enhance brand equity is to do a brand extension, which means that a firm uses an established brand to introduce a new product to the market. At worst, a failed brand extension can damage the brand equity, which Vinjamuri (2008) claims that the brand Axe is currently in danger of doing. This January Axe launched an extention including products for both men and women for the first time and Vinjamuri claims that this can disappoint Axe´s former target group (men between 14 and 27 years old) (Newman, 2012). In this thesis Axe´s brand equity among the extensions target group (men and women, age 14 to 27) in Sweden is studied to find out if the brand extension is likely to affect the brand equity in the target group.

Problem formulation: This paper will examine how the capital structure of firms affects their market valuation by applying the Modigliani-Miller theory on Swedish listed companies in a boom and a recession. The study will examine whether it is possible to draw any conclusions as to whether companies with high debt to equity ratios are valued lower in a recession, in comparison to companies with low debt to equity ratios.Purpose: To empirically test the Modigliani-Miller theory of capital structure in a boom and a recession in order to see if the companies? market value is affected differently depending on whether they have a high or a low debt to equity ratios.Methodology: The essay has a deductive and a quantitative methodological approach. Data analysis was done through a correlation analysis, a regression analysis and a hypothesis testing.Theory: The Modigliani-Miller theory of capital structure with taxes states that companies with a high debt to equity ratios has a higher value. One of the risks with a high level of debt could be that during a financial downturn companies have more difficulty realizing capital and are thus more likely to go bankrupt.Conclusions: The study shows results that are contrary to the Modigliani-Miller's theory; all the correlation analyses between debt to equity ratios and market value are negative.

Abstract: Private equity used to be synonymous with tremendous yields and rates of return. However, the private equity market trembled in 2008, due to the financial meltdown caused by the worldwide credit crisis. Considering the current low number of exits within the private equity industry, the purpose of this thesis is to examine if there has been any change in how private equity firms control their portfolio companies since the inception of the crisis. One private equity company and two portfolio companies have been studied. The case study is prepared from interviews with senior directors in the portfolio company and investment managers in the private equity firm.

This dissertation is a case study on the Co-branding between Prada and LG, ?The Prada phone by LG?. The purpose of the study is to broaden the understanding of Co-branding and the effects this type of collaboration can have on a company?s brand. The research questions are: ?What effects can a Co-branding have on a company?s Brand Equity?? and ?How can these effects be measured??.

Uppsatsen behandlar de investeringskriterier och värderingsmetoder som svenska Private Equity-företag använder inför företagsförvärv. Vi har gjort en kvalitativ analys av fem svenska Private Equity-aktörer. Våra slutsater är att de Private Equity-bolag vi studerat har ett fåtal övergripande investeringskriterier men att de är relativt flexibla gällande resterande. Företagen använder sig främst av multipelvärdering i värderingsprocessen. Sammanfattningsvis kan vi konstatera att Private Equity-företagen fokuserar mindre på vad företaget är värt och lägger allt fokus på hur mycket företaget kan avyttras för..

Title: Brand Brazil ? A study on brand equity in an emerging market Authors: Anders Andersson & Jonathan Karlsson Subject: Bachelor thesis in marketing, 15 credits Keywords: Brand equity, Emerging markets, Brand awareness, Brand associations, Perceived quality, Brand loyalty Purpose: The purpose of this thesis is to gain deeper understanding of how a company operating on an emerging market can work with brand equity, and what benefits it provides to the brand owner. Theoretical framework: The chapter begins with a description of brand equity to be further decomposed to its four dimensions; brand awareness, brand associations, perceived quality, brand loyalty Methodology: A qualitative research method with a deductive approach is conducted, where interviews with Brand/Marketing coordinators for the Brazilian subsidiaries of Volkswagen, Toyota and General Motors, are performed. Empirical framework: The chapter presents performed interviews that are supposed to describe our case studies? work and benefits from brand equity. Conclusion: This study shows that companies operating on an emerging market are working actively with brand equity, often in accordance with theory. The companies also experience positive effects from increased brand equity..

This thesis studies private equity firms' implementation of management control systems in their portfolio companies and whether the systems are affected by cross-national differences. A comparative case study examines five different private equity firms to derive if there are any differences between the private equity firms' management control systems in the United States, Europe and China. The empirical observations are categorized according to the framework developed by Merchant (1985) and further developed by Merchant and Van der Stede (2003). Theory on the effect of multinationality on management control systems, also developed by Merchant and Van der Stede (2003), are used to explain possible findings. The applied theory includes the cultural dimensions developed by Hofstede (1984) and Hofstede and Bond (1988).

In this paper we investigate 67 Swedish buyouts in the manufacturing and retailing sector between the years 2004-2012. The purpose is to measure changes in a set of financial key ratios to see if private equity firms are able to improve performance in their portfolio companies compared to a peer group consisting of other firms within the same industries. Furthermore, we examine if there is a difference in the change of the financial key ratios between private equity-owned firms in the two sectors. The key results are that the private equity owned firms have not outperformed their peers with respect to the chosen key ratios. We also conclude that there is no significant difference in the change of the financial key ratios between private equity-owned firms in the two sectors..

This study aims to build a deeper understanding on how shareholder value is created in Private Equity investments, especially during the holding period. The study is a qualitative study of the buyout of the access security company Bewator AB made by the Swedish Private Equity firm EQT in 2002. The buyout became highly successful due to various reasons. The study draws the conclusion, contrary to popular belief, that Private Equity firms create value through taking a long term view on business developing rather than being short term value destroyers. Incentive alignment is another important factor..

Problem-definition: How companies work with social media to strengthen their brand equity and what other purposes might lay behind this usage.Purpose: How Volkswagen Sweden use social media in order to strengthen their brand equity.Method: Qualitative case- study of Volkswagen Sweden where a number of respondents will be interviewed with the help of a semi structured interview guide.Theories: A number of theories in the field of brand equity and communication theory will be used in this paper, some of these theories are, Post-model, Social technographics ladder, brand equity and word of mouth.Empiric: A semi-structured interview guide will be shaped from theory and answered through interviews with people who have knowledge within the field.Conclusions: Extracted from the results the research members has identified a number of important factors that business should consider when they work with social media or planning to. They have also answered how business can strengthen their brand equity with social media..

This study investigates the value relevance of goodwill impairments for equity investors in Swedish listed companies. We provide insight on whether goodwill impairments are value relevant before as well as after the implementation of IFRS 3 and IAS 36. We express market value of equity as a function of book value of equity; net income excluding goodwill impairments and goodwill impairments, using the Ohlson valuation model and Hellström's price regression. Our findings suggest that goodwill impairments are statistically value relevant for equity investors. Prior to the implementation of IFRS 3 and IAS 36, our findings imply that equity investors respond negatively to goodwill impairments.

Previous research has discussed how voluntary disclosure relates to the cost of equity capital. Theories of estimation risk support a negative association between disclosure and cost of equity capital, as empirically documented by Botosan (1997) among others. In this Bachelor thesis we investigate whether such a relationship exists on the Swedish capital market. Using the CAPM to estimate the cost of equity capital and a disclosure index based on Aktiespararen?s annual evaluation of corporate disclosure, we test a model where disclosure explains cost of equity capital.

I den ha?r uppsatsen analyseras avkastningen pa? bo?rsintroduktioner genomfo?rda av Private Equity-firmor pa? den svenska marknaden under perioden 1993-2011. Studien underso?ker huruvida bo?rsintroduktioner genomfo?rda av Private Equity genererar en abnormal avkastning relativt bo?rsintroduktioner som genomfo?rts av icke Private Equity, sammanlagt 97 bo?rsintroduktioner. Ba?da urvalsgrupperna relateras gentemot ja?mfo?relseindex i form av kontrollfirmor pa? kort och la?ng sikt.

Syftet med uppsatsen är att diskutera det så kallade equity premium puzzle. Jaganalyserar teoretiskt den intertemporala konsumtionsbaserade CAPM (C-CAPM),sammanställer en del av litteraturdiskussionen som finns på området samt empiriskttestar C-CAPM på svensk data. Fenomenet equity premium puzzle innebär attöveravkastningen på aktier är så stor att det inte stämmer med den ekonomiska teorin.Enligt teorin beror C-CAPMs riskpremie på kovariansen mellan konsumtionen ochaktieavkastningen. Litteraturen visar att forskare inte har lyckats förklara equitypremium puzzle genom att ändra antagandena i grundmodellen. Den empiriskaundersökningen visar att equity premium puzzle även uppkommer på svensk data..

Sweden is a world leader in listed private equity and ranked fifth in the world in market capitalization. The sector is attracting increasing interest from the investment community. However, the private equity industry in Sweden has historically poor reputation and is criticized for creating value through high leverage, multiple riding and severe cuts. This study analyzes value creation drivers in buyouts from the perspective of the private equity firm using a dataset of 15 realized buyouts by private equity firms listed on NASDAQ OMX Nordic Stockholm. The methodology used separates the value contribution of leverage on the private equity firm's return from internal operational improvements and external variations in transaction multiples.