This issue is addressed by Espen Robak, President of Pluris, in the cover story of Valuation Strategies (January 2007).  “Lemons or Lemonade?  A Fresh Look At Restricted Stock Discounts,” presents a ground-breaking new study of the LiquiStat database, with major implications for how restricted securities are valued. 

In the same issue of Valuation Strategies, editor John A. Bogdanski noted that “traditional techniques for measuring the discount, in widespread use for many years throughout the business appraisal community, have lately been found wanting in several respects.”  Pointing out how the Tax Court has been particularly active in this area, the editorial further states:

• Lemons or Lemonade? “advances the dialogue significantly”
• Data such as the LiquiStat data “has never been easy to come by”
• “Analyzing these transactions, the author arrives at some surprisingly large discounts, and he offers hope that future growth of the database will provide a foundation for more precise measurement of such value adjustments”
• “Even to those of us without ready access to his data, Robak’s article provides ample food for thought”
• “We are pleased to host part of this important discussion”

To read the entire article, click here. 

For additional articles relating to valuation of illiquid assets, visit our press room.