Masonite International Corporation (A): Trouble at the Door? Case Solution And Analysis, HBR Case Study Solution & Analysis of Harvard Case Studies

Masonite was among the planet's prime producers and merchandisers of doors, door parts, and door entrance systems. Its latest results were very good, with strong growth as well as high margins and cash flows. The company was on course to pay down debt and be well placed to manage the investment. But despite all this great news, Ralf had some concerns; he was wondering whether this strong performance was not unsustainable. He knew that earnings of building products businesses were cyclical. They were generally sensitive to the state of the economy, demand for consumer sentiment home, sharp increases in interest rates, changes in buyers' credit terms, and rising prices of raw materials such as wood products and steel.

Masonite International Corporation (A) Trouble at the Door Case Study Solution

Most economies around the globe were recording full-employment non-inflationary growth rates and, real increase was not so low that central banks were mooting the concept of elevating the interest rates. Additionally, there were apprehensions that there might be housing bubbles in several geographic areas. Besides even more worrying, the price of raw materials, like steel, had more than doubled in the last 12 months, and there were deficits, particularly in North America, the main market of Masonite. If sales should happen to soften in an environment marked by high production costs and rising interest rates, the gross profits and cash flows of Masonite may be under pressure.

PUBLICATION DATE: July 23, 2011 PRODUCT #: TB0271-PDF-ENG

This is just an excerpt. This case is about FINANCE & ACCOUNTING