Explain the theory behind the residual income valuation approach. 

Residual Income Valuation (RIV) is a popular approach used by many analysts when valuing companies. It involves the calculation of residual income which can then be used to estimate the company’s value. This approach is based on two theories: The Time Value of Money and The Equivalence Principle.

The Time Value of Money is an important concept in finance that states money received today has more value than money received at a future date. This concept assumes that people prefer to have cash now instead of waiting for it, due to opportunity costs and uncertainty regarding the future. Therefore, its essential for investors to determine current values from future cash flows when making decisions about investments or capital expenditures.

The Equivalence Principle states that if two investments have equal expected returns, then they are equivalent investments regardless of their risk levels or liquidity preferences. Using this principle allows us to compare different assets with unequal risk levels and come up with the same result – based on their expected return rate only – thus allowing us to make valid comparisons between those assets without taking into account other factors such as risk and liquidity preferences.

In order to implement RIV, one must first calculate the company’s residual income; this figure represents what’s left after all necessary payments associated with running the business have been taken out from the total earnings generated by a firm over time. Residual income excludes factors like taxes, interest expenses, salaries etc., but includes any additional profits like dividends paid out in a particular period or year(s). Calculating residual income requires knowledge about how much revenue was generated during each period along with any expenses incurred which could affect profitability such as depreciation or amortization charges.

Explain the theory behind the residual income valuation approach.

Once we know how much residual income remains after all relevant costs are deducted from total revenues earned by a firm during given periods, we can apply The Equivalence Principle in order to assess its worth compared against other investment opportunities available currently or in near-term future (i.e., within 1 year). We assume that these alternative opportunities provide similar rates of return responses as our target asset under consideration so any differences found will be attributed solely due their respective risk level variations rather than difference in return rates alone (which should remain relatively constant across both our target asset & alternative opportunities).

This comparison allows us analyse closely whether investing more resources into our target asset would produce adequate returns accounting for applicable risks involved when doing so; if not then further investigation may be required before deciding whether it’s worth spending additional money on said investment vehicle versus pursuing alternatives instead (which might offer higher returns at lower risks). This analysis also helps us ascertain if there exists potential undervaluation/overvaluation issues associated with current market prices assigned our target asset prior making final decision regarding appropriateness/feasibility investing into it further .

In summary, Residual Income Valuation approach enables analysts estimating values businesses through understanding how much profit remains after subtracting all relevant expenditure items related running operation while informing investor potential long-term viability said venture via comparison against alternative investment options providing similar expected returns yet differing levels associated risks brought upon them respectively