Stout’s corporate recovery professionals assist management with both financial and operational issues so that they can reassure key constituencies that necessary actions and decisions are occurring to stabilize the business. Stout possesses deep expertise in many industries, which enhances our ability to quickly identify key issues and determine appropriate actions immediately on behalf of our clients. Stout routinely performs the following activities:

• Assist in the reorganization process and analyze the company’s proposals to determine the impact on unsecured creditors
• Analyze future potential cash flows
• Evaluate inventory levels in the context of the competitive market
• Evaluate disposition alternatives
• Identify any intangible assets and/or business enterprise value
• Assess feasibility of capital structure
• Perform valuation analysis
• Determine liquidation vs. reorganization recoveries
• Perform solvency analyses

In addition to the services outlined above, Stout also provides a full suite of financial advisory services to lenders and unsecured creditors of distressed entities.

Debtor Advisory Services

Our team works closely with existing management and immediately begins to obtain an understanding of the company’s operations and issues. 

Alternatively, our professionals can act as interim management if the situation dictates, including chief financial officer (CFO), chief restructuring officer (CRO), or chief operating officer (COO).

We analyze the company’s current financial status and perform a review of the current operational plan, with a focus on accelerating implementation and identification of additional cost savings opportunities.

• Develop operational metrics to effectively evaluate individual business segments and facilities based on historical and projected performance
• Perform industry benchmarking to provide “best-practices” comparisons to assist in identifying additional initiatives to maximize the company’s operational and financial performance
• Evaluate immediate cash flows and analyze and/or develop the company’s 13-week cash flow projections
• Analyze and review revenue models for each of the company’s operating segments
• Conduct a fixed and variable cost analysis to determine savings options
• Prepare preliminary report of financing and restructuring alternatives (Preliminary Review and Assessment [“PRA”])

Creditor Advisory Services

To ensure the best results for creditors, our core team will include professionals with bankruptcy, corporate recovery, investment banking, valuation, due diligence, forensic and investigative accounting, and other relevant experience and expertise. Our approach is to immediately deploy a team that will obtain an understanding of the company’s operations, as most turnaround/workout situations are not recognized by management until the company is having significant cash flow problems. Unsecured creditors are usually the last to be informed of the severity of the situation.

We analyze the debtor’s plan for reasonableness and feasibility, understand the effect of a sale of the bankrupt estate, and/or may have to determine the probability of success of a third-party plan that intends to bring new capital.

Other actions include:

• Evaluate the company’s current financial status
• Evaluate the potential refinancing and/or reorganization alternatives available to the company and determine the implications for any such reorganization, including the impact on the company’s stakeholders, including unsecured creditors
• Evaluate immediate cash flows and analyze the company’s 13-week cash flow projections
• Evaluate and identify potential alternative sources of recovery, if any
• Begin review of liens held by secured lenders
• Analyze and review revenue models for each of the company’s operating segments
• Begin financial analysis of and determine the profitability of each operating segment
• Conduct a fixed and variable cost analysis to determine savings options
• Report to and advise the client on all of the above

Cross-Border Insolvency

Stout has extensive experience with multinational companies and investment funds in navigating simultaneous insolvency proceedings in multiple jurisdictions. Our team has experience in the offshore jurisdictions working closely as private funds, management companies, trusts, and special purpose vehicles (SPV) to handle all aspects of the contemplation of insolvency, management of creditor rights demands, and maneuvering of insolvency administration between onshore and offshore administrations. Our services include:

• Service as a receiver (domestic or foreign)
• Service as the financial advisory to a liquidator or U.S. Bankruptcy Trustee
• Appraisal/valuation expert in contemplation of insolvency or litigation
• Solvency/fairness opinions
• Joint official appointment with foreign liquidator/administrator
• Service as independent director
• Special situations investment banking
• Solutions to address in-court/out-of-court restructuring
• Management of reorganization plans
• Negotiations with secured and unsecured creditors

Fiduciary & Trustee Services

Stout experts have been employed as court-appointed trustees, receivers, plan administrators, and liquidating agents, and have also served in other fiduciary capacities. Our overriding goal as fiduciaries is to act independently while we marshal funds and maximize the return on the debtor or estate’s assets and business interests. As fiduciaries, we are often charged with:

• Assessing the value of assets and developing monetization plans
• Pursuing litigation/causes of action and recovery activities
• Arranging for distributions and preparing financial/tax information for the estate
• Winding down business affairs
• Investigating actions of prior management and asset transfers

Bankruptcy Litigation

Stout has a proven track record of representing clients in some of the most complex and challenging bankruptcy-related litigation matters. Stout’s bankruptcy litigation practice is uniquely positioned to handle any issue that may arise in this area, whether pursuing litigation in adversary proceedings, plan confirmations, appeals, or assisting clients to navigate restructuring-related litigation matters.  

Forensic Accounting Services

Stout professionals are also often retained by a court-appointed trustee to execute specific tasks, such as handling forensic accounting services. Our team of forensic professionals includes accountants, and valuation and finance professionals that are certified, licensed, and trained to assist clients with deconstructing complex financial transactions.