La-Z-Boy

In September, 2005 an investment analyst had recommended to the investment committee of Optimal Funds (the Fund) to invest $10 million in La-Z-Boy, in addition to the $20 million that the Fund had already invested. The analyst believed La-Z-Boy represented strong value yet, having only been on the job less than one year, he knew that he needed to provide sound judgment and analysis to convince the investment committee and to maintain his credibility. After determining the entry price for La-Z-Boy shares, the analyst was requested by the committee to provide several additional pieces of information including valuation and entry-price determination; comments on the higher beta and lower price-to-earnings ratio as compared to its industry average; risks and appropriate mitigation efforts of devoting 12 per cent of the fund to a single company (La-Z-Boy); diversification efforts of the fund; and comments on the fund’s overall investment strategy. The analyst knew several other analysts were providing their own investment recommendations to the investment committee and that he had only two days to develop and strengthen his case for investing in La-Z-Boy.