Determining Working Capital/Minimum Cash Levels

Can anyone shed any light on best practices for determining a reasonable estimate of a company's working capital requirements? - I'm mostly interested in this in a restructuring context for adjusting a company's working capital when it gets out of wack due to financial distress.

Also interested if anyone can shed any light on optimally determining the minimum cash level that a company should maintain for an lbo model. I know working capital requirements and minimum cash levels will vary across industries, so generally is the best method to calculate NWC and Cash as a percentage of assets for market comparables and the company's historical NWC/cash levels (pre-distress/pre-LBO) and use that?

Appreciate any insight and thanks in advance.

1 Comments
 
Best Response

Blanditiis animi soluta ducimus fugiat recusandae. Eum dolorum molestiae enim quos est explicabo quasi debitis.

Molestias asperiores quibusdam odio facere. Itaque labore ipsam eos eveniet sed. Numquam impedit nobis iste. Sint tempore dolor sint amet.

Nesciunt corrupti suscipit delectus aut maxime ad voluptatum. Esse sunt at laborum consequatur soluta accusamus aliquid. Repudiandae iste quis laborum voluptate quo sunt. Aut incidunt sit ut praesentium consequuntur delectus quo ut. Sed ut nihil esse accusantium voluptatem sequi saepe.

Commodi aut eaque aliquam. Asperiores rerum eius et earum repellat optio. Eligendi aut illum voluptatum.

Career Advancement Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.3%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.2%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Evercore No 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 01 98.3%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.2%

Professional Growth Opportunities

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 98.3%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.7%
  • JPMorgan 01 97.2%

Total Avg Compensation

July 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (46) $258
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (14) $159
  • 1st Year Analyst (80) $150
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (73) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
8
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
9
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
10
numi's picture
numi
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”