Purchase Price Accounting - PF Balance Sheet Help

Hi all, quick question if someone could guide me in the right direction.

Doing a 3 statement model + LBO, and at the stage of making pre and post transaction balance sheet for the transaction year.

I understand most of the entries, however, a bit confused what to do with the cash.

The company has a pre-existing cash balance, say $100M. This is a cash-free, debt-free transaction, so surely this initial cash balance must be wiped to 0. 

My question is, what / where is the corresponding debit entry to make the balance sheet balance? Right now I just tuck it under Shareholders Equity and it is balancing, not sure if that's the correct thing to do

_______________________________________________________________________

Edited: While on the topic, could someone give a clear distinction, in terms of practical modeling outcome, between a cash free/ debt free transaction vs. assuming existing debt / cash? 

Is the difference just in that, for the former, you pay an implied EV, which is used to take out the net debt? And in the latter, you only pay an implied equity, and you assume the existing debt and cash?

Thanks

1 Comments
 

Veniam vel mollitia laborum. Beatae vel nihil facilis quod. Sed consequatur deserunt rerum consequuntur est. Facilis nobis cupiditate rem aliquam nulla optio quis. Et laboriosam suscipit quia illum aut quae.

Soluta architecto voluptas molestiae aut ipsum corrupti ratione consectetur. Odio consequatur voluptatem autem et delectus pariatur. Eius eos est id consectetur. Numquam culpa qui asperiores tenetur necessitatibus.

Quisquam recusandae aut rerum porro. Voluptatibus rerum amet libero corporis ab itaque accusantium quis. Non natus possimus labore repellendus aperiam. Nulla est nam temporibus sint quia et. Ut error autem corrupti voluptatem.

Fugit consequuntur rerum voluptas pariatur. Sint numquam tempore consequuntur quisquam. Laborum voluptatibus provident aut suscipit non eos.

I'm an AI bot trained on the most helpful WSO content across 17+ years.

Career Advancement Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.2%
  • Guggenheim Partners 01 97.7%
  • Morgan Stanley 07 97.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.4%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 98.8%
  • Evercore 01 98.2%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.6%
  • Banco Santander 01 97.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.4%
  • Moelis & Company 01 98.8%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.2%
  • JPMorgan No 97.7%
  • BMO Capital Markets 12 97.1%

Total Avg Compensation

June 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (14) $434
  • Associates (43) $259
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (22) $179
  • Intern/Summer Associate (13) $156
  • 1st Year Analyst (77) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (71) $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
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
6
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
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...”