Investment Analysis of an Almond Producer in Australia Your brief. You have been employed as a consultant by a sovereign wealth fund to provide your expert analysis and opinion as to the economic merit in buying an established Australian almond production company MaxiHarvest. MaxiHarvest has almond orchards in southern Australia in the Riverland, Sunraysia and Riverina. You are to deliver a concise and coherent report, which if credible, is likely to result in considerable more consulting work (and income to you) from the sovereign wealth fund. The investor would like to understand the following. The report must address/answer these questions: An overview of the main profit drivers and risks to the business. What are the key technical requirements and risks to almond production and achieving forecast almond yields in Australia and the regions the business operates in? In other words, what is required to be technically efficient and the main risks a farm manager needs to focus on in an almond orchard? An understanding of the almond market which the business is exposed to. Based on industry statistics give the investor an understanding of domestic versus export sales what are the main export destinations? What are the implications of this for the business? On the supply side, who are the main country competitors and what might the supply outlook be from major suppliers and exporters? Are current almond prices high or low relative to the past, do prices cycle (why) and what might future prices look like based on the outlook? A price (or range of prices) the investor should pay for the business (economic worth of the business) based on capital budget modelling - discounted cash flow budget to calculate NPV over the next 12 years. A sensitivity analysis highlighting the importance of key variables and the assumptions/reasoning behind the key inputs (variables) used in the economic valuation and recommendations. Develop and include three additional scenarios (base case plus three) to help the investor understand the risks and what the range of investment returns might be depending on how the unknown future unfolds. You must give a brief description of each scenario and your reasoning as to why your scenarios are useful in forming a view of the risks/rewards in investing in the company. You are to use a combination of the information provided and other research you deem necessary to produce a credible and balanced assessment of the company, industry and investment. Note your calculations and detailed budgets and projections must be shown in appendices. Summary/key results from budgets and analysis can be shown in the main report.