Unit 11 · Case
Jollof Express, First Look
Comparables and Multiples · Ghana · GH₵
This is the student brief. The instructor guide is distributed separately.
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Jollof Express Limited operates twelve quick-service restaurants across Accra — Osu, Airport Residential, Spintex, East Legon, Achimota, Madina, and six others. Founded in 2011. Ghanaian menu, fast service, mostly office and student trade. All twelve outlets are company-owned; there is no franchising.
A private-equity fund has approached the founders about acquiring the business. The founders have asked Mountain River what it is worth.
Mountain River has already produced a discounted cash flow, which values the equity at GH₵82 million. Today's session is the comparables work.
Exhibit 1 · Jollof Express financial profile
| Line | Amount |
|---|---|
| Revenue | 96.0 |
| EBITDA | 14.4 |
| EBITDA margin | 15.0% |
| Depreciation and amortisation | (2.4) |
| EBIT | 12.0 |
| Interest | (1.2) |
| Pretax income | 10.8 |
| Tax at 25% | (2.7) |
| Net income | 8.1 |
| BALANCE SHEET ITEMS | |
| Cash | 3.5 |
| Bank debt | 9.0 |
| Net debt | 5.5 |
Exhibit 2 · Three candidate comparable sets
Illustrative multiples. Instructors should refresh from current market data.
| Comparable set | Character | Median EV/EBITDA |
|---|---|---|
| Global QSR groups | Large international chains, predominantly franchisors | 14.50× |
| Emerging-market QSR operators | Listed restaurant groups in Brazil, India, South-East Asia, Turkey | 8.75× |
| African listed food & beverage | Consumer food businesses listed in Accra, Lagos, Nairobi, Johannesburg — mostly manufacturers | 5.75× |
The African set also trades at a median P/E of 8.0×.
Question 1 · 15 minutes
Apply each of the three comparable sets to Jollof Express. For each, compute the implied enterprise value and the implied equity value.
Report the range.
Question 2 · 13 minutes
Start from the global multiple of 14.5× and walk it down to a figure you would defend for Jollof Express.
Name every adjustment, its direction, and its rough size. Then compare where you land with the African comparable median.
Question 3 · 9 minutes
You now have several estimates: three unadjusted comparable sets, your adjusted multiple, a P/E figure, and the DCF at GH₵82 million.
What range would you take into a negotiation on the founders' behalf, and how would you explain it to them in plain language?