Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
AKA, Negative Investment, Divestment or Divestiture
In finance and economics, divestment or divestiture is the reduction of some kind of asset for either financial or
ethical objectives or sale of an existing business by a firm. A divestment is the opposite of an investment.
Disinvestment (Economics)
AKA Negative Investment
“Disinvest (in)” means “to remove investment (from)”.
To reduce the capital stock of an economy or enterprise, as by not replacing obsolete machinery.
Reduction in: ‐
¾ Aggregate Capital Stock. It represents a condition when investment is insufficient to cover the loss of capital
by depreciation i.e., the net stock of capital falls.
¾ Capital goods, either because
Worn out equipment is not replaced
OR
Because inventories are reduced, affecting the total supply of capital goods.
¾ Capital investment or the process of reducing capital stock
So far as fixed capital is concerned, this may be by scrapping.
OR
By non‐replacement of capital goods as they wear out.
Stocks and work in progress can also be reduced.
Individuals and firms can disinvest by selling capital goods to each other, but this does not reduce the overall total in
the economy unless disused capital goods are exported.
Disinvestment (Business)
¾ Reduction of investments by selling shares.
¾ To sell off certain assets such as a manufacturing plant, a division or subsidiary, or product line i.e., the
action of an organization or government selling or liquidating an asset or subsidiary. Disinvestment is
sometimes described as the opposite of capital expenditures i.e., it is a reduction in capital expenditure, or
the decision of a company not to replenish depleted capital goods. Some people use the term divestiture, or
to divest when discussing disinvestment.
For example, an electric generator manufacturer might sell off its consumer generator product lines and
manufacturing facilities in order to raise money that can be used to expand its industrial generator product
line. Thus, a company or government organization will divest an asset or subsidiary as a strategic move for
the company, planning to put the proceeds from the divestiture to better use that garners a higher return
on investment.
A company will likely not replace capital goods or continue to invest in certain assets unless it feels it is
receiving a return that justifies the investment. If there is a better place to invest, they may deplete certain
capital goods and invest in other more profitable assets.
Alternatively a company may have to divest unwillingly if it needs cash to sustain operations.
Another example is a consumer products company selling off a profitable division that no longer meets its
long range goals. The proceeds from this disinvestment are then used to improve the company’s financial
position by reducing its debt.
Essentially functioning as the polar opposite of an investment, the process of divestment involves selling off
current investments in order to generate assets that can be used to better advantage in some other
manner. Businesses sometimes use disinvestment as a means of changing the direction of the company in
order to meet changing consumer needs and remain competitive.
One of the easiest ways to understand divestment is to think in terms of a company that has successfully produced a
product for many years. However, changing technology is shrinking the demand for the company’s product. A new
product is developed that is anticipated to recapture the interest of consumers. However, this will leave the
company with several physical facilities and a great deal of equipment that is not required for the production of the
new product.
In order to generate revenue that will aid in the manufacturing of the new product, the company will undergo a
period of disinvestment. The plants and other facilities that are no longer required for production are sold off, along