Benjamin Ostrow
Verified Expert in Management Consulting
Management Consulting Expert
Houston, TX, United States
Toptal member since February 1, 2021
Ben is a thoughtful and creative investor with a background in public equity, distressed credit, and PE. He has applied his experience to large ($15 billion) public and mid-market companies in dozens of industries, including aerospace, wireless networking, SaaS, and retail. Most recently, Ben led a distressed acquisition and joined as CFO to position the company for future success. He is available for business strategy, financing/fundraising, forecasting, and fractional CFO opportunities.
Career Highlights
Education Highlights
Case Studies
Short Recommendation of a $1 Billion Pharma Company
Analysis of BrewDog USA's Crowdfunding Scheme
Alternative Divorce Settlement Analysis
Revenue Analysis of a German Football Club
Expertise
- Business Strategy
- Cash Flow Modeling
- Financial Forecasting
- Financial Modeling
- Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A)
- Investment Research
- Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A)
- Valuation
Work Experience
Chief Financial Officer
Pensar Medical
- Led due diligence and negotiated acquisition of Pensar Medical, closing at over 60% discount to initial LOI.
- Sourced and structured growth equity investment to ensure adequate working capital for the current and expanding base.
- Improved manufacturing quality, safety, and unit economics by outsourcing to domestic contract manufacturers.
- Established a quality management system and prepared for a successful ISO 13485 audit/certification in under six months.
- Installed and customized the organization’s integrated ERP and accounting system.
- Onboarded and managed two direct reports for accounting, customer support, and purchasing.
Senior Investment Professional (Equity Analysis, Equity Sales)
Forbes Media - Q.ai - Main
- Designed and marketed over 20 AI-powered investment models, most of which outperformed through H1 2022.
- Used fundamental and statistical analysis to improve existing and new investment strategies.
- Launched an AI-powered oil and gas strategy in December 2021; up more than 90% since inception and above 2500 bps over the benchmark.
- Refined existing predictive hedging overlay and developed the structure for integration with third-party brokerages.
Partner
Lakeside Capital Group
- Negotiated the sale of a $10 million interest in a PE fund in a secondary transaction. The sale of the LP interest resulted in a small gain versus a likely substantial loss. Evaluated potential risk/reward with an independent waterfall analysis.
- Led an M&A process for an oil and gas services portfolio company. Performed M&A modeling, due diligence, and valuation for the strategic acquisition ($10 million) that added new service verticals.
- Built and maintained a multi-year, three-statement financial model to forecast performance and create quarterly and annual budgets for an aerospace manufacturing portfolio company with over $60 million in revenues.
- Developed a multi-year financial model to support negotiations with bank contacts for an expanded $30 million loan for increased agricultural development and residential home construction.
- Structured new common and preferred equity investments in an aerospace manufacturing portfolio company. Used the new securities to raise more than $10 million while complying with debt covenants and limiting dilution to current shareholders.
- Evaluated regional startups for potential direct angel investments. Led due diligence and conversations with founders. Recommended changes to startups' pitch decks to ensure better fundraising success.
- Led the financial modeling and forecasting for two M&A sales processes to explore the sale of two operating companies to strategic and financial acquirers. Led communications with investment banks and built the M&A models for both.
- Managed a public equity portfolio with a total value of $150+ million. Positioned the portfolio for long-term growth with a concentrated group of high-quality companies. Led investment research and executed tax-efficient sales when appropriate.
Investment Analyst
Malkin Capital (MBA Internship)
- Evaluated the potential upside and downside risk of short selling a dubious drug manufacturer. Recommended a short position that would have returned 63.3% since the proposed investment (24.4% IRR).
- Supplemented investment research by contacting more than ten specialist doctors who treat patients and prescribe competing drugs for relevant conditions.
- Used current prescription data to estimate the market size for the target's key drug; determined that management likely overstated the total addressable market (TAM) potential by 4:1.
Investment Analyst
Owl Creek Asset Management (MBA Internship)
- Led a research project to assess changes in the payments industry and the impact on select companies. Used industry research and company analysis to present a short idea to the investment team.
- Assessed the risks of additional regulatory changes to the North American payday lending industry. Evaluated a distressed company in the industry to identify a potential investment in the complex capital structure.
- Sourced and maintained research contacts to support investment research on a niche medical device category.
Investment Analyst
Stadium Capital Management
- Identified an undervalued wireless hardware manufacturer with a strong competitive position, cultivated 75+ industry contacts to develop industry knowledge, and recommended an investment that generated a 100%+ return in under a year.
- Conducted detailed primary research of the ISP industry. Attended multiple industry conferences and shadowed a wireless ISP's CFO and CTO over multiple days. Built an ISP financial model to better understand expected returns and key metrics.
- Led the primary research of an apparel retailer. Built a relevant financial model and visited 100+ store locations. Presented research to the retailer's CEO and CFO, identifying areas for improvement and store manager feedback on new store layouts.
- Led research for a potential investment in a publicly traded European football club. Prepared a detailed analysis of the ties between on-field sports success and financial performance for a management meeting with the CFO.
- Created a research presentation to inform the investment committee on additive manufacturing and relevant investment opportunities.
Education
MBA in Business Administration
Columbia Business School - New York, NY, USA
Bachelor's Degree in Commerce
University of Virginia - Charlottesville, VA
Skills
Finance
Accounting, Value Investing, Mergers & Acquisitions (M&A), Valuation, Equity Research, Capital Structuring, DCF Valuation, Creative Financing, Market Research, Total Addressable Market (TAM), Financial Modeling, Credit/Debt, Financial Planning & Analysis (FP&A), Cash Flow Modeling, Fundraising, M&A (Sell-side), M&A Modeling, Capital Raising, Private Equity, Due Diligence, M&A (Buy-side), Finance Strategy, Three-statement Modeling, Discounted Cash Flow (DCF), Leveraged Buyout Modeling, Budgeting, Equity Research Analysis, Revenue & Expense Projections, Debt, Valuation Modeling, Lending, Debt Restructuring, Net Debt Analysis, Investment Memoranda, Data Analysis, Comparable Company Analysis, Equity Crowdfunding, Forecasting, Financial Reporting, Financial Restructuring, Intellectual Property Valuation, Asset Allocation, CFO, Pricing, Investment Thesis, Investment Briefs
Output Software
Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint
Data & Analysis Software
Capital IQ, Bloomberg, NetSuite, Salesforce
Industry Expertise
Financial Markets, Financial Services, Retail & Wholesale, Consumer Products, Food & Beverage, Insurance, Oil & Gas, Aerospace & Defense, Real Estate, Fashion, Video Gaming, Telecommunications, Early-stage Startups, Hospitality, Venture Capital, Personal Storage Facilities, Hotels & Lodging, Exercise & Fitness, Divorce Law, Restaurants & Dining, Public Companies, Pharmaceuticals, Cannabis, Casinos & Gaming
Geographic Expertise
United States
Other
Financial Analysis, Statistics, Quality of Earnings, Financial Forecasting, Investment Research, Waterfall Modeling, Cash Flow Analysis, Debt Financing, Business Strategy, Market Sizing, Market Research & Analysis, Loans, Pitch Decks, Hedge Funds, Initial Public Offerings, Investment Banking, Research Analysis, Investment Analysis, Financing, Fundraising Consultant, Excel Expert, Pitch Deck Consultant, Business Modeling, Investments, Due Diligence Consultant, Equity, Scenario Analysis, Business Models, Cap Tables, Equities, Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), Leveraged Buyout (LBO), Finance, Business Loans, SME/SMB Financing, Business Plan Consulting, Strategy, Investment Committee Advisory, Research, Statistical Analysis, Pricing Consulting, Business Planning, Operations Management, Distressed/Special Situations, Forensic Accounting, Drug Development, Turnaround Management, Sports & Athletics, Manufacturing, Cash Flow Management, Startups, Fashion & Beauty, US GAAP, Gaming, Quantitative Modeling, Media, Strategic Planning, Brokerage, ESOPs, Investor Reporting, Intellectual Property, Intellectual Property Licensing, Fantasy Sports, Bloomberg Terminal, Data Rooms, IT Services, eCommerce, Inventory Management, Restaurant Operations, Product-market Fit, Equity Markets, Video Games, Digital Media, Pitch Books, Blockchain & Cryptocurrency, Python, SPACs, Gambling, Logistics & Warehousing, Wellness, Shopify, Supply Chain, Healthcare Supply Chains
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