Fair Value Measurements

6 Months Ended

Jan. 31, 2015

FAIR VALUE MEASUREMENTS

Fair value is defined as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. The inputs used to measure fair value are prioritized into categories based on the lowest level of input that is significant to the fair value measurement. The categories in the hierarchy are as follows:



Level 1:	Financial assets and liabilities whose values are based on quoted market prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.
Level 2:	Financial assets and liabilities whose values are based on:
	1) Quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets.
	2) Quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in markets that are not active.
	3) Valuation models whose inputs are observable, directly or indirectly, for substantially the full term of the asset or liability.
Level 3:	Financial assets and liabilities whose values are based on valuation techniques that require inputs that are unobservable. These inputs may reflect estimates of the assumptions that market participants would use in valuing the financial assets and liabilities.

The following table summarizes our financial assets and liabilities that were measured at fair value by level within the fair value hierarchy:



	Fair Value at January 31, 2015				Fair Value at July 31, 2014
	(in thousands)				(in thousands)
	Total		Level 1		Total		Level 1
Assets
Cash equivalents	$	3,052	$	3,052	$	5,728	$	5,728
Marketable equity securities	—		—		117		117

Cash equivalents were classified as Level 1 of the fair value hierarchy because they were valued using quoted market prices in active markets. These cash instruments are primarily money market mutual funds and are included in cash and cash equivalents on the condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets.

Marketable equity securities were valued using quoted market prices in active markets and as such are classified as Level 1 in the fair value hierarchy. We owned stock in one publicly traded company at July 31, 2014, which was included in other assets on the condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets. We sold the stock of this company in the first quarter of fiscal 2015 after it was acquired by another company.

Short-term investments on the condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets included U.S. Treasury securities and certificates of deposit. We intend and have the ability to hold our short-term investments to maturity; therefore, these investments were reported at amortized cost on the condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets, which approximated fair value as of January 31, 2015 and July 31, 2014. These balances are excluded from the above table.

Accounts receivable and accounts payable balances on the condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets approximated their fair values at January 31, 2015 and July 31, 2014 due to the short maturity and nature of those balances; therefore, these balances are excluded from the above table.

Prepaid expenses and other assets on the condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets as of July 31, 2014 included a receivable of $255,000 related to our acquisition of certain assets of MFM Industries Inc. ("MFM") during fiscal 2014. This receivable is excluded from the above table. The receivable represented the estimated amount due to us upon the sale of the real property retained by MFM. We evaluated the value of this receivable during fiscal 2015 and reduced the balance to $114,500 as of the end of the first quarter of fiscal 2015. We received $116,000 in settlement upon sale of the land during the second quarter of fiscal 2015, thereby eliminating the receivable balance as of January 31, 2015.

Notes payable on the condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets are carried at the face amount of future maturities and are excluded from the above table. The estimated fair value of notes payable, including current maturities, was $20,039,000 and $23,940,000 as of January 31, 2015 and July 31, 2014, respectively. Our debt does not trade on a daily basis in an active market, therefore the fair value estimate is based on market observable borrowing rates currently available for debt with similar terms and average maturities and is classified as Level 2.

We apply fair value techniques on at least an annual basis associated with: (1) valuing potential impairment loss related to goodwill, trademarks and other indefinite-lived intangible assets and (2) valuing potential impairment loss related to long-lived assets. See Note 5 for further information about goodwill and other intangible assets.

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the fair value of financial instruments (as defined), including financial assets and financial liabilities (collectively, as defined), and the measurements of those instruments as well as disclosures related to the fair value of non-financial assets and liabilities. Such disclosures about the financial instruments, assets, and liabilities would include: (1) the fair value of the required items together with their carrying amounts (as appropriate); (2) for items for which it is not practicable to estimate fair value, disclosure would include: (a) information pertinent to estimating fair value (including, carrying amount, effective interest rate, and maturity, and (b) the reasons why it is not practicable to estimate fair value; (3) significant concentrations of credit risk including: (a) information about the activity, region, or economic characteristics identifying a concentration, (b) the maximum amount of loss the entity is exposed to based on the gross fair value of the related item, (c) policy for requiring collateral or other security and information as to accessing such collateral or security, and (d) the nature and brief description of such collateral or security; (4) quantitative information about market risks and how such risks are managed; (5) for items measured on both a recurring and nonrecurring basis information regarding the inputs used to develop the fair value measurement; and (6) for items presented in the financial statement for which fair value measurement is elected: (a) information necessary to understand the reasons for the election, (b) discussion of the effect of fair value changes on earnings, (c) a description of [similar groups] items for which the election is made and the relation thereof to the balance sheet, the aggregate carrying value of items included in the balance sheet that are not eligible for the election; (7) all other required (as defined) and desired information.

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