
An equivalent approach is to compare a stock’s actual price multiple with a benchmark value of the multiple. The steps for valuation based on comparables are as follows: Select and calculate the price multiple. Select the benchmark and compute its price multiple.
Full Answer
What is comparable company analysis and how to use it?
Just like comparing the apartments, comparable company analysis helps you compare different companies with similar size and industry and derive a fair value for them Instead of looking at the number of beds, location, bathrooms, etc, you look at relative valuation multiples (like EV/EBITDA, PE, P/BV, etc).
How to calculate the valuation of a comparable company?
Comparables Company valuation Steps: 1 Input the basic information for a comparable company 2 Input the latest available Balance Sheet information 3 Calculate all the “in the money” stock options Also, look at the Treasury Stock Method Treasury Stock Method Treasury Stock Method is an accounting approach assuming that the ... More items...
Can you infer from such a comparison regarding a company’s price?
You infer from such a comparison regarding a company’s price is overvalued or undervalued. I guess with this basic analogy; we should be able to proceed and move forward to reading the comparable company analysis. How to read a Comparable company analysis table?
What are comparable comps in equity valuation?
This is Part 2 of the equity valuation series articles. Comparable comps are nothing but identifying doing relative valuations like an expert to find the fair value of the firm.
How do you value a company based on comparables?
The most common valuation measures used in comparable company analysis are enterprise value to sales (EV/S), price to earnings (P/E), price to book (P/B), and price to sales (P/S). If the company's valuation ratio is higher than the peer average, the company is overvalued.
How do you use comparables method?
0:3419:42Comparables Analysis Method | Valuations 101 - YouTubeYouTubeStart of suggested clipEnd of suggested clipSo the classic multiples valuation method is price to earnings. So you take the valuation divided byMoreSo the classic multiples valuation method is price to earnings. So you take the valuation divided by the total earnings and you get a ratio.
What is comparable analysis for stock valuation?
Comparable company analysis (or “comps” for short) is a valuation methodology that looks at ratios of similar public companies and uses them to derive the value of another business. Comps is a relative form of valuation, unlike a discounted cash flow (DCF) analysis, which is an intrinsic form of valuation.
How do you determine the value of a stock?
The most common way to value a stock is to compute the company's price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio. The P/E ratio equals the company's stock price divided by its most recently reported earnings per share (EPS). A low P/E ratio implies that an investor buying the stock is receiving an attractive amount of value.
How do you trade comps?
The steps involved in performing trading comparables analysis are:Choose comparable companies.Calculate equity and enterprise values.Calculate value drivers.Calculate mutliples statistics.Interpret the output and select a valuation range.
How do you read comparable?
The comparable properties are listed to the right of the subject in the columns labeled “Comp 1, Comp 2,” etc. The property characteristics for each of the comparables are also listed from top to bottom. The most common questions about the comp sheet are what the abbreviations stand for.
What are the 5 methods of valuation?
There are five main methods used when conducting a property evaluation; the comparison, profits, residual, contractors and that of the investment. A property valuer can use one of more of these methods when calculating the market or rental value of a property.
What is the best stock valuation method?
A technique that is typically used for absolute stock valuation, the dividend discount model or DDM is one of the best ways to value a stock. This model follows the assumption that a company's dividends characterise its cash flow to the shareholders.
What are the three valuation methods?
When valuing a company as a going concern, there are three main valuation methods used by industry practitioners: (1) DCF analysis, (2) comparable company analysis, and (3) precedent transactions.
How do you analyze a stock before buying?
We bring you eleven financial ratios that one should look at before investing in a stock . P/E RATIO. ... PRICE-TO-BOOK VALUE. ... DEBT-TO-EQUITY RATIO. ... OPERATING PROFIT MARGIN (OPM) ... EV/EBITDA. ... PRICE/EARNINGS GROWTH RATIO. ... RETURN ON EQUITY. ... INTEREST COVERAGE RATIO.More items...
What is comparables analysis?
Comparable Company Analysis is a relative valuation method in which a company's value is derived from comparisons to the current stock prices of similar companies in the market.
What are the advantages of comparable company analysis?
The Comparable Company Analysis has many benefits that investors benefit from such as: Easy communication. Benchmarks for the possible valuation multiples. Easy calculation.
What are the methods of property valuation?
The Following are the Different Methods of Valuation:Rental Method of Valuation. In this method, the net income by way of rent is found out by deducting all outgoings from the gross rent. ... Direct Comparison with the Capital Value. ... Valuation Based on Profit. ... 04. Development Method of Valuation. ... Land and Building Method.
What Is Comparable Company Analysis?
(also called as “Trading Comps”, “Comparable Comps”)Comparable analysis or Trading comps can be best explained with a help of an example – let’s as...
How to Read Comparable Company Analysis table?
For learning to read a comparable company analysis table or Comparable Comps, I will take a real life example, Box Inc that had earlier announced i...
How to Identify Comparable Companies
The most important element of comparable analysis is to identify the right set of comparable. Comparing value of apple to oranges does not make any...
Professional Comparable Company Analysis: A Step-By-Step Approach
The key to preparing the comparable company analysis or Trading comp is the arrive at the right multiple (EV/Sales, P/E etc). Below is a sample sum...
How many comparables are used in a sales comparison?
It is normal to attempt to use around three comparables to accurately get the appropriate asking price. A minimum of three comparables must be reported in the sales comparison approach.
What is comparables in real estate?
Comparables, often used in real estate to find the fair value of a home, are a list of recent asset sales that reflect the characteristics of the asset an owner is looking to sell. However, the list of sales is generally limited to within the last year.
What is FSBO comp?
An FSBO has the ability to find the best comparables in the area to assist the realtor when that time comes . Comps are not limited to selling and buying a home. It can be considered for refinancing the home.
Valuation based on Comparables
The P/E valuation method is used to estimate a company’s stock value by applying a benchmark multiple to the company’s actual or forecasted earnings. An equivalent approach is to compare a stock’s actual price multiple with a benchmark value of the multiple.
The Value of a Stock
If the stock price is higher than the price based on the benchmark multiple, the stock is relatively overvalued. If the stock price is lower than the price based on the benchmark multiple, the stock is relatively undervalued.
Question
Which of the following can least likely be used as a benchmark multiple in a valuation based on multiples?
What is the key to preparing the comparable company analysis or Trading Comp?
The key to preparing the comparable company analysis or Trading comp is the arrive at the right multiple (EV/Sales, P/E, etc.). Below is a sample summary Comparable comp analysis excel sheet –
What is a comparable comp?
Comparable comps are nothing but identifying doing relative valuations like an expert to find the fair value of the firm. The comparable comp process starts with identifying the comparable companies, then selecting the right valuation tools, and finally preparing a table that can provide easy inferences about the fair valuation of the industry and the company.
What is preferred stock?
Preferred Stock is very similar to Debt – investors receive a guaranteed dividend, usually in the form of an interest rate on the Preferred Stock balance. Add. Preferred Shares are listed on the Liabilities & Shareholders’ Equity side of the Balance Sheet.
What are the components of a stock option?
It typically consists of four components: the strike price, the expiry date, the lot size, and the share premium. read more
What does a PEG ratio mean?
A PEG ratio of 1.0 or lower, on average, indicates that a stock is undervalued. A PEG ratio greater than 1.0 indicates that a stock is overvalued. read more. , etc. However, If you want a quick refresher, you may refer to Part 1 of this equity valuation series that covered the topic of Relative Valuation multiples.
Comparable Trading Multiples Universe
When conducting comps analysis, companies (both target and comparable) should have similar:
Sources of Information for Comparable Trading Multiples
Enterprise value (EV) is a measure of a firm’s total value. Interchangeable terms for EV include entity value (EV), gross value (GV), total capitalization, firm value (FV), and others.
When to Use Equity Value vs. Enterprise Value
As you can see in the image below, the different comparable trading multiples are organized into groups based on the numerator in the multiples.
Which multiple to use
Different financial ratios serve different functions in comparable trading multiples analysis. Before using any multiple, the following questions need to be answered:
Additional resources
Thank you for reading this section of CFI’s free investment banking book Investment Banking Manual CFI's Investment Banking book is free, available for anyone to download as a PDF. Read about accounting, valuation, financial modeling, Excel, and all skills required to be an investment banking analyst.
Steps in Performing Comparable Company Analysis
In the next section of this guide, we will go through a detailed list of how to build your own comps table.
Formatting the Table
For a good financial analyst The Analyst Trifecta® Guide The ultimate guide on how to be a world-class financial analyst.
Interpreting the Results
Once the numbers are complete and the comps table is finalized, it’s time to start interpreting the results. One way to use the information is to look for companies that are overvalued or undervalued.
Applications of Comparable Company Analysis
There are many uses for comps (or comparable companies analysis, or market multiples, or whatever name you use for them). Typically performed by financial analysts and associates, the most common uses include:
Multiples and Financial Modeling
Multiples play a significant role in financial modeling What is Financial Modeling Financial modeling is performed in Excel to forecast a company's financial performance. Overview of what is financial modeling, how & why to build a model. .
More Resources from CFI
Thank you for reading CFI’s guide to Comparable Company Analysis. At CFI, we’re on a mission to help you advance your career. Some of our most popular free resources include:
What is Comparable Company Analysis?
Comparable Company Analysis is a relative valuation method in which a company’s value is derived from comparisons to the current stock prices of similar companies in the market.
Comparable Company Analysis Definition
The premise of comparable company analysis is that similar companies provide an informative point of reference that can be used to derive an estimated valuation of the target company.
Peer Group Selection Process
The set of companies chosen to be compared to one another is called the “peer group”.
Trading Comps Valuation Multiples
Enterprise value and equity value, as well as operating metrics like EBITDA, cannot be compared in their absolute value forms. But upon being standardized by valuation multiples, comparisons are viable across companies of various sizes and among other differences.
Comparable Company Analysis Steps
Compile Peer Group – The first step is to select the peer group, which will be composed of publicly traded comparable companies that are ideally competitors of the target or operate in a similar industry.
Trading Comps Excel Template
Now that we’ve introduced the theory behind relative valuation – as well as the specific steps involved in comparable company analysis – we can move to an example trading comps exercise in Excel.
Comparable Company Analysis Multiples
The process of “spreading comps” can be very time-consuming, with the majority of the time and effort spent on researching the target company, compiling the right comparable companies, and developing an understanding of the sector.
How to value a company using a comparable company analysis?
To value a company using comparable company analysis (aka relative valuation or valuation using multiples), you must begin by identifying an appropriate set of peers (aka comps), which your model will be based on. After wards, you need to locate and then aggregate and standardize the appropriate financial data needed for all of the chosen comps. Then, you can select the appropriate trading multiples, key statistics, and ratios depending on the target company and its respective industry/sector. Next, you need to benchmark this information, calculate medians and means, and select a valuation multiple that best suites the target company.
How to compare two companies?
These five steps, as shown in the table of contents, are listed below as well: Step 1: Determine an Appropriate Set of Company Comparables. Step 2: Aggregate and Standardize Financial Data. Step 3: Select Appropriate Trading Multiples, Key Statistics, and Ratios. Step 4: Benchmark the Comparable Companies.
What is valuation multiple?
In general, valuation multiples can be thought of the ratio between the valuation of a company and a particular trading metric: Valuation multiple = Value of a company / Financial or business metric.
Why are multiples used in valuation?
Because companies can have dramatically different sizes, revenues, and bottom line earnings, trading multiples, ratios, and other key statistics are used to make comparing two or more different assets a lot easier. Multiples are therefore used in relative valuation to give investors an idea on how "expensive" a company is, relative to its peers.
What is relative valuation?
Relative valuation is dependent on how similar assets are priced in the market. The objective with relative valuation is therefore to value an asset based on how similar assets are currently priced in the market. This is different from absolute valuation methods such as the discounted cash flow (DCF) calculation, as this entails estimating the intrinsic/fair of a company based on its cash flows and growth potential without comparing it to other similar assets whatsoever.
Why is enterprise value used as a multiple?
Because enterprise value represents the interests of both debt and equity holders, it's used as a multiple for key financial statistics such as sales, EBITDA, and EBIT. Enterprise value multiples are therefore more appropriate when trying to value an entire business.
What is equity value?
Equity value represents a company's fully diluted shares outstanding (different from basic shares outstanding) multiplied by the current share price. In comparison to other companies, this measure is only useful for understanding the relative size of a company.

What Are Comparables?
Understanding Comparables
- Using comparables for valuation is helpful for accurately appraising any asset. For example, a real estate agentmay appraise the value of a home-based on the most recent selling price of a house in the same neighborhood with similar attributes, such as square footage and the number of bedrooms and bathrooms. Comparables are frequently used for real estate agents. The agents …
Special Considerations
- The best practice to use comps is during a for sale by owner(FSBO) situation. Realtors have more tools and resources to accurately evaluate the price of the home. An FSBO is perfect for sellers who are not using a realtor. The seller is able to gather data from the nearby neighborhoods on comparable homes, and then proceed to list the home price accurately. Buying and selling a ho…
Example of Comparables
- For example, Bert wants to sell his house. He notices that a similar house in the neighborhood has just recently sold. He does a little investigating and finds the price that it was sold for. He now has an idea of how much his property is worth. He enlists the help of Steve who is a realtor. After taking a walk-through of the house, Steve pulls comparables for the last 12 months for houses s…