How do you value the sale of a business?

Asked by: Mr. Marvin Rutherford  |  Last update: January 26, 2026
Score: 4.4/5 (66 votes)

Add up the value of everything the business owns, including all equipment and inventory. Subtract any debts or liabilities. The value of the business's balance sheet is at least a starting point for determining the business's worth. But the business is probably worth a lot more than its net assets.

How do you calculate the sale value of a business?

Take your total assets and subtract your total liabilities. This approach makes it easy to trace to the valuation because it's coming directly from your accounting/record keeping.

What is the rule of thumb for valuing a business?

The revenue multiple is the key factor in determining a company's value. To calculate the times-revenue, divide the selling price by the company's revenue from the past 12 months. This ratio reveals how much a buyer was willing to pay for the business, expressed as a multiple of annual revenue.

How much is a business worth with $1 million in sales?

The Revenue Multiple (times revenue) Method

A venture that earns $1 million per year in revenue, for example, could have a multiple of 2 or 3 applied to it, resulting in a $2 or $3 million valuation. Another business might earn just $500,000 per year and earn a multiple of 0.5, yielding a valuation of $250,000.

How much is a business worth with $300,000 in sales?

For example, a business that is doing $300,000 in profit per year sold for at 2.44X would have a sale price of $732,000 ($300,000*2.44=$732,000). This works in reverse as well — if a business sold for $732,000 at 2.44X, then ($732,000/2.44) means the profit was $300,000.

How to Value a Small Business (Key Factors You Should Consider Before You Buy or Sell)

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How much is a business worth with $500,000 in sales?

To find the fair market value, it is then necessary to divide that figure by the capitalization rate. Therefore, the income approach would reveal the following calculations. Projected sales are $500,000, and the capitalization rate is 25%, so the fair market value is $125,000.

How many times revenue is a business worth?

The times-revenue method determines the maximum value of a company as a multiple of its revenue for a set period of time. The multiple varies by industry and other factors but is typically one or two. In some industries, the multiple might be less than one.

How much is a typical small business worth?

Companies with under $3m in sales will typically sell for 2.5 – 3.5 X their discretionary earnings (total cash the owner could take out of the company). Smaller companies that are even more owner-reliant will even be lower than that.

What is the formula for business valuation?

Current Value = (Asset Value) / (1 – Debt Ratio)

To quickly value a business, find its total liabilities and subtract them from the total assets. This will give you an idea of its book value. This formula estimates the worth of a business by looking at its assets and subtracting any liabilities.

How do you value a private company based on revenue?

A common way to value a private company is by using the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) or a Comparable Company Analysis (CCA), and by taking into account factors such as financial performance, growth prospects, industry dynamics, and risk factors.

How do you value a business quickly?

There are a number of ways to determine the market value of your business.
  1. Tally the value of assets. Add up the value of everything the business owns, including all equipment and inventory. ...
  2. Base it on revenue. ...
  3. Use earnings multiples. ...
  4. Do a discounted cash-flow analysis. ...
  5. Go beyond financial formulas.

How to price a small business for sale?

There are four elements involved in calculating your business's value:
  1. Establish your net income. To establish your net income, take your small business's gross profit and subtract all expenses. ...
  2. Look at multiples. ...
  3. Figure out your market. ...
  4. Determine your potential market growth rate. ...
  5. Add growth projections.

How much could I sell my business for?

A business will likely sell for two to four times seller's discretionary earnings (SDE)range –the majority selling within the 2 to 3 range. In essence, if the annual cash flow is $200,000, the selling price will likely be between $400,000 and $600,000.

How do you determine the price to sell your business?

Market value: The simplest calculation and, therefore, the most common valuation method. It takes the current value of the business' shares and multiplies it by the number of shares that are currently outstanding. Asset-based: This method looks at your total net assets and deducts your total liabilities.

How does Shark Tank calculate valuation?

A revenue valuation, which considers the prior year's sales and revenue and any sales in the pipeline, is often determined. The Sharks use a company's profit compared to the company's valuation from revenue to come up with an earnings multiple.

What is an example of a business valuation?

Valuations are generally expressed as a multiple times EBITDA (Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization). For example, a business with EBITDA of $1 million and a multiple of 3 is valued at $3 million.

How do you calculate the true value of a business?

Asset-Based Valuation is a method used in company valuations to determine a company's worth based on its tangible assets. This approach calculates the company's value by summing up the value of its assets and subtracting its liabilities. Tangible assets may include property, equipment, inventory, and investments.

How much profit should a $2 million dollar business make?

So as an example, a company doing $2 million in real revenue (I'll explain below) should target a profit of 10 percent of that $2 million, owner's pay of 10 percent, taxes of 15 percent and operating expenses of 65 percent. Take a couple of seconds to study the chart.

What is the simple way to calculate valuation of a company?

Methods Of Valuation Of A Company
  1. Net Asset Value or NAV= Fair Value of all the Assets of the Company – Sum of all the outstanding Liabilities of the Company.
  2. PE Ratio= Stock Price / Earnings per Share.
  3. PS Ratio= Stock Price / Net Annual Sales of the Company per share.
  4. PBV Ratio= Stock Price / Book Value of the stock.

How much is a business worth that makes $1 million a year?

Using this basic formula, a company doing $1 million a year, making around $200,000 EBITDA, is worth between $600,000 and $1 million. Some people make it even more basic, and moderate profits earn a value of one times revenue: A business doing $1 million is worth $1 million.

How do you calculate the value of a business to sell?

Asset Method: This method is simply calculated by taking the difference between business assets and liabilities. For example, if you have $100,000 in assets and $20,000 in liabilities, the value of your business is $80,000 ($100,000 – $20,000 = $80,000).

How much is a business worth with $2 million in sales?

If the target store has annual revenue of $2 million, its estimated value would be $3 million.

What is the rule of thumb for business value?

As mentioned, the most typical rules of thumb are based on a multiple of sales or earnings that other similar businesses have sold for. For example, an accounting firm generating $200,000 in revenues that should sell at 1.25 times (125% of) annual sales would have an asking price of $250,000.

What is the quick calculation to value a business?

The Net Book Value (NBV) of your business is calculated by deducting the costs of your business liabilities, including debt and outstanding credit, from the total value of your tangible and intangible assets.

What multiple is my business worth?

Multiply the SDE or EBITDA of the business by a multiple. Common multiples for most small businesses are two to four times SDE. Common multiples for mid-sized businesses are three to six times EBITDA.