Public Comps

Valuing a company against similar public companies' multiples

What it is

Public comparables ("comps") value a company by looking at how similar publicly traded companies are priced. You take peers in the same industry, calculate their valuation multiples (like EV/Revenue or EV/EBITDA), and apply those to the company you are valuing. It answers "what is the market paying for businesses like this?"

Why it matters

Comps ground a valuation in real, current market prices rather than theoretical models. Investors and bankers use them constantly to sanity-check what a company should be worth.

Resources

Corporate Finance Institute, Comparable Company Analysis

corporatefinanceinstitute.com

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