Enterprise Value/Sales (EV/Sales) simply explained

Feb 02, 2022 | Knowledge Enterprise Value/Sales (EV/Sales) simply explained

The Enterprise Value/Sales ratio (EV/Sales) sets the “true” company value Enterprise Value (EV) in relation to sales. We explain everything you need to know about EV/Sales:...

Table of Contents

  1. What is the Enterprise Value/Sales Ratio?
  2. How is the Enterprise Value/Sales Ratio Calculated?
  3. What Does the EV/Sales Ratio Indicate?
  4. Advantage of EV/Sales over P/S Ratio

What is the Enterprise Value/Sales Ratio?

The Enterprise Value/Sales Ratio (EV/Sales) compares a company's enterprise value (EV) to its sales (revenue). It’s a key metric for evaluating a company's stock, even if it hasn't yet turned a profit.

Berechnung EV_Sales

In general, the lower the EV/Sales, the more favorably valued the share is.

How is the Enterprise Value/Sales Ratio Calculated?

Enterprise value is divided by sales or revenue (TTM). TTM is the abbreviation for “Trailing Twelve Months”. By taking the last 12 months into account, the most recent figures from the last 4 quarterly reports are always taken into account.

Enterprise Value

The Enterprise Value is calculated by adding the debt to the market capitalization and subtracting the cash position (enterprise value simply explained).

Berechnung EV_Sales

Calculate the Enterprise Value/Sales ratio (EV/Sales):

The calculation of the EV/Sales of the Spotify share as at September 13, 2024 is shown as an illustration:

Berechnung EV_Sales Bsp

The Spotify share is currently valued at an EV/Sales of 4. For comparison, you can/should take a look at the valuation in a historical comparison and, if necessary, compare it with competitors:

According to the High Growth Investing strategy, the following points are awarded for the EV/Sales indicator:

EV_Sales Punkte

The Spotify share thus receives 3 points, as the EV/Sales is below 8.

Attention! Depending on the industry and business model as well as the future prospects of the respective company, the EV/Sales can vary greatly.

The financial market tends to award a particularly high EV/Sales to companies that can generate high profitability with their business model, e.g. measured by gross margin or free cash flow. This applies, for example, to software manufacturers (typically gross margins of over 70%) compared to car manufacturers (typically gross margins of less than 30%).

The car manufacturers Daimler and BMW are valued significantly lower than the cyber security stocks Crowdstrike and Zscaler, for example.

 

What Does the EV/Sales Ratio Indicate?

The Enterprise Value/Sales ratio (EV/Sales) is an important indicator for assessing the valuation of companies/shares. A high EV/Sales indicates a high valuation and a low EV/Sales indicates a cheap valuation.

But beware: a low EV/Sales does not necessarily indicate a good investment! It is therefore important to look at the EV/Sales in the overall context and not in isolation. Visually favorable EV/Sales values, for example, often go hand in hand with low growth prospects. Other key figures and the historical development of EV/Sales should therefore also be considered.

Which Enterprise Value/Sales ratio can be considered favorable also depends on other influencing factors, e.g:

  • Stability of sales
  • Sales mix (recurring revenues are valued particularly highly)
  • Future prospects of a company's industry
  • Position of the company in this market
  • Speed of growth
  • Business model

Advantage of EV/Sales over P/S Ratio

Many investors prefer EV/Sales over the Price-to-Sales (P/S) ratio because EV provides a more accurate company valuation by adjusting market capitalization for debt and cash.

The best tech stocks with low EV/sales worldwide

The following table shows large and mid-cap stocks from the software/internet sector with low EV/sales and positive free cash flow. Here you can find the table in the screener and add your filters: The best tech stocks

 Updated on: Wed, Aug 07 2024
Stock EV/Sales Free Cashflow-Margin Market Capitalization 
Lumine Group $6.54b 11.98% 20.83%
$14.06b 11.97% 31.66%
Synopsys 11.96 17.71% $75.07b
$17.10b 11.92% 53.70%
Zscaler, Inc. 11.88 27.09% $25.12b
Snowflake $38.54b 11.72% 27.41%
monday.com $10.32b 11.68% 31.74%
SPS Commerce $7.01b 11.56% 20.82%
Aspen Technology $13.11b 11.50% 28.49%
$2.94b 11.49% 17.69%

 

Oscar Leistikow

Written By: Oscar Leistikow

Oscar Leistikow holds a Master's degree in Controlling and is at home in the world of numbers thanks to his many years of professional experience in the finance department of a DAX-listed company. He is fascinated by the capital markets and is an enthusiastic private investor himself. His aim is to pass on his knowledge of shares and the stock market and to develop StocksGuide into a leading tool for private investors.