Book Value Per Share BVPS: Definition, Calculation & Importance

book value per share computation

There is also a book value used by accountants to value the assets owned by a company. This differs from the book value for investors because it is only used internally for managerial accounting purposes. While Book Value Per Share can be a helpful indicator of a company’s tangible net assets, it has several limitations that investors should be aware of.

Book value per share (BVPS) measures the book value of a firm on a per-share basis. BVPS is found by dividing equity available to common shareholders by the number of outstanding shares. It may not include intangible assets such as patents, intellectual property, brand value, and goodwill. It also may not fully account for workers’ skills, human capital, and future profits and growth. The book value per share and the market value per share are some of the tools used to evaluate the value of a company’s stocks. The market value per share represents the current price of a company’s shares, and it is the price that investors are willing to pay for common stocks.

Book Value: Definition, Meaning, Formula, and Examples

You can use the book value per share formula to help calculate the book value per share of the company. To calculate book value per share, simply divide a company’s total common equity by the number of shares outstanding. For example, if a company has total common equity of $1,000,000 and 1,000,000 shares outstanding, then its book value per share would be $1. For example, let’s say that ABC Corporation has total equity of $1,000,000 and 1,000,000 shares outstanding.

What Does Book Value Per Share (BVPS) Tell Investors?

It’s one metric that an investor may look for if they’re interested in valuating Coca-Cola as a potential investment. The term “book value” is derived from accounting lingo, where the accounting journal and ledger are known as a company’s books. Investors use BVPS to gauge whether a stock is trading below or above its intrinsic value. At the same time, we use book value in the case of the ROE formula when we calculate the ROE per share.

book value per share computation

Book value per share is the portion of a company’s equity that’s attributed to each share of common stock if the company gets liquidated. It’s a measure of what shareholders would theoretically get if they sold all of the assets of the company and paid off all of its liabilities. The BVPS is a conservative way for investors to measure the real value of a company’s stocks, which is done by calculating what stockholders will own when the company liquidates and all debts paid up. Value investors prefer using the BVPS as a gauge of a stock’s potential value when future growth and earnings projections are less direct vs indirect cash flow stable. Another way to increase BVPS is for a company to repurchase common stock from shareholders.

The book value per share of a company is the total value of the company’s net assets divided by the number of shares that are outstanding. If a company has a book value per share that’s higher than its market value per share, it’s an undervalued stock. Undervalued stock that is trading well below its book value can be an attractive option for some investors. There are a number of other factors that you need to take into account when considering xerox an investment. For example, the company’s financial statements, competitive landscape, and management team.

Book Value Per Common Share (BVPS): Definition and Calculation

If XYZ uses $300,000 of its earnings to reduce liabilities, common equity also increases. The first part of our calculation would be to find out the total shareholders’ equity available to common shareholders and preferred stockholders. The book value of a company is based on the amount of money that shareholders would get if liabilities were paid off and assets were liquidated. The market value of a company is based on the current stock market price and how many shares are outstanding. You may ask why we deduct the preferred stock and average outstanding common stock. We deduct preferred stock from the shareholders’ equity because preferred shareholders are paid first after the debts are paid off.

The Difference Between Book Value per Share and Net Asset Value (NAV)

  1. BVPS is found by dividing equity available to common shareholders by the number of outstanding shares.
  2. You may ask why we deduct the preferred stock and average outstanding common stock.
  3. Book value indicates the difference between the total assets and the total liabilities, and when the formula for book value per share is to divide this book value by the number of common shares.
  4. A company can also increase the book value per share by using the generated profits to buy more assets or reduce liabilities.
  5. It can offer a view of how the market values a particular company’s stock and whether that value is comparable to the BVPS.

Remember, even if a company has a high book value per share, there’s no guarantee that it will be a successful investment. The book value per share is just one metric that you should look at when considering an investment. It’s important to remember that the book value per share is not the only metric that you should consider when making an investment decision. However, for sectors like technology and pharmaceuticals, where intellectual property and ongoing research and development are crucial, BVPS can be misleading.