EV/Revenue vs EV/EBITDA vs EV/EBIT

Hey all. 

I was wondering if anyone could provide some guidance as to when it is best to use each of the following valuation multiples EV/Revenue vs EV/EBITDA vs EV/EBIT. In contrast, when would it not be appropriate to use any one of these?

9 Comments
 
Most Helpful

Revenue multiple - business is not profitable (EBITDA 0) EBITDA multiple - the company is profitable, has stable margins generally and is not meaningfully capitally intensive (low cap-ex / D&A relative to rev)EBIT - similar to EBITDA with the exception being this metric will capture differences in the capital intensity / free cash flow generating ability of the company being valued. This metric is often substitutes for EBITDA - CapEx which is a proxy for an unlevered Free Cash Flow multiple

 

TEV/Revenue when a company is not profitable or has a very short history of profitability and is rapidly maturing.  Generally more speculative approach to valuation used with earlier stage companies.

TEV/EBITDA or TEV/EBIT is intended as a proxy for valuation relative to cash flow.  However, if a company has a lot of non-cash expenses (e.g. D&A), then your EBIT may be depressed relative to the actual cash flow of the business.  To that extent EBITDA is generally preferred because it corrects for non-cash expenses.  Fun comes in when you start having to adjust EBITDA for capitalized expenses...

 
Funniest

Inventore magni iste sed quis. Et esse ut ipsam et ea ab optio. Dolor et et rerum eos quaerat vel enim. Similique voluptatem earum ratione laudantium voluptas.

Career Advancement Opportunities

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • JPMorgan 01 98.4%
  • Guggenheim Partners 02 97.9%
  • Morgan Stanley 06 97.4%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Moelis & Company No 99.5%
  • Morgan Stanley 02 99.0%
  • Evercore 01 98.4%
  • Banco Santander 02 97.9%
  • BMO Capital Markets 13 97.4%

Professional Growth Opportunities

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Evercore 01 99.5%
  • Moelis & Company 01 99.0%
  • Morgan Stanley 05 98.4%
  • Goldman Sachs 01 97.9%
  • JPMorgan No 97.4%

Total Avg Compensation

November 2026 Investment Banking

  • Vice President (16) $429
  • Associates (57) $264
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (8) $210
  • 2nd Year Analyst (29) $183
  • Intern/Summer Associate (16) $161
  • 1st Year Analyst (84) $151
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (76) $101
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
5
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
6
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
7
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
8
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
9
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
10
Jamoldo's picture
Jamoldo
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”