Private Company Valuation Question

When valuing a private company, once you arrive at your Enterprise Value are you supposed to subtract the debt and add the cash to arrive at Equity Value? If you're buying the entire company would you pay the Enterprise Value and ignore the Equity Value?

7 Comments
 

I thought the buyer acquires all of the debt and the cash from the target on the balance sheet. The seller is supposed to pay off all the debt?

 
Most Helpful
"Prospect in Other"

I thought the buyer acquires all of the debt and the cash from the target on the balance sheet. The seller is supposed to pay off all the debt?

Private company deals are almost always debt-free, cash-free. The seller is responsible for paying of their debt and gets to keep the cash (most industries, there could be nuances as mentioned previously).

The buyer comes in with an entirely new capital structure.

 

Et id omnis sit facere. Dolorum sunt quam veniam et. Tenetur ipsam blanditiis qui earum reprehenderit quo tenetur. Quis enim qui aut dolores explicabo ducimus. Ratione ex odio et ullam sit quae. Eius ut cumque veniam velit. Eveniet numquam enim ab dicta aliquid.

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 (17) $409
  • 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 (77) $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
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
3
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
4
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
5
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
6
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
7
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
8
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
Linda Abraham's picture
Linda Abraham
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...”