How do you use BVR for multiples?

by a searcher from Carnegie Mellon University

1 week ago

Do you use the BVR service from Searchfunder to compare industry multiples? The MVIC/Discretionary Earnings multiples appear quite low for most industries compared to what I see on BizBuySell (asking price/SDE). Can I assume that MVIC is equivalent to the asking price? Also, are the multiples on BVR based on 'sold listings,' or are they just listed prices that may not be sold yet?
I’m trying to make the most of this free resource to validate my deal assessments. Any insights would be appreciated.

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intermediary from University of Pennsylvania - The Wharton School

The BVR data is for completed transactions. The BizBuySell asking price data will be biased high and probably have lots of irrational outliers. BVR publishes a FAQ that might be helpful: https://www.bvresources.com/products/faqs/dealstats. If you have other questions, feel free to send me a DM.

1 week ago | like reply | 0 likes

searcher

I don't use the industry data as much as the transaction-level data, but I would expect transaction count in an industry to be a driver, as well as data availability (you're subject to whatever information the broker or intermediary decides to include). For many deals (especially on the larger side where multiples would be higher) this doesn't include SDE.

My approach is to search by NAICS code (or a range of similar codes) and then again by keyword to make sure I'm finding (a) the right comps and (b) enough comps to make me feel good about where the market is for a particular deal profile.

1 week ago | like reply | 0 likes

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