When investors consider buying a company’s shares, they often use specific financial ratios to decide if it’s the right move. One such commonly used ratio is the Price-to-Book (P/B) ratio, also known as the Market-to-Book ratio.
Understanding Book-to-Market Ratio
The Book-to-Market ratio illustrates the relationship between a company’s book value (its worth on paper) and its market value (what people are willing to pay for its shares).
Let’s break it down with an example:
If a company’s share trades at ₹150 in the market and its book value per share is ₹100, the P/B ratio is:
150 ÷ 100 = 1.5 This means the market is willing to pay ₹1.50 for every ₹1 of the company’s net assets.
So essentially, the P/B ratio tells us how the market values a company compared to the value of what it owns. To make the comparison more meaningful, both values are often calculated on a per-share basis. That means:
How does Book-to-Market Ratio Work?
The book-to-market ratio helps investors compare a company’s actual accounting value to its market value. The book value is what’s left after subtracting liabilities from assets, while the market value is calculated by multiplying the current share price by the total number of shares. This ratio is a handy tool for evaluating whether a company might be undervalued or overvalued in the stock market.
How to Use the Book-to-Market Ratio?
The Book-to-Market ratio is simply the book value divided by the market value of the company. It helps investors judge whether a stock is priced fairly. The formula is:
Book-to-Market Ratio = Common Shareholders’ Equity ÷ Market Capitalization
The company might be undervalued. This often attracts value investors because the stock is cheaper than the actual value of the company’s assets.
The stock may be overvalued. Here, investors are paying more than what the company is worth on paper. However, this could also mean that investors expect strong future growth, particularly in sectors such as technology, where physical assets are minimal.
Book-to-Market Ratio Vs Market-to-Book Ratio
Both ratios are used to compare a company’s actual worth to what it’s trading for in the stock market, but they’re just inverted versions of each other.
So, a P/B ratio over 1 suggests a company might be overvalued, while a Book-to-Market ratio over 1 suggests it might be undervalued.
In short, whether you use the Book-to-Market or Market-to-Book ratio, both help investors figure out if a company’s shares are priced higher or lower than they should be based on its actual value.
Conclusion
Value investors are on the lookout for stocks that appear to be cheaper than their actual worth. A low P/B ratio might indicate that a stock is undervalued, and that’s exactly what value investors want to spot.
However, it’s essential to recognise that the meaning and usefulness of the Price-to-Book (P/B) ratio can vary significantly across different industries. There is no one-size-fits-all value that works across all sectors. For a fair comparison, companies should ideally be evaluated within the same industry using similar benchmarks.
Because of this, relying solely on the P/B ratio may give a skewed picture. That’s why many investors also consider other financial metrics, along with the P/B ratio, to gain a more accurate understanding of whether a stock is undervalued or overpriced.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice. Bajaj Broking Financial Services Ltd. (BFSL) makes no recommendations to buy or sell securities.