TOOLS FOR BUSINESS OWNERS
See how EBITDA or net income, adjustments and a multiple affect the indicative value of 100% of the equity under your assumptions. You choose the multiple. The tool is free and requires no registration.
Start with the “profit (loss) for the year” line in your accounts. Use a complete year and enter a loss with a minus sign. Help me choose
The example replaces the data for this method. Its multiples are calculation assumptions, not market benchmarks.
Enter net profit or EBITDA. You will see the adjusted figure and how much the multiple matters, even before choosing one.
We can start here, even if your scenario is incomplete.
Request a discussion →An indicative simulation, not a formal valuation. It does not automatically assess growth, risks, assets requiring separate valuation or sale terms.
The server uses your figures only for the calculation. We do not save the simulation or attach the figures to contact forms. Adjustment reasons stay on this page and are cleared when it is reloaded. Details on how your data is handled
THE ANSWERS YOU NEED TO GET STARTED
Four steps to understand the result. If a figure or assumption does not seem right, pause there: adding another number will not resolve uncertainty about the data.
Back to the simulatorOur business valuation guide explains the path from earnings to value. For a sale, acquisition or new shareholder, explore a professional valuation. The guides open in a new tab so you can keep your simulation.
Do you have your annual profit after tax? Choose net income. Do you have an EBITDA figure prepared by your adviser or management accounting team? You can use that. These are separate methods: the simulator does not average their results.
Use a complete financial year and data covering the same business perimeter. Compare it with previous years and recent performance: a single exceptional year may not be representative.
Net income is not the cash in your bank account. EBITDA is not revenue and often does not appear directly in Italian statutory financial statements: if you do not know it, ask your adviser how to calculate it.
An adjustment makes the figure more representative. Enter the amount without a sign and choose its effect: “Increase the result (+)” to remove a genuinely non-recurring expense already included; “Reduce the result (−)” to remove exceptional income or account for a missing recurring expense.
Starting figure + signed adjustments = figure used. If your starting figure has already been normalized, do not adjust it twice. Keep the reason, amount and supporting document for each item; do not include improvements that are merely hoped for.
Under the net income method, adjustments must already reflect their tax effect. The simulator does not calculate tax and asks you to confirm this. Interest is not automatically added back: doing so would change the measure and require a different method.
Under the EBITDA method, the item must affect the starting EBITDA figure: do not add back tax, interest, depreciation or amortization that has already been excluded. If you are unsure, discuss the adjustments with us.
A multiple expresses the ratio of value to annual earnings. Industry alone is not enough to choose it: size, risk, growth, consistency of earnings and the comparability of the businesses or transactions also matter.
Use an assumption supported by your adviser or relevant comparisons. If you do not have one, try the example to understand the calculation, or discuss your situation with us. Both multiples start blank; the tool does not select a market value for you.
The EBITDA multiple and the earnings multiple (P/E) measure different ratios and are not interchangeable. The table compares your assumption with multiples one point lower and higher, where permitted: this is a sensitivity analysis, not a valuation range, a probability or a market interval.
No: it is the indicative value of 100% of the equity under your assumptions. It is not registered share capital, book equity or a guaranteed sale price. It does not include documentary due diligence, negotiations or the tax treatment of a sale.
With EBITDA, the calculation first gives the operating value of the business; financial debt is then deducted and available cash added. Enter debt and cash at the same reference date, consistent with the earnings period, and use outstanding loan principal, not annual instalments.
With net income, the calculation already relates to equity: debt is not deducted again and cash is not added again. Zero or negative earnings, or a negative balance attributable to equity, call for further analysis: they do not by themselves show that the business has no value.
The terms of the sale, working capital, any non-operating assets and other factors may change the price. This simulation helps identify the assumptions that need further analysis.
The method, numerical inputs and confirmations needed for the calculation are sent to the website server in a POST request solely to return the result. Adjustment descriptions remain in the browser page and are not sent to the server.
The data is not placed in the page URL, saved as a simulation or attached to the contact and newsletter forms. Reloading the page clears the fields, explanations and results: they are not saved in browser storage.
The page uses a separate layout without marketing trackers. We do not promise anonymous browsing: standard technical access logs and abuse-prevention checks may exist.
Start with properly reclassified operating profit and add back the depreciation and amortization that reduced it. Net income is a different measure.
In Italian statutory financial statements, A−B is a starting point that needs examination. B10a and B10b contain amortization and depreciation; do not automatically add back B10c, B10d, B12 or B13. Impairment, write-downs and provisions require separate analysis. Abbreviated statements may require a breakdown of aggregated items.
EBITDA is a reconstructed measure: its definition and any adjustments must be made explicit.
An expense that recurs every year is not exceptional. If the owner works in the business, consider the market cost of replacing their role. Also review rent and related-party arrangements.
| Starting EBITDA | €180,000 |
|---|---|
| Documented expense from a non-recurring event | +€20,000 |
| One-off income included in the margin | −€15,000 |
| Additional cost of compensating the owner’s role at market rates | −€25,000 |
| Representative EBITDA | €160,000 |
The adjustments have reduced the margin by €20,000. They are not improvements already achieved or synergies promised by a buyer.
Representative net income × earnings multiple (P/E) = indicative value of 100% of the equity. Positive, representative annual earnings are required. Businesses with different levels of debt may have different earnings, risk and P/E multiples: comparisons must take this into account.
Adjustments must reflect their tax effect. The simulator uses the amounts entered and does not determine deductibility, tax rates or tax liabilities. Do not automatically add back finance costs or gross exceptional expenses.
Under the EBITDA method, financial debt includes the outstanding principal of mortgages and other loans, drawn overdrafts and repayable shareholder loans. It is not the same as total liabilities in the accounts. Leases, factoring and other liabilities require treatment consistent with EBITDA and the transaction terms.
Trade receivables, inventories, restricted funds and undrawn credit facilities are not available cash. Receivables, inventory and operating payables are assumed to be at an appropriate normal level; deviations and contractual adjustments may change the negotiated value.
Avoid counting the same item in both debt and working capital. Operating value is not goodwill.
If you do not have positive, representative EBITDA or net income, these methods may be unsuitable. Technology, rights, assets and future earnings require a separate asset-based or forward-looking approach: the simulator does not perform it.
EBITDA does not deduct capital expenditure or explain cash absorbed by working capital. On its own, it does not measure cash available for distribution or debt repayment. Capitalized software development costs can support the accounting margin without generating cash receipts; investment needed to maintain the product still has to be assessed.
Application software is normally an intangible asset. Cost incurred, carrying amount and economic value are different. Under Italian accounting standard OIC 24, amortization starts when the asset is available and ready for use: the absence of revenue alone does not justify postponing it.
Do not automatically add software or property to the result: if they contribute to the earnings used, you could count them twice. A property valued separately requires consistency between business earnings, notional rent, ownership costs, the property’s value and its mortgage.
Original text. These references clarify accounting items and methodology; they do not certify the result or a market multiple.
Published by Progetto M&A · Guide updated on 25 September 2026
THE NEXT STEP, IF YOU NEED IT
Unsure about the starting figure, an adjustment or the multiple? Ask us to discuss the assumptions. You can continue using the tool freely without sending a request.
You do not need to have every figure ready. We can review your results, adjustments and suitable comparisons for choosing a multiple. This request does not subscribe you to the newsletter or attach any figures or adjustment descriptions.
If you wish, you can receive occasional insights we believe are useful for business owners. Subscribing is optional, and you can unsubscribe at any time.