medium · Investment Banking valuation-core
Why is 'Unlevered Free Cash Flow' (UFCF) the correct numerator to pair with 'Enterprise Value' in a valuation multiple?
- UFCF excludes the effects of a company's depreciation policy choices, which makes it more directly comparable to the Enterprise Value of firms with different asset intensities and capex needs.
- Enterprise Value already reflects the company's net cash position, so consistency requires pairing it with a cash flow metric that similarly includes interest income earned on cash balances held.
- UFCF is the cash flow available to all capital providers (debt and equity) before any financing decisions, and EV represents the value of the firm's total operations available to those same providers.
- UFCF is the only cash flow metric that fully accounts for the tax shield provided by a company's outstanding debt, which is treated as a key structural component embedded within its Enterprise Value calculation.
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