← Back to Academy

Enterprise Value vs. Market Cap: What's the Real Price Tag?

Beginner Investing • 5 min

Two companies can share the exact same market cap and still have very different real price tags. Market cap is just share price times shares outstanding — it says nothing about debt or cash. Enterprise Value (EV) fixes that: EV = Market Cap + Total Debt − Cash. It's the closer approximation of what it would actually cost to buy the entire business outright.Insider Angle: this is why EV, not market cap, is the number…

2 of 2 free lessons used

Create a free account to keep reading

You have read your 2 free lessons. Making an account is free and gives you 2 more straight away — plus your progress, streak and quiz scores saved as you go.

Learning through your school? Join your class — school students get everything, at no personal cost.