Company valuation: assessing your business value with rigour.

The value of a company is calculated in four steps: the earnings are normalised for one-off, private and non-operating items, the value is determined by the income approach or DCF, cross-checked against transaction multiples and finally bridged from enterprise value to the value of the shares. The result is a value range, not a single figure.

1. Normalise earnings. One-off, private and non-operating items are removed, and the pay of the managing director is measured against a market-rate salary, not the one booked.
2. Income value or DCF. The normalised, sustainable result is discounted to present value with an appropriate capitalisation rate; the differences are shown in income value and DCF compared.
3. Market check. Normalised EBIT or EBITDA is cross-checked against multiples from comparable transactions (multiples by industry); net asset value serves as a floor.
4. Value of the shares. Interest-bearing debt is deducted from the enterprise value and cash is added; the result is the equity value.

How this works out for Austria is shown in company value in Austria: methods compared; a first orientation is given by the free business value calculator.

Sources, retrieved on 1 November 2026 (German-language): ICON, KFS/BW 1 and TPA Group, KFS/BW 1 (2025). According to these trade publications, the revised KFS/BW 1 of the Chamber of Tax Advisers and Auditors was adopted on 6 November 2025 and is to be applied to valuation engagements accepted after 30 June 2026. In Germany, IDW S 1 (2026 revision) applies. The calculator and these steps do not replace a valuation by an expert.

In Austria the professional standard is the expert opinion KFS/BW 1 of the Chamber of Tax Advisers and Auditors; its revised version of 6 November 2025 is binding for engagements accepted after 30 June 2026. In Germany the standard is IDW S 1 of the Institute of Public Auditors. Both distinguish the objectified enterprise value — a typified value from the perspective of a hypothetical acquirer, without synergies or party-specific circumstances — from the subjective decision value that reflects a specific buyer's or seller's situation.

In income and DCF approaches the capitalisation rate decides the outcome: risk-free base rate, market risk premium, company-specific beta and, where appropriate, size and illiquidity premiums. As an orientation, the base rate derived from the yield curve under the IDW methodology stood at a rounded 3.75 % on 1 September 2026, and the IDW's valuation committee has recommended a market risk premium of 5.25 to 6.75 % before personal taxes since September 2025. A formal opinion under either standard is needed where the value must hold up before a court, the tax office, a bank or a disputing co-shareholder; for a sale, a succession or an investor entry the achievable market price counts, and that is what IGCP values — with income value, multiples and transaction prices actually paid. See also Capitalisation rate and Calculating company value in Austria.

A robust valuation is more than a number on paper. It is the basis for developing realistic price expectations, preparing negotiation positions and substantiating arguments later in the process. It also reveals where the company should be developed in the coming months to be better positioned at the time of sale.

In preparing a succession or company sale, a valuation is therefore usually the first step. It provides the basis for deciding whether, when and how a sale process should be launched — and creates clarity long before any conversation with potential buyers.

Tax and legal aspects of a valuation — for inheritance, gifts or changes among shareholders — are handled together with the client's tax advisor and lawyer. IGCP delivers the economic valuation and interpretation, not the tax or legal advice.