Equity Valuation Methods for Investment Professionals
About this event
Valuation is where opinion meets arithmetic, and the arithmetic tends to win arguments.
This workshop covers the three primary valuation methods used across buy-side and sell-side firms: discounted cash flow analysis, comparable company multiples, and precedent transaction analysis. Each method has blind spots, and knowing which one to lead with — and when to discount the others — is a skill that takes deliberate practice to develop.
Sessions are built around real company filings. Participants work through terminal value assumptions, select appropriate peer groups, and reconcile valuation ranges that rarely agree with each other. That reconciliation process is where most of the analytical judgement lives.
What the sessions cover
The DCF module addresses discount rate construction, including the persistent disagreements around equity risk premium inputs. The comps module covers screen construction and how to handle outliers without simply deleting them. The precedent transactions module looks at control premiums and how deal context distorts multiples.
Who attends
Analysts and associates at asset managers, private equity firms, and corporate finance teams who build models regularly but want more rigour in how they defend their assumptions.
- Equity research analysts
- Junior investment bankers moving to the buy side
- Corporate development analysts
- Portfolio analysts at family offices
Programme
Workshop Programme
- Module 1 — DCF Construction
Topics covered
- Free cash flow forecasting from public filings
- WACC inputs and their sensitivity
- Terminal value methods and why the choice matters
- Module 2 — Comparable Company Analysis
Topics covered
- Building a defensible peer group
- EV/EBITDA, P/E, and EV/Sales — when each is appropriate
- Normalising multiples for capital structure differences
- Module 3 — Precedent Transactions
Topics covered
- Sourcing deal data from public databases
- Adjusting for synergy assumptions in announced prices
- Control premiums and strategic vs financial buyers
- Module 4 — Valuation Synthesis
Topics covered
- Football field charts and how to read them honestly
- Communicating valuation ranges to investment committees
- Live case: reconciling three conflicting outputs
Each module includes a structured exercise using actual public company data from Canadian-listed issuers.Workshop facilitator note
Quick assessment
A brief question to help us understand where attendees stand before the session begins. Your answer helps tailor the discussion.