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Graham number: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 03:17, 8 September 2019

${\displaystyle {\sqrt {22.5\times ({\text{earnings per share}})\times ({\text{book value per share}})}}}$

The final number is, theoretically, the maximum price that a defensive investor should pay for the given stock. Put another way, a stock priced below the Graham Number would be considered a good value, if it also meets a number of other criteria.

Graham writes:^[2]

Current price should not be more than 1½ times the book value last reported. However a multiplier of earnings below 15 could justify a correspondingly higher multiplier of assets. As a rule of thumb we suggest that the product of the multiplier times the ratio of price to book value should not exceed 22.5. (This figure corresponds to 15 times earnings and 1½ times book value. It would admit an issue selling at only 9 times earnings and 2.5 times asset value, etc.)

— Benjamin Graham, The Intelligent Investor, chapter 14

Alternative calculation

Earnings per share is calculated by dividing net incomebyshares outstanding. Book value is another way of saying shareholders' equity. Therefore, book value per share is calculated by dividing equitybyshares outstanding. Consequently, the formula for the Graham number can also be written as follows:

${\displaystyle {\sqrt {15\times 1.5\times \left({\frac {\text{net income}}{\text{shares outstanding}}}\right)\times \left({\frac {\mathrm {shareholders'\ equity} }{\text{shares outstanding}}}\right)}}}$

References

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