P/B Ratio Calculator with Live Sector Benchmarks
Compute the price-to-book ratio in seconds and place it against live sector medians: banks near 1, technology far above. Free, with formula and example.
Also available in German: KBV berechnen: Kurs-Buchwert-Verhältnis mit Branchenvergleich →
Inputs
Share price
Also called: Stock price, market price
Where to find it: Any finance site (Google/Yahoo Finance) — the current trading price per share.
How to derive: Set by the market; just enter the current price per share.
Book value per share
Also called: BVPS, equity per share
Where to find it: Balance sheet: shareholder equity ÷ shares. Often listed directly as a stat.
How to derive: Shareholder equity ÷ shares outstanding.
Result, live
Crucial for banks/insurers; weak for tech (intangibles missing from the balance sheet).
The price-to-book ratio (P/B) compares the share price to the equity on the balance sheet — the net assets that would theoretically remain if the company were wound down. This calculator divides share price by book value per share and shows instantly whether you pay a premium or a discount to that substance.
How the formula works
Book value per share is total equity divided by the number of shares. The P/B ratio sets the market price against that accounting value: a ratio of 1 means you pay exactly the net assets, above 1 a premium, below 1 a discount.
P/B = share price ÷ book value per share
Example: A stock trades at $50 with a book value of $32 per share. P/B = 50 ÷ 32 = 1.56. You pay about 56% more than the accounting net assets — a normal premium for a profitable firm.
How to read the result
- Below 1 — priced under book value; a possible bargain, but find out why the market is skeptical.
- 1 to 3 — the normal range for most healthy companies.
- Above 3 — a clear premium to net assets; justified only by strong returns on equity.
What to watch out for
- Weak for tech. Brands, software and patents barely appear on the balance sheet, so asset-light firms look expensive on P/B.
- Book value can be stale. Assets are carried at historical cost, not today's worth.
- Cheap can mean broken. A P/B below 1 sometimes signals losses ahead, not a bargain.
P/B ratio by sector
A P/B ratio only means something next to the company's own sector: banks and real estate are valued close to book, asset-light technology companies far above it. The table shows median and range for every sector from our database, updated daily.
| Sector | Lower quartile | Median | Upper quartile | Stocks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Real Estate | 0.32 | 0.69 | 1.27 | 1,448 |
| Financials | 0.64 | 1.09 | 1.77 | 2,885 |
| Communication Services | 0.51 | 1.21 | 2.57 | 893 |
| Energy | 0.72 | 1.33 | 2.32 | 857 |
| Consumer Staples | 0.59 | 1.35 | 2.60 | 1,414 |
| Consumer Discretionary | 0.62 | 1.37 | 2.76 | 2,987 |
| Utilities | 0.73 | 1.40 | 2.30 | 593 |
| Materials | 0.65 | 1.45 | 2.75 | 2,890 |
| Industrials | 0.68 | 1.61 | 3.18 | 4,520 |
| Health Care | 0.80 | 1.71 | 3.35 | 2,016 |
| Information Technology | 0.80 | 2.15 | 4.28 | 2,937 |
Source: the Fair Value Calculator database, 23,440 stocks with a valid value for P/B ratio, as of Sep 5, 2026. Median: half of the sector's stocks sit below it. Lower and upper quartile: 25 % sit below or above. Values move daily with prices. All valuation ratios by sector →