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Learn / Fundamentals / Valuation / P/B Ratio

Price-to-Book Ratio

P/B = Share Price ÷ Book Value Per Share

This number compares the stock's price to the company's net assets on the books — what is left after you subtract debts from assets. In theory, that is close to what owners would get if everything were sold and debts paid.

01 Feel it first

Assets minus debts

Click buttons to add assets or debt on the stack. Book value (equity = money left for owners after debts) is what remains. Drag the red price line up or down to see how P/B moves.

Price-to-Book
1.50×

02 Break the intuition

Trading below book is free money

Not always. Peel the cards to see why a low P/B can be a trap — and a high P/B can be normal.

SOFTWARE
8×+
typical P/B
Assets on booksThin
Normal
Not a red flag
BANK
0.7×
"cheap" P/B
Often meansCredit fear
Warning
Not free money
Software at 8×+ book is normal — the real value sits in code and customers, not factories. A bank at 0.7× often signals fear of loan losses the market sees before the books catch up. The industry decides whether low P/B is a bargain or a warning.

03 Explore the stack

Assets minus debt equals book

Tap each slice. What the company owns, what it owes, and what is left for shareholders.

Assets

Everything the company owns: cash, factories, inventory, and more. This is the gross pile before debts.

Book value / share
$25

With $60 of assets and $35 of debt, book value is $25 per share. P/B tells you how many times the market price sits above or below that accounting leftover.

04 Scrub the scale

Where does this P/B sit?

Drag the P/B slider. Book value stays fixed at $25 per share while the market price moves.

P/B
2.0×
Normal
2.0×
0.2×6.0×

Book value stays at $25 per share. Multiply P/B by $25 to get the implied price. Below 1× trades under book. Above 3× often signals assets the books do not capture.

05 Where it matters

Industry decides how useful it is

P/B is a balance-sheet tool. Use it where the balance sheet (the list of what the company owns and owes) is the heart of the business.

Useful. Loans, factories, and inventory dominate the books. P/B shows how the market prices those tangible claims. A bank at 0.6× or an industrial at 0.8× forces a question: are the assets damaged, or is the market too scared?

06 The catch

Typical P/B by industry

Compare like with like. A 'cheap' software name can still trade far above an 'expensive' bank.

Banks
1.1×
Industrials
2.5×
Consumer
3.5×
Healthcare
4.5×
Software
8×+

Sample sector averages. Live sector numbers available on Amsflow.

07 Check yourself

Five quick checks

Question 1 of 5
Quick checkBook value is $20 per share and the stock trades at $40. P/B is:
2.0 is right. P/B = price ÷ book = 40 ÷ 20 = 2.0.

08 Where it breaks

When P/B misleads you

Invisible assets missing

Brand, research, and people rarely show at full value on the books. Book value understates many modern businesses.

Write-downs arrive late

Assets can stay overstated until management finally takes the hit. P/B can look low right before that charge.

Fire-sale prices are lower

If the company shut down tomorrow, factories and inventory often sell for less than the book number. You do not pocket book value in a rush sale.

Buybacks shrink equity

When a company buys back its own shares, book equity can shrink and P/B can rise even if the business itself did not change.

Check P/B on a live name.

See book value, market price, and sector peers for any of 70,000 stocks — then screen for deep discounts or franchise premiums.