Q3 2009 Business Valuation Data

Sell My Solano, CA Business

Every quarter, BizBuySell.com publishes business valuation data, and we now have their latest Solano, California business-for-sale statistics.

Median Ask Prices for Solano, CA Businesses

If you are interested in trends in business-for-sale asking prices, here are the median asking prices for businesses for sale in the Contra Costa-Alameda-Solano, CA metro area for the last 11 quarters.

Quarter
Median Ask
Q2 2007
$287,000
Q2 2008
$250,000
Q3 2008
$250,000
Q4 2008
$222,000
Q1 2009
$230,000
Q2 2009
$225,000
Q3 2009
$225,000

As you can see from the chart above, Solano business-for-sale listings in Q3 2009 had a median asking price of $225,000.

That compares to a median ask price of $250,000 in Q3 2008. Given that Solano, CA median business asking prices appear to be dropping, it suggests that selling Solano businesses may be lowering their prices to make their businesses more attractive to buyers.

Revenue Multiples for Solano, CA Businesses

Here is how median revenue multiples are moving in the Solano area, based on BizBuySell.com's quarterly reports.

Quarter
Revenue Multiple
Q2 2007
0.85
Q2 2008
0.74
Q3 2008
0.75
Q4 2008
0.70
Q1 2009
0.59
Q2 2009
0.58
Q3 2009
0.57

In the Contra Costa-Alameda-Solano, CA metro area, businesses will typically sell for 0.57 times the selling company's revenues. As shown in the chart above, that was the mean revenue multiple for Q3 2009 in this area of the country.

In other words, a business that has revenues of $150,000 might list for $84,834. Remember, however, that this is just an average for revenue multiples in Solano and surrounding communities. Some firms will have higher revenue multiples and others will have lower revenue multiples.

According to BizBuySell.com, the median revenues for its Solano business-for-sale listings was $511,794 in Q3 2009.

To put this in perspective, the Q3 2008 revenue multiple was 0.75 and the median revenue for listed Solano businesses was $443,827.

Cash Flow Multiples for Solano, CA Businesses

Here is how cash flow multiples are trending in the Solano area, based on BizBuySell.com's quarterly reports.

Quarter
Median Cash
Flow Multiple
Q2 2007
3.31
Q2 2008
3.47
Q3 2008
3.51
Q4 2008
3.44
Q1 2009
3.22
Q2 2009
3.17
Q3 2009
2.93

As you probably know, cash flow multiples are another common way to value a business.

For Q3 2009, the average cash flow multiple for listed businesses in the Contra Costa-Alameda-Solano, CA metro area was 2.93.

So, a business with cash flows of $110,000 might list for $322,816. That calculation is dependent on the business selling for the area's average multiple. Most businesses will not conform to industry- or area averages.

In case you were wondering what typical cash flows are for a business in Solano, BizBuySell.com reports that the median cash flow for Solano area businesses was $100,000 in Q3 2009. In Q3 2008, Solano cash flow multiples averaged 3.51 and the median cash flow was $100,000.

Number of Solano Businesses for Sale in the Dataset

The study data comprised 158 listings in the Contra Costa-Alameda-Solano, CA metro area. As such, some of the businesses used to derive the median valuation might be outside of Solano, but they are close by and so are probably representative of Solano business valuations.

One year ago, in Q3 2008, the BizBuySell.com dataset for Solano spanned 253 listings. The downward trend in the number of Solano business-for-sale listings is indicative of the current down economy.

Can I Sell My Solano, CA Business Now?

If you want to sell a business now, odds are you can sell now. You may even be able to get a premium acquisition price from a buyer. It all depends on how well you execute. Plenty of deals are getting done, all the time regardless of macro factors. This good selling-a-business tip comes from Domenic Rinaldi, managing partner of Sun Acquisitions, a leading business brokerage firm.

Business Valuations for Solano, CA Businesses

If you are contemplating buying a business or selling a business and would like to look at completed transaction sale price comparables in the area, we recommend the BizBuySell.com Business Valuation Tool. Based on your specific criteria, you can modify the company dataset that creates business valuation estimates. Access to the tool is very reasonable -- costing less than $100.

BizBuySell.com's Quarterly Reports

The BizBuySell Insight Report is a nationally-recognized economic report that tracks trends in the business-for-sale marketplace. If you find these trends interesting, take a moment to visit BizBuySell.com Insights Report for more information.

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