Business Valuation by a Chartered Accountant in Paris: SME Appraisal

Business Valuation by a Chartered Accountant in Paris: Independent Appraisal for SMEs#

What is your business actually worth? Entrusting that question to a chartered accountant specialised in business valuation means getting an appraisal built from your real accounts, your normalised earnings and your market, not from a one-size-fits-all formula. Business valuation is not an exact science: it is a discipline that blends rigorous financial analysis, sector knowledge, market timing and professional judgement. A well-conducted valuation enables you to negotiate a business sale at the best possible price, defend your position in a shareholder dispute, justify the terms of an investor entry, or structure a family succession with optimal tax efficiency. A poorly conducted one costs you money, sometimes a great deal of it.

Hayot Expertise, at 58 rue de Monceau, Paris 8, delivers business valuation missions for every context that requires a credible, documented and legally defensible appraisal: sale preparation, acquisition analysis, fundraising, divorce proceedings, shareholder disputes, family gift transfers and contribution audits. Our expertise combines proven valuation methodology and deep knowledge of French M&A and transfer taxation.

This page presents the valuation engagement: who leads it, in which situations, with which deliverables and at what price. For the methods in detail, the formulas and the sector-by-sector scales, see our complete business valuation guide (methods and 2026 benchmarks).

A registered chartered accountant and statutory auditor can produce two deliverables: a value opinion (concise analysis, reasoned range, from €800 excl. VAT) or a full, enforceable valuation report (from €2,500 excl. VAT for a company with under €2M revenue, €4,500 excl. VAT between €2M and €10M), delivered within 10 to 15 business days. Order of magnitude: a profitable SME is most often worth 4 to 7 times its normalised EBITDA, with the observed French average around 5.5 times and wide sector gaps. To get a first range in a few minutes, use our SME business valuation simulator, then read how much is my company worth: the 3-step calculation. The rest of this page covers when to get a valuation, who should run it, with which methods and at what cost.

A valuation produced by the owner alone is often biased, unintentionally: emotional attachment, optimistic reading of the pipeline, unfamiliarity with the discounts the market applies. The chartered accountant, by contrast, works from the raw material of any valuation: the accounts. Restating the director's pay, neutralising non-recurring items, revaluing assets, documenting a forecast: that is their natural ground, and it is what separates a defensible range from a number thrown into a negotiation.

Engagements are led by Samuel Hayot, chartered accountant registered with the Ordre des experts-comptables of Île-de-France and statutory auditor: the report commits a professional bound by strict independence and ethics rules. This is not a decorative point. On French transfer taxes, the tax authority can reassess a price it deems insufficient (LPF, Article L. 17): a signed report with documented assumptions and discounts justified line by line is your best protection in an audit. Our methodology draws in particular on the business and share valuation guide published by the French tax authority (DGFiP), the very benchmark the administration itself uses.

Sale Preparation#

Preparing a business sale without an independent valuation is one of the most common and costly mistakes owner-managers make. Setting the asking price based on gut feeling or a rough EBITDA multiple heard at a conference systematically results in one of two outcomes: either you leave money on the table by pricing too low, or you block the transaction by pricing too high and losing credibility with serious acquirers.

A professional pre-sale valuation serves three concrete purposes:

1. Anchoring the asking price on a defensible methodology that survives scrutiny by the buyer's financial advisors
2. Identifying value levers: areas where operational or financial improvements before the sale process can measurably increase the valuation (working capital reduction, contract formalisation, key-person risk mitigation)
3. Preparing for buyer objections: understanding in advance which elements of your business a financial buyer will discount, and being ready to respond with data rather than emotion

Acquisition Analysis#

For acquirers, our valuation report constitutes the analytical foundation of the investment decision. We verify whether the asking price is consistent with the fundamental value of the target, identify the risks that justify price adjustments or protection mechanisms (earn-out, price adjustment mechanism based on locked-box or closing accounts, representations and warranties) and provide an independent view on the business plan assumptions.

Fundraising and Investor Entry#

In a capital raise (business angel, venture capital, growth equity), the pre-money valuation determines the founders' dilution. A valuation that is too low creates excessive dilution; too high, it may block negotiations or create a painful down-round at the next financing stage. Our valuation report provides a structured, scenario-based analysis (base, upside, downside) that enables productive negotiations on objective foundations rather than positional bargaining.

Divorce and Matrimonial Asset Division#

When a business forms part of a matrimonial community or an inheritance estate, its valuation is central to the asset division. French courts typically require an independent expert report, not an estimate by the business owner or their regular accountant. Our valuation reports are structured to be usable before the juge aux affaires familiales (family law judge) or civil tribunal.

Shareholder Disputes#

Conflicts between shareholders (buy-out, squeeze-out, exclusion, departure) frequently require an expert valuation, either agreed between the parties (amiable) or ordered by a court (judiciaire). We can act as jointly appointed amiable expert, or produce the expert report for one party in preparation for a contradictory judicial expertise.

Family Business Succession: Pacte Dutreil#

The transmission of a business to children or grandchildren under the Pacte Dutreil (CGI Article 787 B) benefits from a 75% reduction in gift tax on the value of the transferred shares, one of the most significant tax reliefs available for family business succession in France. The valuation of the transferred shares is a primary point of DGFiP scrutiny in these operations. A well-documented independent expert report is the most effective protection against a tax reassessment inflating the deemed value of the gift. And where the succession involves contributing the shares to a family holding company, the valuation feeds directly into the contribution auditor's report required for the operation. The tax side and the calendar of these operations (Dutreil commitments extended to 8 years in 2026, donation-partage, duty reduction before age 70) belong to our business transfer accountant page.

The right deliverable depends on the intended use, not on the size of the company. An owner who wants to put figures on an early conversation with a buyer does not need the same document as a shareholder preparing for litigation.

For what each document contains and its legal weight, read our article on the content, standing and price of a value opinion.

We apply a multi-method approach systematically. No single valuation method is sufficient for an SME: each captures a different dimension of value, and the reconciliation between methods is where professional judgement adds most value. Each method is explained in detail (formulas, worked examples, sector scales) in our complete business valuation guide.

Discounted Cash Flow (DCF)#

The DCF method is the reference approach in corporate finance. It projects the company's free cash flows over an explicit horizon (typically 5 to 7 years), calculates a terminal value (the value of the business beyond the forecast horizon, using either a Gordon Growth Model or an exit multiple approach), and discounts the entire cash flow stream at a rate reflecting the risk of the business: the WACC (Weighted Average Cost of Capital).

The key advantage of DCF: it captures the intrinsic value of the business independently of prevailing market transaction conditions. Its limitation: it is highly sensitive to growth rate and discount rate assumptions: a 1% variation in WACC can shift the value by 15 to 20% either way. We therefore present systematic cross-sensitivity analyses (valuation table across growth rate × WACC combinations) rather than a single point estimate, and clearly document all assumptions underlying the model.

Market Multiples (Comparable Companies)#

This method applies valuation multiples observed on comparable listed companies to the target: EV/EBITDA, EV/Revenue, EV/EBIT, P/E. In 2026, median EBITDA multiples for unlisted French SMEs in the mid-market range approximately:

• B2B services, consulting, engineering: 5-8× normalised EBITDA
• SaaS / software with high recurring revenue: 8-15× EBITDA (or revenue multiples for high-growth businesses)
• Distribution, wholesale trade: 3-5× EBITDA
• Manufacturing, processing: 4-6× EBITDA
• Real estate, development: transaction comparables + net asset value methodology

Listed-company multiples are adjusted for a size discount (unlisted SMEs typically trade at lower multiples than large-cap peers at equivalent profitability) and a liquidity discount (SME shares are substantially less liquid than public market instruments).

Transaction Comparables#

This method draws on actual M&A transaction multiples in the relevant sector, more representative for SMEs than listed-company multiples given the size gap. We use available transaction databases (Argos Index, Mergermarket, Epsilon Research) to identify relevant transactions by sector, size and date, and apply appropriate adjustments for timing and operating profile differences.

Net Asset Value (NAV) / Actif Net Réévalué (ANR)#

The ANR approach revalues all company assets to fair market value, then deducts the adjusted liabilities. This methodology is most relevant for real estate holding companies (property revalued to current market), asset-heavy businesses (significant plant, equipment or inventory), and companies in run-off or liquidation where asset value exceeds earnings-based value. For the specific case of French SCI shares (shareholder current accounts, discounts, split ownership), see our article on valuing SCI shares.

It is less relevant for asset-light service businesses where value resides in human capital, client relationships and recurring contract portfolios: precisely the situations where DCF and multiples are most powerful.

Goodwill Valuation for Regulated Professions#

For regulated professional practices (pharmacies, medical practices, law firms, notarial practices, commercial fonds de commerce), we apply goodwill capitalisation methods: the excess return above a normalised return on comparable assets, capitalised over a period reflecting the durability of the above-normal profitability.

The accuracy of any multiples-based or DCF-based valuation depends entirely on the quality of the EBITDA normalisation performed upfront. Common adjustments that materially affect the valuation:

• Director remuneration restatement: replacing the actual (often tax-optimised) director salary with a market-rate equivalent for the same function, removing the noise introduced by legitimate but non-recurring remuneration decisions
• Non-recurring items: restructuring charges, exceptional legal settlements, one-time consulting fees, gains or losses on asset disposals, removed to reveal underlying operating profitability
• Related-party transactions: rent paid to a director's SCI (property holding company) at above or below market, adjusted to market rent
• Missing investment: companies that have deferred maintenance capex to boost near-term cash flow require a normalisation charge representing the cost of required investment
• Pro-forma adjustments: revenue and cost run-rate of acquisitions completed during the period, annualised impact of new contracts signed before year-end

This normalisation phase often has a larger impact on the final valuation than the choice of methodology: it is where our accounting and financial expertise is most differentiated. To go further: EBITDA or EBE, which restatements for a valuation?.

Where the value of company shares is contested in a transfer or buy-back provided for by law or by the articles of association, Article 1843-4 of the French Civil Code provides that the value is set by an expert appointed by the president of the court, ruling in summary form, with no appeal against that appointment. In other words: if the conflict drags on, a third party's valuation will be imposed on everyone. Far better to reach that stage with a structured file, or to avoid it altogether through a jointly agreed expertise.

Our role in these situations takes three forms: jointly appointed expert agreed by the parties (the fastest and least costly route), party-appointed report prepared for the side that instructs us ahead of an adversarial expertise, or preparatory work structuring the file before a possible court appointment. In all three cases, the quality of the restatements and the justification of the discounts make the difference.

Two useful companion reads: business valuation in a divorce or shareholder dispute (process, costs, preparation) and valuing SARL shares (from enterprise value to the value of the block, minority and illiquidity discounts).

Phase 1, data collection (2 to 3 days): last 3 years' statutory accounts (liasse fiscale), management accounts, 3 to 5 year business plan if available, shareholders' agreement, key customer and supplier contracts, asset schedules.

Phase 2, financial diagnosis and normalisation (3 to 5 days): EBITDA normalisation, growth trajectory analysis, working capital and capex pattern review, specific risk identification.

Phase 3, valuation modelling (3 to 5 days): DCF model construction, comparables data collection and adjustment, NAV calculation, sensitivity analysis.

Phase 4, report writing (2 to 3 days): written report of 20 to 40 pages, documented valuation range, conclusions and recommendations.

Total turnaround: 10 to 15 business days for a standard assignment.

Two formats exist depending on the intended use: the value opinion (concise analysis with a reasoned range, from €800 excl. VAT for SCI shares or a simple micro-business) and the full valuation report (multi-criteria, enforceable, designed for a negotiation, a bank or litigation). The ranges below apply to a full report:

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Before the engagement, estimate a first range with our SME business valuation simulator: it applies sector EBITDA multiples and the usual discounts, and you will know within minutes where the conversation stands.

See also: Complete business valuation guide 2026 | Sell-side and M&A advisory | Contribution auditor (commissaire aux apports) | Holding tax and IS optimisation