DCF Calculator: frequently asked questions

No. There is no market-data connection of any kind, free or paid. Every figure in the model is one you type. The project this tool was rebuilt from called a paid market-data API; we removed that entirely, and the tool makes no network requests while you use it.

No, and this is deliberate rather than an omission. The tool reports the value your assumptions produce and the arithmetic difference from a price you typed. It does not label anything undervalued or overvalued and gives no buy, sell or hold signal. A valuation model cannot know your circumstances, your tax position or your time horizon.

Your working assumptions are saved in this browser’s local storage so a refresh does not lose them. They never leave your device and there is no account, no server and no sync. The Reset button clears the saved draft immediately.

The perpetuity formula divides by the discount rate minus the terminal growth rate. If terminal growth equals or exceeds the discount rate, that divisor is zero or negative, and the result is infinite or negative rather than meaningful. Rather than display such a number, the tool explains the problem and highlights the field. Economically the case describes a company outgrowing the whole economy forever.

It converts the value of the whole business into the part shareholders own. The cash flows are measured before interest, so lenders have a prior claim: debt is subtracted and cash added back before dividing by the share count. Omitting this step overstates the value per share by exactly net debt divided by shares.

Any, as long as you are consistent. Cash flow, debt, cash and the share count must all use the scale you select. Because the totals and the share count share a scale, it cancels on division and the value per share comes out in ordinary currency units. Every displayed total carries its scale suffix so a figure in millions cannot be misread.

Perpetuity growth assumes cash flow grows at a fixed modest rate forever. An exit multiple assumes the business is sold for a multiple of its final forecast year. They fail in different ways, which is exactly why comparing them is useful. A large disagreement means your terminal assumptions are carrying too much of the answer.

Because a DCF divides by a small difference between two uncertain figures, it is genuinely sensitive. That is a property of the method, not a defect here. The sensitivity grid exists to show you the range rather than hide it behind one confident-looking figure.

Yes. CSV and JSON exports both include your assumptions as well as the results, so the file still makes sense on its own later. The JSON export keeps full precision. There is also a print stylesheet that produces a clean document with the tables un-stacked and the navigation removed.

Not usefully, and the tool will refuse. A perpetuity growth model built on negative starting cash flow produces a terminal value that becomes more negative as growth rises, which is nonsense. Early-stage and loss-making companies need a different approach.