EdX

Valuation and Creating Sustainable Value (edX)

Valuation and Creating Sustainable Value (edX)

In this course, you will learn how to value a company. You will also learn how companies can create sustainable value for the business. Have you wondered how some companies have high market value or how some companies are acquired with huge valuations such as Microsoft that paid $26 billion purchase consideration for acquiring LinkedIn? Or how Facebook paid $19 billion for acquiring WhatsApp or why the market value of Apple is above a trillion dollars. This course is about valuation and understanding the different techniques of valuation.

Class Deals by MOOC List - Click here and see EdX's Active Discounts, Deals, and Promo Codes.

Valuation is an important aspect of finance which can’t be overlooked whether it’s a day to day performance of the business, issue of equity shares, mergers & acquisitions, investing in new ventures and so on.

The course will cover two important aspects of valuation. In the first part of the course, you will explore the nuances of valuation, understand the different methods of valuation.
Not only measuring is important, one needs to understand how the value can be created and what are the factors that influence the valuation of the company?
The second half of the course will highlight how companies can create sustainable value.
In this course, you will:
Learn the different techniques of valuation
Apply the valuation methods to real companies
Understand the fundamental concepts, myths and the factors underlying the valuation
Identify the key value drivers for valuation
Explain the role of different value drivers in creating value for the company
This course has been designed for graduate students and working professionals who want to deep dive into the concept of valuation and value creation.
The course includes step by step explanation of the different valuation methods and their practical application. We will demystify the various techniques, terminologies and introduce concepts in manageable bite-size that will help you to build your competencies. You will also hear the expert views on the different topics explained in the course.
We will explore the subject in a simple and easy to understand way through a series of videos, real company analysis, reading material, examples, explore and learn section, discussions forums as well as assessments to check your understanding.
Welcome once again to the exciting world of valuation and creating sustainable value.

What you'll learn

  • An understanding of the concept of Value
  • Valuation models (Dividend Discount Model, DCF Model, Multiples based Valuation)
  • Practical application of the models to real companies
  • Key value drivers
  • Application of the value drivers for creating sustainable value

Syllabus

Week 1: Introduction to Value
This week will introduce you to the concept of value.
In this week, you will:

  • Understand the concept of value & valuation
  • Identify the importance of valuation
  • Explore the financial statements and accounting ratios (in brief)
  • Learn the concept of Time Value of Money
  • Describe the framework of valuation
  • Learn the Dividend Discount Model

Week 2: Methods of Valuation
In this week, you will learn the different methods of valuation and apply the concept to real companies.
You will:

  • Learn the Discounted Cash Flow Method of Valuation
  • Calculate enterprise value and equity value
  • Apply the method to value real-life companies
  • Gain insights from experts

Week 3: Methods of Valuation
You will explore the other methods of valuation.
You will:

  • Learn valuation using multiples
  • Identify and calculate the different multiples
  • Apply the multiples to value firms
  • Understand the basics of start-up valuation
  • Familiarize to the concept of creating sustainable value

Week 4: Drivers for Creating Sustainable Value
You will explore the different drivers for creating sustainable value
You will:

  • Understand the concept of strategy and its role in value creation
  • Describe the importance of operational efficiency for value creation
  • Explain the importance of managing human capital for value creation
  • Gain insights from experts

Week 5: Drivers for Creating Sustainable Value (contd)
In this week, you will identify the other drivers for creating value
You will:

  • Define strategic investing and financing decisions.
  • Learn the capital budgeting techniques
  • Describe the concept of leverage
  • Explore corporate governance and its role in creating value for the company

Prerequisites
Students should have a basic knowledge about the financial accounting concepts.
Watch the Financial Accounting and Analysis (AC105x) course if you have no prior experience.

Go to Class
MOOC List is learner-supported. When you buy through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Related Courses

Beyond the Financials: Insights, Analysis and Valuations (Coursera) Coursera
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Beyond the Financials: Insights, Analysis and Valuations (Coursera)

The objective of this course is to provide you with the knowledge and skills necessary to analyze, interpret, understand and use financial information to make informed decisions. We will discuss financial reporting from a user’s perspective, use a variety of tools to break apart financial reports into meaningful units for analysis, forecast financial statements, and value a firm. This course is intended to give you exposure to the issues facing users of financial statements. You will better understand your role in the financial reporting process if you know how the financial statements will ultimately be used.

Aug 31st 2026
5-12 Weeks
Valuación de empresas (Coursera) Coursera
Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México

Valuación de empresas (Coursera)

En el curso valuación de empresas, el administrador financiero enfrentará una decisión financiera una vez que una empresa ha llegado al punto en que pueda expandirse y adquirir o fusionarse con otras empresas. Antes de tomar tal decisión el administrador financiero deberá evaluar las ventajas y desventajas de una integración horizontal o vertical, por lo que la empresa deberá valuar primero así misma y en segundo termino a la empresa objetivo con base en diferentes modelos como Black and Scholes, Valor Económico Agregado (EVA), Generación Económica Operativa (GEO), etc.

Sep 7th 2026
5-12 Weeks
Public Sector Debt Statistics (edX) EdX
International Monetary Fund - IMF,IMFx

Public Sector Debt Statistics (edX)

The course examines coverage and accounting rules for public sector debt, valuation, classification, important methodological issues, and the sources and methods used for compiling the statistics. This course, presented by IMF Statistics Department, covers the fundamentals needed to compile and disseminate comprehensive public sector debt statistics (PSDS) that are useful for policy- and decision-makers, as well as other users.

Self Paced
Self-Paced
Foundations of Modern Finance I (edX) EdX
MIT,MITx

Foundations of Modern Finance I (edX)

A mathematically rigorous framework to understand financial markets delivered with data-driven insights from MIT professors. This is a two-part course, and part of the MicroMasters® Program in Finance. It provides a rigorous and comprehensive introduction to the fundamentals of modern finance and their applications to business challenges in valuation, investments, and corporate financial decisions under a unified framework.

Sep 18th 2024
5-12 Weeks
Valuation for Startups Using Multiple Approach (Coursera) Coursera
Yonsei University

Valuation for Startups Using Multiple Approach (Coursera)

In addition to discounted cash flow method, multiple method is one of the most popular methods of firm valuation. PER is often used among financial professionals to make a quick-and-dirty estimate of a firm value. In this course, you are going to learn the concept and usage of PER, PBR and PSR. In addition to these basic multiple ratios, you are going to learn how to make an estimate of enterprise value and founder’s ownership before and after additional funding.

Sep 7th 2026
5-12 Weeks
Finance for Non-Finance Professionals (Coursera) Coursera
Rice University

Finance for Non-Finance Professionals (Coursera)

This short course surveys all the major topics covered in a full semester MBA level finance course, but with a more intuitive approach on a very high conceptual level. The goal here is give you a roadmap and framework for how financial professional make decisions. We will cover the basics of financial valuation, the time value of money, compounding returns, and discounting the future. You will understand discounted cash flow (DCF) valuation and how it compares to other methods. We also step inside the mind of a corporate financial manager and develop the basic tools of capital budgeting. We will survey the how, when, and where to spend money, make tradeoffs about investment, growth, dividends, and how to ensure sound fiscal discipline.

Aug 31st 2026
5-12 Weeks
Private Equity and Venture Capital (Coursera) Coursera
Università Bocconi

Private Equity and Venture Capital (Coursera)

The course deals with the analysis of the private equity and venture capital business. Over the course, students will be provided with a deep understanding of the mechanism underpinning the creation and/or development of a firm and the financial support it can get from the financial system through venture capital investment. The course tries to discover how special financial intermediaries (called private equity investors) finance through equity companies belonging to different stages of their life-cycle, starting from the very beginning (startup and early stage) to a more mature phase (i.e. expansion, mature age, etc.) or also staying into crises and decline.

Sep 7th 2026
5-12 Weeks
Risk, Return and Valuation (Coursera) Coursera
Yunus Social Business Fund Bengaluru

Risk, Return and Valuation (Coursera)

This course is part of a Specialization titled “Strategy and Finance for a Lifecycle of a Social Business”, with a follow-on project-based course on understanding and evaluating a business focused on addressing a societal issue. The beauty of a modern decision-making framework is that it can be used to understand value creation at any level – the individual or business or societal. The applications however become increasingly complex as your lens expands from the individual to the corporate/nonprofit to the global society.

Sep 16th 2026
5-12 Weeks
Capstone Project: Business Technology Management (Coursera) Coursera
Indian School of Business - ISB

Capstone Project: Business Technology Management (Coursera)

The Capstone Project places you in the shoes of a CIO of a hypothetical FMCG firm, Indus Consumer Products Limited, who is required to select a portfolio of IT investments for the decision year that is aligned with the business strategy and objectives of the firm. Different business units in the company have proposed different applications to implement. Your job as CIO will be to analyze the business case for each of the projects and identify those that best serve the long-term business strategy and objectives of the firm. Your choice of IT investments is constrained by the IT budget for the given financial year.

Jun 20th 2022
5-12 Weeks
Finance for Non-Financial Professionals (Coursera) Coursera
University of California, Irvine

Finance for Non-Financial Professionals (Coursera)

Impact your financial decisions and learn how to affect the performance of your unit's profitability and of your organization. In this course gain a basic understanding of finance and accounting concepts to drive your organization's growth. Upon completion of this course, you will have gained general financial knowledge and an in-depth understanding of the impact of your decisions outside your functional area. Content of the course includes selected aspects of finance from a non-financial specialist perspective. Specific topics include: financial analysis; planning, forecasting, and budgeting; cash flow, and strategic financing. This class will be interactive and will require the active involvement of the participants in finance related activities.

Aug 31st 2026
4 Weeks