cloudedjudgement.substack.com · 2020-07-10 · 2155d

Clouded Judgement

SaaS valuations have reached all-time highs with median forward revenue multiples at ~14x, driven by exceptional growth and margin profiles across the sector. IPO underpricing is evident when measured from IPO price to post-lockup expiration, with companies like Bill.com seeing 241% appreciation. The article provides comprehensive benchmarking data on SaaS operating metrics, valuation multiples by growth tier, and notable M&A/product announcements in the ecosystem.

13 metrics· Cited 0× in the knowledge base ·Open source ↗

Metrics in this report

CAC Payback Period

28months

median

SaaS companies in analyzed cohort

Gross Margin

73percent

median

SaaS companies in analyzed cohort

IPO Pop (Day 1 Only)

153percent

best-in-class

Agora IPO in 2020

IPO Pop (IPO to Post-Lockup Expiration)

241percent

best-in-class

Bill.com IPO

LTM Revenue Growth Rate

34percent

median

SaaS companies in analyzed cohort

NTM Revenue Growth Rate

22percent

median

SaaS companies in analyzed cohort

Net Revenue Retention

117percent

median

SaaS companies in analyzed cohort

Operating Margin

-15percent

median

SaaS companies in analyzed cohort

SaaS Valuation Multiple (Forward Revenue)

14.2x

median

Overall SaaS market

SaaS Valuation Multiple (Forward Revenue)

40.8x

median

Top 5 companies by valuation

SaaS Valuation Multiple (Forward Revenue)

26.7x

median

High-growth SaaS (>30% NTM growth)

SaaS Valuation Multiple (Forward Revenue)

15.2x

median

Mid-growth SaaS (15%-30% NTM growth)

SaaS Valuation Multiple (Forward Revenue)

9.3x

median

Low-growth SaaS (<15% NTM growth)