The WACC of Banco Santander SA (SAN.MC) is 6.5%.
| Range | Selected | |
| Cost of equity | 14.40% - 18.50% | 16.45% |
| Tax rate | 28.80% - 31.10% | 29.95% |
| Cost of debt | 5.00% - 5.00% | 5.00% |
| WACC | 6.0% - 6.9% | 6.5% |
| Category | Low | High |
| Long-term bond rate | 3.1% | 3.6% |
| Equity market risk premium | 7.4% | 8.4% |
| Adjusted beta | 1.51 | 1.71 |
| Additional risk adjustments | 0.0% | 0.5% |
| Cost of equity | 14.40% | 18.50% |
| Tax rate | 28.80% | 31.10% |
| Debt/Equity ratio | 3.39 | 3.39 |
| Cost of debt | 5.00% | 5.00% |
| After-tax WACC | 6.0% | 6.9% |
| Selected WACC | 6.5% | |
The Cost of Equity reflects the return a company needs to deliver to shareholders to justify the risk of investing in its shares. It’s computed using the Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM), which blends the risk-free rate, the stock’s beta, and the market risk premium.
This method evaluates the stock’s risk compared to a safe investment and the market’s overall volatility.
Here’s how we figure out the cost of equity for SAN.MC:
cost_of_equity (16.45%) = risk_free_rate (3.35%) + equity_risk_premium (7.90%) * adjusted_beta (1.51) + risk_adjustments (0.25%)
We include the risk adjustments, which range from 0% to 1%, to keep our WACC conservatives, especially for companies traded in developing markets.