should the company dissolve the book value per common share indicates the dollar value remaining for common shareholders after all assets are liquidated and all creditors are paid 
the formula for book value per common share is the book value per common share formula below is an accounting measure based on historical transactions b v p s t o t a l s h a r e h o l d e r e q u i t y p r e f e r r e d e q u i t y t o t a l o u t s t a n d i n g s h a r e s bvps frac total shareholder equity preferred equity total outstanding shares bvps total outstanding sharestotal shareholder equity preferred equity 