Investors are "starting to calculate how it might affect equity valuations," says one consultant.
"There's a perfect inverse relationship" between core inflation and stock market valuations, said Liz Ann Sonders, chief investment strategist at Charles Schwab.
But they mean that unicorn valuations are not directly comparable to public-company valuations, says Barry Kramer, one of the authors of the study.
"We are looking for markets where there is potential for changes in the fundamentals and low valuations," said John Chisholm, co-chief investment officer of Acadian Asset Management.
"There is a feeling out there that there needs to be a dramatic re-evaluation of technology stock valuations," said William Meehan, chief market analyst at Cantor Fitzgerald.
"What these enterprises clearly need is to identify new marketplaces to expand into to justify their valuations," said Youssef Squali, the Internet analyst at Jefferies & Company.
"I got five, 'I don't knows.' " In a telephone interview last week, a representative from Certified Valuations said there was no one available for comment.
"The markets have been in a corrective stage, and I think we have reached levels now that perhaps we can see some renewed interest in terms of valuations," said Peter Cardillo, the chief market economist for Avalon Partners.
Rising equity valuations, says Liao Qiang of Standard & Poor's, a ratings agency, will allow banks and other firms to strengthen their balance-sheets by issuing shares or divesting assets.
"Middle East art… only recently (has) reflected higher valuations," said Qassemi.
