Metrics Glossary
What each metric on the charts means, and why it's worth paying attention to when evaluating a company. Sections below follow the same order as the charts on each dataset page.
Revenue & Cash Flow
Revenue
Total sales the company generated from its core business over the period, before any costs are subtracted.
Why it matters: It's the top-line growth engine everything else is measured against — profits and cash flow eventually follow sales.
Net Income
Profit left after all expenses, interest, and taxes are subtracted from revenue — the "bottom line."
Why it matters: It's the headline profitability figure, though it can be distorted by one-time items and non-cash accounting charges, so it's worth checking against cash flow.
Free Cash Flow
Cash generated from operations minus capital expenditures.
Why it matters: This is the cash actually available to pay dividends, buy back stock, pay down debt, or reinvest, after the business has funded its own upkeep. Many investors trust it more than net income because it's harder to manipulate with accounting choices.
Net Cash Flow from Operations
Cash generated purely by running the business, before investing in new equipment or financing activities.
Why it matters: Comparing this to net income shows whether reported profits are backed by real cash.
Capital Expenditure
Money spent on property, equipment, and other long-term assets needed to maintain or grow the business.
Why it matters: High and rising capex can signal expansion, but it also eats into free cash flow, so it should be weighed against the growth it produces.
Growth (YoY %)
Revenue Growth
How fast the top line is expanding year over year.
Why it matters: Sustained revenue growth is usually the single strongest predictor of long-term stock performance, since profits eventually follow sales.
Free Cash Flow Growth
Whether the cash the business throws off is growing faster, slower, or in line with revenue.
Why it matters: A business whose FCF grows faster than revenue is becoming more efficient at turning sales into cash.
Net Income Growth
How fast bottom-line profit is compounding.
Why it matters: Comparing it to revenue growth reveals whether margins are expanding (net income growing faster) or compressing (net income growing slower).
Capital Expenditure Growth
Whether the company is ramping up or pulling back on long-term investment.
Why it matters: A spike often precedes a growth phase; a pullback can signal management caution or a maturing business.
Dividends Growth
The rate at which cash returned to shareholders via dividends is increasing.
Why it matters: A proxy for management's confidence in the durability of future cash flow.
Buybacks Growth
The rate at which cash spent repurchasing shares is increasing.
Why it matters: A rising trend signals management's confidence in the stock and a growing return of cash to shareholders through a shrinking share count.
Margins (%)
Gross Margin %
Revenue left after subtracting the direct cost of producing goods or services, as a percentage of revenue.
Why it matters: It measures pricing power and production efficiency before overhead is considered.
Gross Margin % wo D&A
The same measure with depreciation and amortization excluded from cost of goods sold.
Why it matters: Gives a cleaner read on cash-level production economics, unaffected by how aggressively assets are depreciated.
Operating Margin %
Profit after both production costs and operating expenses (SG&A, R&D) but before interest and taxes, as a % of revenue.
Why it matters: One of the best single gauges of how efficiently a company runs its core business.
Net Margin %
Net income as a percentage of revenue.
Why it matters: Shows how much of every sales dollar ultimately becomes profit after everything, including interest and taxes.
EBITDA Margin %
Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization, as a % of revenue.
Why it matters: Useful for comparing operating profitability across companies with very different capital structures or depreciation schedules.
Returns (%)
Return on Invested Capital %
Profit generated per dollar of capital (debt plus equity) invested in the business.
Why it matters: A high, sustained ROIC above the company's cost of capital is a hallmark of a durable competitive advantage.
Return on Assets %
Net income relative to total assets.
Why it matters: Shows how efficiently the company turns everything it owns into profit.
Return on Equity %
Net income relative to shareholders' equity.
Why it matters: Shows how much profit is generated per dollar shareholders have invested. Useful, but can be inflated by heavy debt, so read it alongside Debt to Equity.
Valuation & Financial Ratios
Working Capital Ratio
Current assets divided by current liabilities.
Why it matters: A basic liquidity check on whether the company can cover its near-term obligations.
Working Capital Ratio (Benjamin Graham method)
A stricter version that excludes inventory from current assets.
Why it matters: Follows the classic value-investing test for balance-sheet safety, since inventory can be slow or difficult to convert to cash.
Debt to Equity Ratio
Total debt relative to shareholders' equity.
Why it matters: Shows how leveraged the company is. Higher leverage amplifies both returns and risk.
Price to Book Ratio
Share price relative to the company's book (accounting) value per share.
Why it matters: A classic, if imperfect, value-investing screen for whether a stock is cheap or expensive relative to its net assets.
Debt to Income Ratio
How many years of net income it would take to pay off all outstanding debt.
Why it matters: A quick gut-check on financial risk and how burdensome the debt load is relative to earning power.
% of Revenue
Interest as % of Revenue
How much of each sales dollar goes toward servicing debt.
Why it matters: Rising values can signal growing leverage risk or shrinking profitability.
R&D as a % of Revenue
Investment in research and development relative to sales.
Why it matters: A proxy for how much a company is reinvesting in future products versus harvesting current ones.
SG&A as a % of Revenue
Selling, general & administrative overhead relative to sales.
Why it matters: A falling ratio over time usually signals operating leverage — the business scaling more efficiently as it grows.
Receivables as a % of Revenue
How much revenue is still sitting as money owed by customers rather than collected in cash.
Why it matters: A rising trend can be an early warning sign of loosening credit terms or slowing collections.
Operating Cash Flow (% of Revenue)
Revenue to FCFO Conversion Rate
How efficiently each dollar of revenue converts into operating cash flow.
Why it matters: A high, stable conversion rate suggests high-quality, cash-backed earnings rather than paper profits.
% of Free Cash Flow
Dividends as % of FCF
The share of free cash flow paid out as dividends.
Why it matters: A low payout ratio leaves room for the dividend to grow; a ratio near or above 100% is a warning sign the dividend may not be sustainable.
Buybacks as % of FCF
The share of free cash flow spent repurchasing shares.
Why it matters: Shows how much of the cash a business generates is going toward shrinking the share count versus being available for dividends, debt paydown, or reinvestment.
% of Operating Cash Flow
Net Income as a % of Operating Cash Flow
Compares reported profit to actual cash generated.
Why it matters: If net income is consistently higher than operating cash flow, it can be a red flag for aggressive accounting.
Balance Sheet & Other ($)
Tangible Book Value
Shareholders' equity minus intangible assets like goodwill.
Why it matters: A conservative estimate of what shareholders would be left with if the company were liquidated, stripping out assets that are hard to value in a fire sale.
Balance Sheet Debt
Total interest-bearing debt outstanding.
Why it matters: The absolute dollar burden a company carries, before comparing it to income or equity.
Depreciation and Amortization
The non-cash expense that spreads the cost of long-lived assets over their useful life.
Why it matters: Large D&A relative to capex can mean a company under-invests relative to what it reports as expenses.
Cash and Cash Equivalents
Cash and short-term investments on hand.
Why it matters: The company's buffer against downturns and its dry powder for opportunistic investment or buybacks.
Interest Expense
Absolute dollars paid in interest on debt.
Why it matters: The direct cost of leverage, and a claim on cash flow that has to be paid before shareholders see anything.
Working Capital
Current assets minus current liabilities, in absolute dollars.
Why it matters: The cash cushion available to fund day-to-day operations.
Other Metrics
Creditor Days
The average number of days a company takes to pay its suppliers.
Why it matters: Stretching this out can temporarily boost cash flow, but excessively long payment terms can strain supplier relationships.