Buffett Criteria (Buffettology)

ADR (Average Daily Range)

The average daily swing of a stock in percent - measured over 10 or 30 trading days (columns "ADR 10D/30D"). An ADR of 5% means: on a normal day the gap between the intraday low and high runs about 5%. Traders look for movement - that is why stocks with an ADR under 1% are filtered out globally. Scanners that run without the global filters still include them; that is noted below their hit list. Not to be confused with ADR meaning "American Depositary Receipt" (a US certificate for foreign shares) - here ADR always means the daily swing.

AI Classification

Our company-by-company assessment of the AI boom based on SEC filings (the last four quarterly 10-Q reports and two annual 10-K reports): "Sells AI" (AI is a revenue source), "Threatened" (AI is a concrete business risk), "Uses AI" (operational use), or "Neutral" (no material AI exposure). Every classification requires at least two direct quote citations - otherwise the column shows "-". Not a quality judgment or a buy recommendation; the full file is on the stock page, methodology at /stocks/ai-rating-methodology.

Analysis (Full Company Analysis)

If the Analysis column shows "Read," there is an in-depth TickerGuard company analysis for this stock: business model, scanner findings, quarterly results, evidence from SEC filings, plus opportunities and risks. One click opens it directly.

Avg/Yr 3Y (Average Annual Return)

The stock's average annual return over the past 3 years. Shows at a glance whether a stock delivers over the long run or just had a short hot streak.

Earnings Date

The date of the next quarterly earnings report. Price gaps in either direction are common around this date - that is why we color it red when it is 7 days away or less, and yellow when it is 14 days away or less: elevated risk for fresh positions.

EBIT Margin

Operating profit before interest and taxes (EBIT) as a percent of revenue - measures the earning power of the core business alone, independent of financing and tax rates.

EPS (Earnings per Share)

Quarterly earnings divided by the number of shares outstanding. The most important growth metric: if EPS rises strongly over several quarters, the company is earning more money per share.

Free Cash Flow (FCF)

Operating cash flow minus capital expenditures - the money left over for everything else (debt paydown, acquisitions, or buybacks). Consistently positive free cash flow is one of the most honest signs of a healthy business model.

Funda Rating (Fundamental Rating A+ to F)

Our proprietary fundamental rating from 0 to 100 points with a school-grade rank from A+ to F. 50 points is the average across the universe, 100 the best possible score. Every stock is scored against all others by percentile: growth in earnings and revenue, earnings surprises, analyst estimates, and quality criteria such as margins, cash flow, and balance-sheet strength. Grades: A+ from 95, A from 75, B from 55, C from 45, D from 25, E from 5, F below — A/A+ are the fundamentally strongest stocks in the universe.

Market Capitalization (Mkt Cap)

The market value of the company: share price x total shares outstanding, shown here in billions of dollars. Micro caps (< $0.3B) are small and volatile, mega caps (> $200B) are heavyweights. Our scanner universe is deliberately capped at $50B - we look for stocks with room to run. The cap does not apply to scanners that run without the global filters; that is noted below their hit list.

Net Margin

How much of revenue is left as profit? Net income divided by revenue, in percent. A 20% margin means: out of every dollar of revenue, 20 cents is left as profit. Rising margins are a strong quality signal.

Operating Cash Flow (OCF)

The cash that actually flows into the company from day-to-day operations - without accounting effects such as depreciation. A company can report book profits while still burning cash; operating cash flow reveals that.

Piotroski F-Score

A balance-sheet health check developed by Joseph Piotroski: 9 yes/no criteria covering earnings, cash flow, leverage, and efficiency produce a score from 0 to 9. Scores of 7 or higher are considered financially very solid, scores under 3 a warning sign.

ROE (Return on Equity)

Profit divided by equity: how much return does the company generate on its owners' money? Consistently above 15-20% is considered a hallmark of top-tier companies.

Sector & Industry

Two levels of industry classification: sector is broad (e.g., Technology), industry is narrow (e.g., Semiconductors). Many strategies watch industry strength, because strong stocks are almost always found in strong industries.

Stage (Weinstein Stages 1-4)

Stan Weinstein divides every price chart into four stages: Stage 1 = basing (sideways after a downtrend), Stage 2 = uptrend (the only buying stage), Stage 3 = topping, Stage 4 = downtrend (avoid, or short candidate). Measured against the 30-week line (150-day moving average) and its slope.

TTM (Trailing Twelve Months)

The sum of the last four quarters - a true rolling fiscal year instead of one annualized quarter. Makes metrics like free cash flow comparable on a seasonally adjusted basis.

View all terms in the Scanner Glossary