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Tobias Carlisle: Acquirer's Multiple

15 Hits · last calculated September 18, 2026 Source: fundamental data & SEC filings (annual and quarterly reports, 10-K/10-Q)

Methodology & criteria

Carlisle's 'Acquirer's Multiple': what would an acquirer pay for the whole business? Enterprise value (market cap + debt − cash) divided by operating profit (EBIT, TTM from EBIT margin × revenue over the last 4 quarters). Shows a multiple ≤ 8 — very cheaply valued operating businesses. Financials and utilities excluded (EV/EBIT isn't meaningful there — Carlisle only added both to his screener in 2022), minimum market cap $200 million. Source: fundamental data.

No global trading filters — this strategy checks the entire stock universe purely against its own criteria (mega caps over $50B included).

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Terms in This Scanner Explained

(17)
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.
EV/EBIT (Enterprise Value ÷ Operating Profit)
Enterprise value (market cap plus debt) divided by operating profit before interest and taxes. The acquirer's perspective: what does the entire business cost - including the debt a buyer would assume - relative to what it earns operationally?
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.
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.

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Tobias Carlisle: Acquirer's Multiple
Symbol Earnings Avg/Y 3Y Volatility Stage Funda Rating Piotroski MktCap Industry AI Rating Deep Dive Deep-Dive Report Sector Price YTD 6 Mo. 1 Year Off High Price Target RS EPS Rating ADR 10D ADR 30D Beta P/E P/E (f) P/S P/B P/FCF PEG EV/EBITDA EBIT Margin Gross Margin Net Margin ROE ROA Debt/Eq Equity Ratio Sales +/Y Growth Score Div. Yield Payout Ratio Altman Z Inst. % Short % Analysts
HUM Humana Inc 07/29 -6 % 48 % Stage 2 B 58 7 of 9 46.3 $ Healthcare Plans – — — Healthcare 384.50 $ +40.9 % +51.3 % +43.3 % −1.3 % +8.9 % 90 29 3.6 % 3.5 % 0.75 41.8 26.5 0.3 2.5 36.4 1.36 0.0 4.7 % 13.7 % 0.9 % 6.3 % 3.9 % 1.73 33.6 % +10.1 % 3 0.9 % 20.6 % 6.5 99.9 % 2.9 % 3.6 (26)
CNC Centene Corp 07/28 -2 % 48 % Stage 2 B 57 9 of 9 33.1 $ Healthcare Plans Uses AI — — Healthcare 67.10 $ +53.4 % +61.8 % +107.6 % −2.7 % +8.8 % 90 64 3.6 % 3.6 % 1.11 — 12.5 0.2 1.5 4.0 0.84 3.9 5.1 % 11.4 % -2.8 % -26.0 % 2.5 % 1.55 26.4 % +19.4 % 3 0.0 % 0.0 % 4.0 100.6 % 3.1 % 3.9 (19)
STNG Scorpio Tankers Inc 07/29 +34 % 36 % Stage 2 B 58 7 of 9 4.4 $ Oil & Gas Midstream Uses AI — — Energy 87.90 $ +62.6 % +39.0 % +49.4 % −13.7 % +9.1 % 83 92 3.9 % 3.4 % -0.23 8.1 16.5 4.3 1.2 9.5 2.46 3.0 49.1 % 73.0 % 67.2 % 15.9 % 8.2 % 0.17 83.7 % -24.6 % 4 2.1 % 16.4 % 13.0 71.0 % 4.5 % 4.7 (9)
AA Alcoa Corp 07/16 +25 % 56 % Stage 1 C 49 2 of 9 12.4 $ Aluminum – — — Basic Materials 47.00 $ +4.0 % +0.0 % +44.1 % −37.1 % +36.0 % 78 22 5.3 % 5.5 % 1.63 11.9 8.6 0.9 1.8 35.3 8.36 6.7 13.9 % 19.8 % 9.4 % 15.4 % 6.5 % 0.36 41.0 % +7.9 % 4 0.9 % 8.4 % 5.2 84.2 % 4.6 % 4.1 (14)
DINO HF Sinclair Corp 07/28 +25 % 39 % Stage 2 B 66 7 of 9 21.0 $ Oil & Gas Refining & Marketing Neutral
Read
— Energy 116.60 $ +44.9 % +55.4 % +128.8 % −9.3 % -10.2 % 75 74 3.6 % 3.6 % 0.70 17.5 15.1 0.7 2.2 10.1 1.77 5.6 11.9 % 12.9 % 6.1 % 13.0 % 9.2 % 0.49 53.2 % -6.0 % 4 2.0 % 21.0 % 7.2 84.1 % 6.4 % 3.6 (16)
LEA Lear Corporation 07/31 +3 % 34 % Stage 2 B 60 7 of 9 6.1 $ Auto Parts – — — Consumer Cyclical 122.70 $ +20.7 % +16.1 % +18.8 % −8.1 % +21.2 % 71 87 3.0 % 3.3 % 1.27 12.4 7.1 0.3 1.2 7.2 0.36 5.5 5.0 % 7.7 % 2.4 % 12.2 % 4.4 % 1.07 32.9 % -0.2 % 4 2.4 % 21.5 % 6.4 109.2 % 6.3 % 3.5 (16)
DKS Dick’s Sporting Goods Inc — +30 % 52 % Stage 3 C 53 4 of 9 11.1 $ Specialty Retail – — — Consumer Cyclical 123.90 $ +21.0 % +11.9 % -42.9 % −2.9 % +31.9 % 66 58 4.1 % 4.3 % 1.14 12.0 9.7 0.5 1.9 25.0 0.95 10.2 10.6 % 33.1 % 4.0 % 20.9 % 6.4 % 1.63 31.4 % +28.1 % 3 3.8 % 39.2 % 6.4 102.9 % 16.7 % 4.0 (26)
MOH Molina Healthcare Inc 07/22 -11 % 56 % Stage 2 D 40 5 of 9 10.7 $ Healthcare Plans – — — Healthcare 205.10 $ +13.3 % +40.4 % +16.3 % −30.7 % +3.4 % 60 3 4.3 % 4.0 % 0.76 59.7 21.1 0.2 2.8 39.6 0.99 16.7 1.7 % 8.4 % 0.0 % 4.5 % 1.2 % 1.99 24.9 % +11.8 % 2 0.0 % 0.0 % 6.6 111.8 % 6.9 % 3.8 (16)
VSNT Versant Media Group, Inc. 08/13 — – Stage 2 C 48 4 of 9 5.1 $ Entertainment – — — Communication Services 36.30 $ -15.0 % -21.8 % — −39.2 % +21.5 % 32 50 3.6 % 3.2 % — 6.0 9.6 0.8 0.6 3.0 0.64 3.0 26.2 % 56.5 % 11.5 % 8.9 % 5.8 % 9.03 64.2 % -5.3 % 4 4.0 % 23.7 % 6.7 84.0 % 4.8 % —
SKYW SkyWest Inc 07/23 +46 % 37 % Stage 4 B 60 7 of 9 3.8 $ Airlines Neutral — — Industrials 95.70 $ -6.5 % -4.1 % -7.7 % −20.7 % +32.2 % 30 53 3.2 % 3.5 % 1.42 9.4 9.5 0.9 1.4 8.4 1.66 8.8 12.2 % 30.9 % 9.8 % 16.5 % 5.0 % 0.25 37.2 % +15.0 % 6 0.0 % 0.0 % 5.3 95.4 % 6.3 % 4.2 (5)
AR Antero Resources Corp 07/29 +21 % 38 % Stage 1 B 61 8 of 9 11.0 $ Oil & Gas E&P – — — Energy 35.60 $ +0.2 % +0.7 % +10.3 % −24.6 % +39.7 % 24 89 2.8 % 3.0 % 0.35 11.7 9.8 1.8 1.4 5.7 0.49 6.9 36.5 % 67.2 % 18.8 % 12.8 % 6.6 % 0.59 52.5 % +21.7 % 5 0.0 % 0.0 % 5.1 90.3 % 4.8 % 4.0 (22)
EQT EQT Corporation 07/28 +13 % 31 % Stage 1 B 65 8 of 9 31.6 $ Oil & Gas E&P – — — Energy 50.40 $ -3.1 % -3.0 % +2.1 % −24.3 % +34.2 % 23 95 2.5 % 2.4 % 0.58 9.8 14.6 3.3 1.3 8.4 1.83 5.6 57.4 % 80.8 % 29.2 % 13.4 % 6.6 % 0.25 60.3 % +73.7 % 5 1.2 % 15.9 % 6.4 93.8 % 3.7 % 4.4 (24)
GAP The Gap, Inc. 08/27 +54 % 47 % Stage 1 B 58 7 of 9 7.7 $ Apparel Retail – — — Consumer Cyclical 20.90 $ -19.1 % -28.5 % -5.7 % −31.1 % +27.0 % 20 82 3.9 % 4.1 % 2.06 8.5 8.5 0.5 2.1 6.9 1.11 4.5 12.7 % 40.5 % 8.1 % 27.6 % 4.8 % 1.54 30.1 % +1.9 % 6 3.4 % 35.0 % 6.7 68.7 % 15.6 % 3.6 (19)
EXE Expand Energy Corporation 08/04 +7 % 31 % Stage 4 B 58 8 of 9 21.1 $ Oil & Gas E&P Uses AI — — Energy 88.30 $ -18.7 % -18.9 % -9.4 % −30.2 % +41.5 % 17 42 2.2 % 2.2 % 0.32 6.5 10.3 1.5 1.1 7.4 0.88 3.7 34.0 % 47.1 % 22.0 % 17.6 % 8.5 % 0.26 66.2 % +176.0 % 4 2.5 % 28.3 % 7.0 92.9 % 3.6 % 4.5 (27)
UHS Universal Health Services Inc 07/27 -1 % 33 % Stage 4 B 56 8 of 9 10.9 $ Medical Care Facilities – — — Healthcare 180.80 $ -32.9 % -35.1 % -3.1 % −41.4 % +7.3 % 13 64 2.3 % 3.0 % 1.06 7.9 7.0 0.6 1.5 13.2 1.17 5.5 11.2 % 44.6 % 8.4 % 21.4 % 8.3 % 1.44 48.0 % +9.7 % 6 0.5 % 3.5 % 7.0 101.5 % 6.2 % 3.7 (19)

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Quarterly Figures

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Frequently Asked Questions

Carlisle's 'Acquirer's Multiple': what would an acquirer pay for the whole business? Enterprise value (market cap + debt − cash) divided by operating profit (EBIT, TTM from EBIT margin × revenue over the last 4 quarters). Shows a multiple ≤ 8 — very cheaply valued operating businesses.

All scanners are recalculated daily across the entire stock universe — most recently on September 18, 2026. The data basis is fundamental data and SEC filings (10-K annual reports and 10-Q quarterly reports).

Currently, 15 stocks pass this scanner's criteria (as of September 18, 2026).

No global trading filters — this strategy checks the entire stock universe purely against its own criteria (mega caps over $50B included).

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Note: pure fact-based analysis, not investment advice and not a solicitation to buy or sell. All figures without guarantee.

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