Glossary

A 0–100 composite blending valuation, growth, earnings track record, momentum, macro fit, analyst sentiment and risk. 70+ = strong setup, 50–69 = watch, under 50 = caution. A summary, not a recommendation.

The model's estimate of what the stock is worth based on fundamentals and peers. Trading well below fair value can mean undervalued; well above can mean priced for perfection.

Three modelled price paths: Base is the most likely outcome, Bull an optimistic case, Bear a pessimistic one. The spread between them shows how uncertain the forecast is.

Projects a range of future prices that widens with time — the further out, the more uncertain, so the band fans out. The middle line is the base case.

How strongly the price has been trending recently. Positive momentum = rising trend; it tends to persist in the short term but can reverse sharply.

Relative Strength Index (0–100) measures whether a stock is overbought or oversold. Above 70 = potentially overbought (stretched), below 30 = potentially oversold.

Price ÷ trailing earnings per share — how many dollars you pay for $1 of annual profit. Lower can mean cheaper, but a low P/E often signals expected trouble. Compare within an industry.

P/E using forecast (next-12-month) earnings instead of past earnings. Lower than the trailing P/E implies analysts expect earnings to grow.

P/E divided by the earnings growth rate. Around 1 is often considered fair; it adjusts the P/E for how fast profits are growing.

Price ÷ sales per share. Useful for companies with little or no profit yet (e.g. early-stage growth). Lower is generally cheaper for the revenue you get.

Price ÷ book value (net assets) per share. Below 1 means the market values the company at less than its accounting net worth.

Enterprise value ÷ earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation. A capital-structure-neutral valuation, handy for comparing companies with different debt levels.

Total value of all shares = share price × shares outstanding. The size of the company as priced by the market.

A letter grade (A best → F worst) summarising financial health. It blends six factors — each scored out of 5 — covering intrinsic value (DCF), profitability (ROE, ROA), leverage (Debt) and how cheap the stock is (P/E, P/B). A snapshot of quality, not a buy/sell call.

Discounted Cash Flow — an estimate of intrinsic value from projecting future cash flows and discounting them to today. In the rating grid, the /5 score reflects how the current price compares to that intrinsic value (higher = more undervalued).

Earnings per share — company profit divided by shares outstanding. The denominator of the P/E ratio.

Year-over-year change in sales. Steady high growth is a hallmark of a healthy expanding business.

Revenue minus the direct cost of goods, as a % of revenue. Higher margins mean more pricing power and a more profitable product.

Profit from core operations as a % of revenue, after operating costs but before interest and tax.

Bottom-line profit as a % of revenue — what the company keeps after every cost, including tax and interest.

Return on equity — profit generated per dollar of shareholder equity. Higher = more efficient use of investor capital.

Return on assets — profit per dollar of total assets. Measures how efficiently the whole asset base produces earnings.

Cash left after running the business and funding capital spending. Real spendable cash for dividends, buybacks or debt paydown — harder to manipulate than reported earnings.

Total debt divided by shareholder equity. Higher means more leverage — bigger gains in good times, bigger risk in bad times.

Current assets ÷ current liabilities. Above 1 means the company can cover its short-term bills. A liquidity health check.

How much the stock moves relative to the market. Beta 1 = moves with the market; above 1 = more volatile (amplifies moves); below 1 = steadier. Negative = tends to move opposite.

Shares sold short as a % of the freely-tradable float. Higher means more traders are betting the price falls — a crowded short position that can fuel a squeeze.

Short shares ÷ average daily volume — roughly how many days it would take shorts to buy back. More days = more potential fuel for a short squeeze on a rally.

The annual fee to borrow shares to short them. A high rate signals shares are hard to borrow and shorts are paying up — pressure that can precede a squeeze. (Estimated here from short float.)

A 0–100 blend of short float, days-to-cover and borrow rate. Above 70 = elevated short-squeeze potential. High short interest is not a guarantee — shorts are often right.

The total number of shares currently sold short — an outright bet that the price will fall. Reported by FINRA twice a month.

The % of shares held by big professional investors (funds, banks, pensions). High ownership signals institutional conviction but can mean crowded positioning.

Total dollar value of shares held by institutions — the size of "smart money" exposure to the stock.

Quarterly filings where large investment managers (over $100M) disclose their stock positions. They show what the pros hold, but are reported with up to a 45-day delay.

Whether more institutions increased (accumulating) or decreased (distributing) their positions last quarter — a read on the direction of professional money flow.

A company executive or director buying their own stock on the open market (SEC Form 4). Often a bullish signal — insiders buy for one reason but sell for many.

Several different insiders buying around the same time. A cluster is a stronger conviction signal than a single insider purchase.

The SEC filing insiders must submit within two business days of trading their own company stock.

The market's expectation of how much a stock will move, baked into option prices. High IV = pricey options and a big expected swing; low IV = calm expectations.

Where today's implied volatility sits versus its own past year (0–100%). High IV rank means options are expensive relative to normal — better for selling than buying.

The sharp drop in implied volatility right after a known event (like earnings). Options can lose value fast even if the stock moves your way — the priced-in uncertainty disappears.

The up-or-down range the options market is pricing in by a given date, derived from implied volatility. Roughly the one-standard-deviation band — actual moves land inside it about 2 times in 3.

Put volume ÷ call volume. Above 1 = more downside bets (bearish/hedging); below 1 = more upside bets (bullish). Extreme readings are sometimes contrarian.

Today's option volume divided by existing open interest. A ratio well above 1 means unusually heavy new activity versus what was already open — a flag for unusual flow.

The number of option contracts currently open (not yet closed or expired). Rising OI shows new money committing to a strike.

Option trades that are large or far above normal volume — sometimes a sign that informed traders are positioning. Suggestive, not proof; it can also be hedging.

The price paid for an option contract. For sellers it is income received; for buyers it is the most they can lose.

Days to expiration — how long until the option expires. Fewer days means faster time decay (theta).

How much an option price moves per $1 move in the stock — and a rough proxy for the probability it finishes in-the-money.

How much value an option loses each day from time passing, all else equal. Time decay works against buyers and for sellers.

How fast delta changes as the stock moves. High gamma means an option’s sensitivity shifts quickly — common near expiry and at-the-money.

How much an option price moves per 1-point change in implied volatility. High-vega positions are sensitive to volatility shifts.

Wall Street analysts' average estimate of where the stock will trade in ~12 months. A consensus, not a promise — targets are frequently revised.

The blended Buy / Hold / Sell rating across the analysts covering the stock. Shows professional sentiment, which can lag price.

The range of 12-month price targets from the analysts covering the stock. Mean is the consensus, High the most bullish, Low the most bearish — a wide gap signals disagreement about where the stock is headed.

The price per share set when the company first went public — the baseline its later performance is measured against.

Total money raised in the IPO = shares offered × offer price. A rough measure of the offering’s size.

How the stock has performed since its IPO price — the gain or loss for someone who bought at the offer.

The market's 'fear gauge' — expected S&P 500 volatility over the next 30 days. Above ~20 signals rising fear; spikes often coincide with selloffs.

The yield on 10-year US government debt — the benchmark "risk-free" rate. Rising yields pressure stock valuations (especially growth names); falling yields tend to support them.

The current market environment (e.g. risk-on, risk-off, late-cycle) inferred from growth, inflation and rates. Different regimes favour different sectors and styles.