Stock market ratio glossary
Understand DeepScreen’s 13-factor model plus Piotroski, Altman and Beneish financial-health scores.
P/E — Price-to-Earnings Ratio
P/E shows how much investors pay for one unit of annual earnings. Compare it with close sector peers and the company's own history, not with the whole market.
PEG — Price/Earnings-to-Growth Ratio
PEG relates a company's earnings multiple to its growth rate. A reading near 1 is often considered balanced, but growth quality and durability matter more than a single threshold.
P/S — Price-to-Sales Ratio
P/S values a company against revenue and is useful when earnings are small or negative. It must be read with margins because sales without profit can destroy value.
P/B — Price-to-Book Ratio
P/B compares market value with accounting net assets. It is most useful for banks and asset-heavy companies and less useful for software or brands whose assets are not fully recorded.
EV/Revenue — Enterprise Value to Revenue
EV/Revenue values operations while accounting for debt and cash. It helps compare companies with different financing, especially before profits become stable.
EV/EBITDA — Enterprise Value to EBITDA
EV/EBITDA compares enterprise value with EBITDA, an operating-profit measure before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation. The multiple is conventionally interpreted only when EBITDA and enterprise value produce a positive ratio.
ROE — Return on Equity
ROE measures profit generated from shareholder capital. High ROE is strongest when it is consistent and not created by excessive debt.
ROA — Return on Assets
ROA measures how efficiently a company turns assets into profit. Asset-light and asset-heavy sectors naturally have different normal ranges.
ROCE — Return on Capital Employed
ROCE measures operating returns from both equity and debt capital. It is a useful quality signal for comparing companies with different leverage.
D/E — Debt-to-Equity Ratio
Debt-to-equity measures financial leverage. A lower value usually means a more conservative balance sheet, but normal leverage varies sharply by industry.
LT D/E — Long-Term Debt to Equity
Long-term debt to equity isolates structural borrowing and helps show how much enduring leverage supports the business.
Payout — Dividend Payout Ratio
The payout ratio shows how much profit is distributed as dividends. A sustainable payout leaves enough cash to maintain the business and fund growth.
Operating leverage — Operating Leverage
Operating leverage shows how strongly operating profit responds to sales. High fixed costs can amplify both growth and downturns.
Piotroski F-Score — Piotroski F-Score
The Piotroski F-Score is a nine-point financial-strength checklist. Higher scores indicate more positive accounting signals, while lower scores call for closer investigation.
Altman Z-Score — Altman Z-Score
The Altman Z-Score combines five balance-sheet and income-statement measures to estimate financial-distress risk. Higher readings generally indicate a wider safety margin.
Beneish M-Score — Beneish M-Score
The Beneish M-Score screens for patterns associated with possible earnings manipulation. A concerning score is a prompt for deeper filing review, not proof of misconduct.