Reading a company’s numbers

Where company numbers come from and when they become public, and how to read margins, cash, P/E, debt, dilution and dividends without a finance degree.

Module 7 of 26, in the stage "How markets work". 6 lessons.

Lessons

1. Where company numbers come from, and whenKnow which document holds which number, and exactly when each becomes public. 16 min.
2. Revenue, margins, profit and cashRead an income statement from top to bottom and tell accounting profit apart from cash. 16 min.
3. EPS, P/E and why cheap can stay cheapCalculate EPS and P/E, and link ‘cheap’ to the value factor rather than to a bargain. 16 min.
4. Debt, gearing and who gets paid firstRead net debt and gearing as the same maths as a margin loan, and know where shareholders stand in a collapse. 16 min.
5. Capital raisings and dilutionWork out what a placement, share purchase plan or rights issue does to your share of the company. 16 min.
6. Dividends, ex-dates and the price dropKnow when you are entitled to a dividend, what yield means, and why buying just before the ex-date is not free money. 14 min.

Concepts covered

• Leverage

Keep going

• Previous module: Market mood, the day’s average price, and fair tests
• Next module: Currencies, interest, and things that move together
• All 26 modules and 157 lessons
• Open the first lesson in the course

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