How to read a company page

"Media generally works on a very short time cycle, so it's hard for a single story to say anything of lasting importance about where a stock is really headed. What I actually want to know is what the next Coca-Cola is — and that kind of insight unfolds far too slowly for newspapers' natural rhythm."

Media generally works on a very short time cycle, so it's hard for a single story to say anything of lasting importance about where a stock is really headed. What I actually want to know is what the next Coca-Cola is — and that kind of insight unfolds far too slowly for newspapers' natural rhythm.

Every company page is organized into blocks, and almost every number has an (i) icon next to it explaining what it means.

Fundamentals tell you how solid the business is: revenue, net income, free cash flow, debt. Valuation compares today's price with the estimated fair value and the margin of safety. Quality and profitability measure how well the business uses the capital it has. If the company pays a dividend, you will find that section too.

Near the bottom sit the technical numbers - price, moving averages, RSI - useful but secondary for value investors.

The technical numbers at the bottom of the page - price, moving averages, RSI - describe what the price has done recently, not what the business is worth: a stock can fall for weeks while the business's revenue keeps growing, or rise with nothing changed in the fundamentals. For value investors, the blocks near the top of the page remain the ones that really matter.