Skip to content

Our Methodology

We believe research should be transparent. Here is exactly how the ratings, projections, and comparisons on The Stocks School are calculated — and, just as importantly, what they can and can't tell you.

The investment rating (0–100)

Every stock gets a single, transparent score from 0 to 100, computed by the same model for all of them — never hand-picked. The score weighs four pillars of real fundamental data:

  • Growth. Revenue and earnings growth — is the business getting bigger?
  • Profitability. Margins and returns on capital (ROE, ROIC) — how efficiently it turns sales into profit.
  • Financial health. Debt levels, interest coverage, and liquidity — can it weather a downturn?
  • Valuation. P/E, P/S, and related multiples — are you paying a fair price for that quality?

The result maps to a label: Strong, Favorable, Neutral, or Weak. The same scoring drives the screener, scanner, and stock pages, so a rating means the same thing everywhere.

What the rating is not: it is a research starting point, not a buy or sell signal and not financial advice. A high score doesn't mean “buy,” and a low score doesn't mean “sell” — it means “look closer, here's why.”

The 5-year projection model

Our projection is a scenario model: it grows revenue at an assumed rate, applies a profit margin, and multiplies by a valuation to show a resulting share-price range over five years. The assumptions are visible and editable — it's a tool for thinking through “what if,” not a forecast or a price target we stand behind.

Technical analysis & peer comparison

Technical indicators (moving averages, RSI, support and resistance) are calculated directly from real price history and shown for educational context. Peer comparison ranks a stock against the other companies in its sector using the median of each metric, so you can see whether it's cheaper, more profitable, or faster-growing than its peers.

Limitations & honesty

Every model simplifies reality. Ratios miss qualitative factors like management quality, competitive shifts, and regulation. Data can be delayed or contain errors, and past results never guarantee future ones. Treat everything here as one input into your own research — not a substitute for it. See where our numbers come from on our data sources page, and put the model to work in the stock screener.

Last reviewed: June 2026 · Maintained by The Stocks School editorial team.

Educational content only — not financial advice or a recommendation to buy, hold, or sell any security. Ratings and projections are model outputs, not guarantees. Do your own research.