Glossary F-K

Financial Status Indicator

The Financial Status Indicator or FSI is a data element that denotes when a NASDAQ-listed issuer had failed to submit its regulatory filings on a timely basis, failed to meet NASDAQ's continuing listing standards, and/or filed for bankruptcy. Possible values for the FSI are as follows:

CodeDescription
DDeficient: Issuer failed to meet NASDAQ continued Listing Requirements
EDelinquent: Issuer missed regulatory filing deadline
QBankrupt: Issuer has filed for bankruptcy
NNormal (Default): Issue is not currently deficient, delinquent, or bankrupt
GDeficient and bankrupt
HDeficient and delinquent
JDelinquent and bankrupt
KDeficient, delinquent and bankrupt

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Fiscal Year

A 365-day period (with one extra day in leap years) used for accounting. Companies choose the starting date of their fiscal years, which may or may not correspond with the calendar year. Retailers, for example, often begin their fiscal years on Feb 1, in order to include January's holiday-related merchandise returns and post-holiday sales in their fiscal fourth quarters.

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Form-T Trades

See extended-hours trading.

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Forward P/E

This is calculated by dividing the latest closing price of the stock by the latest earnings-per-share (EPS) estimate, as provided by Zacks Investment Research. In the first three quarters of a company's fiscal year, we use the EPS estimate for the current fiscal year. Starting in the fourth quarter, we use the next fiscal year estimate. The EPS estimate is the mean estimate of EPS growth, as derived from all polled estimates from Wall Street analysts.

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Free Cash Flow

Cash not required for operations or for reinvestment. Free cash flow is calculated by subtracting capital expenditures from cash flow. Capital expenditures include the purchase of new plant, property and equipment. Free cash flow can be used to pay dividends, buy back stock or pay off debt. The more the better.

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GAAP, or Generally Accepted Accounting Principals

A set of accounting conventions established by the Financial Accounting Standards Board, or FASB. Companies are required to file quarterly GAAP-based financial statements, and may supplement this information, if they wish, by providing separate pro forma results.

Also known as net income or net profits, net earnings are tom line, this is the profit a company realizes after all costs, expenses and taxes have been paid. It is calculated by subtracting business, depreciation, interest and tax costs from revenues. Also called net income or net profit.

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Goodwill

An intangible asset such as a brand or a reputation. In an acquisition, the amount by which the purchase price exceeds the tangible assets of the acquired company is considered goodwill, and is listed on the balance sheet of the acquirer.

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Gross Income

Revenues minus the cost of sales. Also called gross income.

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Gross Margin

The sum of gross income over the past four quarters divided by the sum of revenues over the past four quarters. The result is shown as a percentage. Gross margin shows a company's profitability, taking into consideration only the costs associated with producing its goods or services.

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Intangibles

Assets that are neither physical nor financial in nature, but which nevertheless have value to a company. Examples include goodwill, patents, trademarks, copyrights, licenses and franchises.

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Interest Coverage

A measure of a company's ability to make interest payments on its long-term debt, calculated by dividing its earnings from continuing operations (before interest and taxes) over the past year by its interest expense over the past year. A low-coverage ratio can indicate a company is over-leveraged. A high ratio indicates a margin of safety from default.

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Inventory

Merchandise bought for resale of supplies and raw materials purchased for use in revenue-producing operations. A company with excess inventory on its balance sheet could indicate a slow-down in sales and a lack of pricing power.

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Inventory Turnover

A measure of the velocity with which merchandise moves through a company, calculated by dividing the revenues by the average of inventories over the past four quarters. Low inventory turnover is a sign of inefficiency. Also called inventory turns, or turnover.

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Invested Capital

The total amount, borrowed or owned, a company used to generate its profits. Invested capital is equal to a company's long-term debt plus preferred equity (plus common equity, taken from its most recently reported balance sheet.

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