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Four Excellent Investment Characteristics

One of the best qualities in any investment is its profitability, which determines how much money you can potentially make. There are many different factors that contribute to a company’s profitability and there is no single model that predicts it with perfection.

However, one thing that all shubhodeep prasanta das investors should consider when performing due diligence on an investment opportunity is the company’s quality of earnings and management. Here are four main characteristics that should be considered before investing in a company and why they are significant to evaluating the future value of a stock:

Cash Flow

Cash flow is the most important characteristic of a company’s earnings because it forces management to be as efficient as possible. Cash flow alone doesn’t determine whether a company will be profitable but it allows investors to understand if management is doing their job or not. The lack of cash flow could either mean that management takes too many risks and doesn’t have enough income to cover expenses or that they are paying through the nose for unnecessary expenses.

Growth

Businesses generate cash flow but investors can expect to see that cash flow grow over time. This characteristic is not as important as it used to be when understanding a company’s value because it can be manipulated by aggressive accounting practices. However, if the business is growing at a moderate rate that should indicate a company’s ability to create value for investors.

Return on Equity

While return on equity does not tell investors about the actual profitability of the company, it does tell them about how efficiently management is using their assets. The higher the ROE, the more efficient a company is doing their job. A lower return on equity indicates that management is not being as diligent as they should be or that there are problems with the business model.

Debt to Equity Ratio

The debt to equity ratio tells investors how comfortable they are with management’s ability to pay off their obligations through profits. A high debt to equity ratio means that management has a lot of debt and has failed to cover expenses.

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