Stock Screeners - for Fishing in Troubled Markets!


My friends frequently ask me how I go about picking stocks. What I do is - I run filters on a stock screener - mostly on parameters such as P/E, P/BV, Sales, Current Ratio, Debt-Equity Ratio, Dividend Yield, EPS growth rate etc. From the list thrown up, I pick each company and do a complete fundamental analysis, based on the last 10 year data. Why 10 years - because, in my opinion, it shows the company's capability to withstand and perform across at least 2 business cycles.

This post is not about how I finalize my stock picks, but where I start off.  So, I am presenting a list of the stock screeners that I have come across my experience. All of them are free (not a paid service).

http://www.idbipaisabuilder.in/
For Indian companies. You can choose up to six parameters from a huge list of filters. I use this more often.

http://www.icicidirect.com/
For Indian companies. It is more tilted towards pre-defined search parameters, but you can also give your inputs.

http://www.google.com/finance/stockscreener
This is good but filters only for stocks listed on AMEX, NASDAQ & NYSE. There are no filters for Indian Stock Market. Knowing google, they should not take long for providing these services across the different markets. Filtering parameters are excellent - popular (P/E, P/BV, P/Sales), price(EPS, 52 week highs/lows, averages), valuation, dividend, financial ratios (BV/share, Cash/share, Current Ratio, Debt-Equity Ratio), Operating Metrics (Interest Coverage, RoI, RoA, RoE), stock (Beta, Float, Institutional holding, Volume), Margins (Gross, EBITDA, Operating, Net) and growth rates (Income, Revenue, EPS).

http://www.valueinvestingindia.com/
It has multiple options and the best part is - it gives a list of companies based on Joel Greenblatt's  "magic formula" (see my post here). The other lists from this screen includes those on Insider Transactions, Holdings of Gurus, Dividend Stocks, Magic Formula, Dogs of India etc.

http://www.magicformulainvesting.com/
Joel Greeblatt's own website (you need to register).

http://screener.finance.yahoo.com/stocks.html
I have tried this only a couple of times and can't say much here.

http://www.cnbc.com/id/15839076/site/14081545/
I have tried this only a couple of times and can't say much here.

Do note that the stocks so screened only form the beginning - they are the inputs to a more detailed and incisive analysis. Else, there is a high probability that you might end up with stinkers.

Happy Fishing!

Invictus.

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