Learn Earnings Analysis
19 guides across three areas
Every company report on EarningsMoat is built from the same four questions: is the profit real, is there a moat protecting it, is management allocating capital well, and what could break the thesis. These guides explain how each of those judgments is made, and how to make them yourself from a 10-K.
The material is grouped by the question it answers rather than by difficulty. Earnings quality covers whether reported profit is backed by cash and likely to recur — accruals, cash conversion, and the specific patterns that precede restatements. Economic moat covers where durable competitive advantage comes from and how to test whether a company actually has one. 10-K reading covers the filing itself: which sections carry signal, how to read MD&A and footnotes, and where to find the documents.
Each area has one pillar guide that lays out the full framework, with supporting guides going deeper on individual methods. If you want to see the framework applied to real companies rather than explained, start with the company reports instead.
Earnings Quality & Red Flags7
Quality of Earnings Analysis Guide
PillarLearn how to analyze quality of earnings using cash conversion ratios, accrual red flags, recurring profit, and a practical investor checklist.
Accrual Ratio Explained — How to Spot Earnings That Aren't Backed by Cash
A practical guide to the accrual ratio — what it actually measures, the difference between Sloan and balance-sheet accruals, the threshold ranges that matter, and the workflow analysts use when accruals are persistently elevated.
Beneish M-Score Guide — Formula, Variables, and How Analysts Use It
A complete walkthrough of the Beneish M-Score model for detecting earnings manipulation — the eight variables, the threshold, the historical track record, and the workflow analysts use when the score flashes a warning.
Earnings Manipulation Red Flags — A Working Checklist for 10-K Readers
The most common patterns of earnings manipulation, from outright fraud to softer profit-quality stretches — what to look for in the filing, which footnotes to read, and how to escalate when one signal triggers another.
Free Cash Flow vs Net Income: Cash Conversion and Earnings Quality
Learn free cash flow vs net income, operating cash flow vs net income, the OCF/NI ratio, free-cash-flow conversion, and how cash conversion reveals earnings quality.
Retained Earnings Explained: Formula, Balance Sheet, and Investor Meaning
Learn what retained earnings are, how to calculate them, where to find them on the balance sheet, and what the number does—and does not—tell investors.
Value Trap Guide
How to tell a genuinely cheap stock from a deteriorating business, and why weak earnings quality plus ugly disclosures often create the classic value trap.
Economic Moat6
Economic Moat Analysis Guide
PillarLearn economic moat analysis: moat meaning, main moat types, company examples, and financial signals that show durability.
Brand Moat Companies
What a true brand moat looks like, why most brands are weaker than investors assume, and which public companies actually show durable brand economics.
How to Identify Economic Moat
A practical checklist for deciding whether a company has a moat, which moat type it belongs to, and what evidence in the filing actually counts.
Network Effect Moat
How network effects work, how to distinguish real network effects from simple popularity, and where to look for evidence in filings.
Switching Cost Moat
Why some products become sticky, how to tell lock-in from laziness, and which filing signals usually point to real switching costs.
Types of Economic Moat
The five classic moat types — network effects, switching costs, cost advantage, intangible assets, efficient scale — with financial signals.
10-K Reading & Disclosure6
How to Read a 10-K: 10-K Analysis Checklist
PillarA practical 10-K analysis checklist: what to read first, how to use MD&A, Risk Factors, footnotes, and financial statements.
10-K Risk Factors Guide
How to read Item 1A without wasting time on boilerplate, and how risk-factor language can change your view of earnings quality and value-trap risk.
10-K vs 10-Q: What Investors Need to Know
The 10-K and 10-Q are the two key SEC filings, but they serve different jobs. Compare what each covers, which carries more weight, and how to use them.
How to Read Footnotes
The shortest path to the high-signal footnotes in a 10-K, including revenue recognition, segments, stock comp, contingencies, and accounting estimates.
How to Read MD&A
A practical way to read Management's Discussion and Analysis so you can tell operational signal from polished explanation.
Where to Find 10-K Reports
The fastest way to find a company's 10-K on SEC EDGAR, how to identify amendments, and why EDGAR should stay your canonical source.