Methodology & data sources

Where every number on MarketQuill comes from and how the scores are calculated — so you can decide how much weight to give them.

Data sources and freshness

Prices can be delayed by the exchange or the provider. Every figure is shown in the currency it trades in; London, Johannesburg and Tel Aviv listings trade in pence, cents and agorot, and are labelled that way. Company accounts are often reported in another currency (TSM's in Taiwan dollars), and are converted at the live rate before they are compared with the share price.

DataSource
US stock quotesFinnhub
Other quotes, crypto, FXYahoo Finance
Fundamentals & analyst targetsYahoo Finance
Price history & technicalsYahoo Finance
Company profiles & industry peersFinnhub (Yahoo Finance outside the US)
Company & market newsFinnhub (Yahoo Finance outside the US)
Earnings dates & estimatesFinnhub (Yahoo Finance outside the US)
Economic release calendarFRED, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
Ask AI answersxAI Grok, from the data above

Fair value

Fair value blends up to three independent estimates. No single method is trusted: each is shown separately on the stock page, along with the ones that couldn't be calculated and why. The blend is a weighted average of whichever methods have data, with the weights rescaled to add up to 100%.

Analyst targets45% with 10+ analysts · otherwise 35%
The median price target across analysts covering the stock (the mean if no median is published). Needs at least 3 analysts.
Growth-adjusted multiple35%
A fair P/E equal to the company's growth rate (earnings growth, or revenue growth if that's missing), kept between 8x and 35x, so a fast-growing year doesn't imply a 60x multiple and a shrinking one doesn't imply a negative one. The price is re-rated from today's P/E (forward, else trailing) to that fair P/E. Needs a positive P/E.
Discounted cash flow20%
A two-stage model on free cash flow. For five years, cash flow grows at the company's revenue growth rate (between 0% and 25%), slowing evenly to 2.5%; after that it grows at 2.5% a year forever. Cash flows are discounted at 4.5% plus 4.5% × beta (beta held between 0.3 and 2), kept between 7% and 14%. Net debt is subtracted to reach the value of the shares, which is turned into a per-share figure through market cap — so ADRs and pence-quoted listings come out in the price's own unit. Needs positive free cash flow.

Labels. The gap between fair value and price reads as significantly undervalued at +20% or more, undervalued from +7%, fairly valued within ±7%, overvalued down to −20%, and significantly overvalued beyond that.

Confidence (0–100) rewards breadth and agreement: 55% comes from how many of the three methods could be calculated, 45% from how close together they landed. A single method can't be cross-checked, so it scores lower.

Wide disagreement. When the highest and lowest estimates are more than 60% of the blend apart, the average is an artefact rather than a view, so MarketQuill says so instead of labelling the stock: confidence is capped at 25 and you're shown the range, not a verdict.

Financial health score

A score from 0 to 10 across four equally weighted pillars. Each metric scores on a straight line between a weak and a strong value (shown below), with nothing below the weak end and full marks beyond the strong end. Each pillar averages the metrics that have data. A pillar with no data is left out rather than counted as zero, and the stock page shows what share of the 13 metrics were available.

Profitability
Net margin
0% → 25%
Operating margin
0% → 30%
Return on equity
0% → 25%
Return on assets
0% → 12%
Growth
Revenue growth
−5% → 25%
Earnings growth
−10% → 30%
Cash flow
Free cash flow
positive = full marks, negative = none
FCF margin
0% → 20%
EBITDA
positive = full marks, negative = none
Balance sheet
Debt / equity
3.0x → 0x (negative equity scores zero)
Current ratio
0.8 → 2.5
Quick ratio
0.5 → 1.8
Net cash
cash above debt = full marks

Labels: 8+ excellent, 6.5+ strong, 5+ good, 3.5+ fair, below 3.5 weak. Banks and insurers are scored on the same metrics, which suit them poorly — read their balance-sheet pillar with care.

How Ask AI is grounded

Each question is answered from a data block MarketQuill builds at that moment: the live quote, fundamentals, technicals, derived ratios, the fair value and health score above, analyst coverage, recent earnings, the latest five headlines from the past week and — if you hold the stock — your own position. The model is instructed to use only that data, to cite the figures behind each claim, and to say when the data doesn't cover something.

Fair value and the health score are calculated by MarketQuill, not by the model, so they come out the same every time. Each answer shows which data was available.

Language models can still misread or misstate a number. Check anything you would act on against the stock page.

Limits and disclaimer

Models like these are deliberately simple and use the latest reported figures: one unusual quarter can swing the growth inputs, and analysts' targets reflect their own assumptions. Data can be delayed, incomplete or wrong at the source.

MarketQuill provides information, not investment advice. Nothing on this site is a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any security. Do your own research, and consider speaking to a qualified adviser before making investment decisions.

See these models on a stock page →

Methodology & data sources | MarketQuill