Read the Business in 5 Minutes

A quick, repeatable business check: what the company sells, how it makes money, whether it is growing and profitable, what protects it and what could go wrong.

Five minutes beats zero minutes

You do not need to read a hundred-page annual report before buying your first stock. You do need to know what you are buying. A short, structured check answers the most important questions and filters out companies you do not understand or that are shrinking and losing money.

The goal is a one-screen summary you could explain to a friend in a minute. If you cannot fill it in, that is useful information too: it means you do not know the business well enough yet.

An example snapshot card for a made-up company. Fill in one of these for every stock you consider.

Unlock all of Investing School

The rest of this lesson, its chart examples and quiz are part of Investing School. Start free with Stock Market Fundamentals and the first lesson in every category.