CVS

At 67x, the price is steep relative to profit; the stock leans heavily on growth that has yet to arrive.

Share price divided by earnings per share: what you pay for each $1 of yearly profit. Roughly 15 to 25 is typical, above 40 is richly priced, and negative means the company is losing money.

A 0.4% margin is thin; little of each revenue dollar survives as profit.

The share of revenue left as profit once every cost is paid. Above 15% is strong; below 5% leaves little cushion against a bad year.

A 2.4% return on equity is weak; owners' capital is barely being put to work.

Profit earned on each dollar of shareholder equity: how well the company compounds its owners' capital. Above 15% is strong.

A 0.7% return on assets is low; the asset base is generating little profit.

Profit earned on each dollar of assets: how efficiently the whole asset base is used. Above 8% is strong.

At 2.37, the company leans heavily on borrowing, which adds risk if results weaken.

Total liabilities divided by shareholder equity: how heavily the company leans on borrowing. Below 1 is conservative; above 2 is highly leveraged.

At 0.84, short-term assets fall short of short-term bills; liquidity is tight.

Current assets divided by current liabilities: whether short-term resources cover short-term bills. Above 1.5 is comfortable; below 1 is tight.

Net income fell 61.7% from the prior year; profit is shrinking.

Change in annual net income from the prior fiscal year: whether profit is expanding. Above 10% is strong; below 0 means profit is falling.