In 2016 we addressed the dichotomous approach to understanding the differences between generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP) and non-GAAP earnings. There are ways they should be scrutinized when trying to get a sense if numbers being reported by a company are a true representation of what is going on at the net income level. Non-GAAP financials are also referred to as “adjusted.”  For example, “adjusted earnings per share (EPS) or “adjusted earnings before interest taxes & depreciation & amortization (EBITDA).

Because we plan on delving into this subject in a Tweet thread that we anticipate will engage our investor network and extensions thereof, we feel it is a good idea to give another primer on the subject, especially since GeoInvesting’s Premium Subscriber base has grown substantially since 2016.

If part of your investment strategy is executing bullish or bearish short-term stock trades on earnings report news flow, it’s extremely important to understand if the GAAP and Non-GAAP earnings per share numbers being reported in a press release are “clean”.