Laredo Petroleum, Inc. (NYSE:LPI) has a current MF Rank of 2538. The Magic Formula was developed by hedge fund manager Joel Greenblatt, the intention of the formula is to spot high quality companies that are trading at an attractive price. 

Successful stock market traders generally have a keen ability to cut losses short and let winners run. This may sound easy, but novice traders have the tendency to actually extend losses and fail to secure profits. New stock market traders may encounter a few different scenarios when starting out. They may make a few early trades that prove to be big winners, or they may get taken to the cleaner right out of the gate. When a trader experiences big wins from the start, this may create an inflated sense of confidence. On the flip side, a string of early losses can be so discouraging that the trader throws in the towel without really even getting into the game. 

Free Cash Flow Growth (FCF Growth) is the free cash flow of the current year minus the free cash flow from the previous year, divided by last year’s free cash flow.  The FCF Growth of Laredo Petroleum, Inc. (NYSE:LPI) is -0.371622.  Free cash flow (FCF) is the cash produced by the company minus capital expenditure.  This cash is what a company uses to meet its financial obligations, such as making payments on debt or to pay out dividends.  

The Free Cash Flow Score (FCF Score) is a helpful tool in calculating the free cash flow growth with free cash flow stability – this gives investors the overall quality of the free cash flow.  The FCF Score of Laredo Petroleum, Inc. (NYSE:LPI) is 0.491759.  Experts say the higher the value, the better, as it means that the free cash flow is high, or the variability of free cash flow is low or both.

The Return on Invested Capital (aka ROIC) for Laredo Petroleum, Inc. (NYSE:LPI) is 0.126088.  The Return on Invested Capital is a ratio that determines whether a company is profitable or not.  It tells investors how well a company is turning their capital into profits.  The ROIC is calculated by dividing the net operating profit (or EBIT) by the employed capital.  The employed capital is calculated by subrating current liabilities from total assets.  Similarly, the Return on Invested Capital Quality ratio is a tool in evaluating the quality of a company’s ROIC over the course of five years.  The ROIC Quality of Laredo Petroleum, Inc. (NYSE:LPI) is 5.624907.  This is calculated by dividing the five year average ROIC by the Standard Deviation of the 5 year ROIC.  The ROIC 5 year average is calculated using the five year average EBIT, five year average (net working capital and net fixed assets).  The ROIC 5 year average of Laredo Petroleum, Inc. (NYSE:LPI) is 0.110694.

Shareholder Yield

The Shareholder Yield is a way that investors can see how much money shareholders are receiving from a company through a combination of dividends, share repurchases and debt reduction.  The Shareholder Yield of Laredo Petroleum, Inc. (NYSE:LPI) is 0.012526.  This percentage is calculated by adding the dividend yield plus the percentage of shares repurchased.  Dividends are a common way that companies distribute cash to their shareholders.  Similarly, cash repurchases and a reduction of debt can increase the shareholder value, too.  Another way to determine the effectiveness of a company’s distributions is by looking at the Shareholder yield (Mebane Faber).  The Shareholder Yield (Mebane Faber) of Laredo Petroleum, Inc. NYSE:LPI is -0.32134.  This number is calculated by looking at the sum of the dividend yield plus percentage of sales repurchased and net debt repaid yield.

Following a pre-defined trading system might be a solid choice for securing profits in the stock market. Defining goals before creating a plan can be a good way to start the trader off on the right path. There are bound to be many ups and downs throughout the trading process. Being able to manage wins and losses may be one of the most important factors to becoming a successful trader. Without a researched plan, traders may realize how quick the losses can pile up. Properly managing risk, position size, entry and exit points, and stops, may come with experience, but it is typically necessary in order to stay above water in the fast paced market environment.

The Value Composite One (VC1) is a method that investors use to determine a company’s value.  The VC1 of Laredo Petroleum, Inc. (NYSE:LPI) is 3.  A company with a value of 0 is thought to be an undervalued company, while a company with a value of 100 is considered an overvalued company.  The VC1 is calculated using the price to book value, price to sales, EBITDA to EV, price to cash flow, and price to earnings.  Similarly, the Value Composite Two (VC2) is calculated with the same ratios, but adds the Shareholder Yield.  The Value Composite Two of Laredo Petroleum, Inc. (NYSE:LPI) is 3.

Investors may be interested in viewing the Gross Margin score on shares of Laredo Petroleum, Inc. (NYSE:LPI). The name currently has a score of 11.00000. This score is derived from the Gross Margin (Marx) stability and growth over the previous eight years. The Gross Margin score lands on a scale from 1 to 100 where a score of 1 would be considered positive, and a score of 100 would be seen as negative.

ERP5 Rank

The ERP5 Rank is an investment tool that analysts use to discover undervalued companies. The ERP5 looks at the Price to Book ratio, Earnings Yield, ROIC and 5 year average ROIC. The ERP5 of Laredo Petroleum, Inc. (NYSE:LPI) is 1023. The lower the ERP5 rank, the more undervalued a company is thought to be.

C-Score – Montier

Laredo Petroleum, Inc. (NYSE:LPI) currently has a Montier C-score of 2.00000. This indicator was developed by James Montier in an attempt to identify firms that were cooking the books in order to appear better on paper. The score ranges from zero to six where a 0 would indicate no evidence of book cooking, and a 6 would indicate a high likelihood. A C-score of -1 would indicate that there is not enough information available to calculate the score. Montier used six inputs in the calculation. These inputs included a growing difference between net income and cash flow from operations, increasing receivable days, growing day’s sales of inventory, increasing other current assets, decrease in depreciation relative to gross property plant and equipment, and high total asset growth.

F Score

At the time of writing, Laredo Petroleum, Inc. (NYSE:LPI) has a Piotroski F-Score of 6. The F-Score may help discover companies with strengthening balance sheets. The score may also be used to spot the weak performers. Joseph Piotroski developed the F-Score which employs nine different variables based on the company financial statement. A single point is assigned to each test that a stock passes. Typically, a stock scoring an 8 or 9 would be seen as strong. On the other end, a stock with a score from 0-2 would be viewed as weak.

Investors looking to secure stock market profits may be tweaking an existing strategy or looking to devise a brand new one. As the stock market keeps charging higher, investors will have to figure out how they want to play the next few months. Identifying market tops and possible correction levels may be very tricky. With the markets trading at current levels, the situation for the average investor may be widely varied. Some investors will be trading with a shorter-term plan, while others may be focused on a longer-term investment time frame. There are many financial professionals who are predicting a sharp reversal in the stock market, but there are also those who believe that the upswing will keep pushing stocks higher over the coming months. Investors will need to decide for themselves which way they think the momentum is going to swing and prepare accordingly.