Sloan accruals
The share of earnings that came from accounting accruals rather than cash - high accruals have historically preceded weaker subsequent earnings.
Formula
(Net income − operating cash flow − investing cash flow) ÷ average total assets
Served as: annual · derived. Annual and quarterly observations are never mixed unlabeled.
Where the inputs come from
- Computed server-side from filed income and cash-flow concepts
Listed highest priority first. Every served figure carries its filing, fiscal period and accession; open any value on the financials page to see them.
How to compare it honestly
Compare against the company's own history; one elevated year is a prompt, not a pattern.
When it is not served
Not served when the cash-flow inputs are missing for the period.
Missing data is missing evidence: it is never shown as zero and never treated as a conclusion.
What it cannot tell you
Growth phases legitimately raise accruals; the ratio cannot separate growth from aggressive recognition.
Questions worth asking next
- Which balance-sheet lines drove the accrual build?
- Does the pattern persist across multiple years?
Research prompts, not recommendations.
See it computed from filings
Related in earnings quality and risk screens: Altman Z'' · Piotroski F-score · Beneish M-score · Cash-flow backing of earnings · Receivables vs revenue · Inventory vs revenue
Definitions are descriptive and educational. Nothing here is a guaranteed signal or personalized investment advice. How the platform computes and cites every figure.