Is There Some Mistake?
Here are some screen shots of the Financial Strength Rater in action. We used the Benchmark numbers from a couple segments to illustrate.
(Images A and B)
While the Hardware Stores segment and the Gift, Novelty & Souvenir Stores segment have very close total scores – 17 and 18 – they each are strong in different ways. (Or, they each have different potential trouble spots.)
(Images C and D)
But, the careful observers will quickly point out what looks to be a mistake. For both segments, the trends of the Current Ratio and the Debt-to-Worth ratio received identical TREND descriptions – "Slightly Down" or "Substantially Up" – but very different SCORES. What's with that??
(Image E)
The INFO button has the answer. For the Debt-to-Worth ratio, Lower Is Better. So, when the Debt-to-Worth ratio trend is declining for a business, that is a good sign; less money is owed to creditors. And therefore, for that ratio, a declining trend receives a higher score.