Thirteen yes/no questions on quality, valuation, analyst sentiment and price momentum: each criterion +1, 0 or −1, automated across the entire market.
Save the strategy and StockScorer checks its rules for you every day. You'll get a heads-up whenever a stock crosses the upper or lower score threshold.
MSCI World over the same period: +240.1 %
Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.
| Score | Number of stocks |
|---|---|
| -10 | 2 |
| -9 | 14 |
| -8 | 77 |
| -7 | 220 |
| -6 | 604 |
| -5 | 1,064 |
| -4 | 1,311 |
| -3 | 1,515 |
| -2 | 1,704 |
| -1 | 1,785 |
| 0 | 1,849 |
| +1 | 1,723 |
| +2 | 1,577 |
| +3 | 1,213 |
| +4 | 800 |
| +5 | 457 |
| +6 | 231 |
| +7 | 79 |
| +8 | 29 |
| +9 | 7 |
| +10 | 4 |
Every stock runs through the same disclosed rules. The points add up to a score, traceable down to the individual rule.
Each rule checks a metric against a threshold, for example ROE above 15 %.
You decide how much each rule counts: from +1 to +3 or −1 to −3.
The sum is the score. That gives three classes: high, medium, low match.
Thresholds vary by cap class.
These terms describe only the match with the criteria, not a recommendation to buy or sell.
Return on equity above 20%, EBIT margin above 12% and a solid equity ratio form the foundation.
P/E on this year's earnings estimate and a 5-year P/E from actual and estimated years below 12 count as cheap, above 16 as expensive.
Analyst opinion, price reaction to quarterly results and the 4-week earnings revision measure sentiment, interpreted by size class.
Absolute 6- and 12-month price moves plus a dedicated criterion for the fresh uptrend.
These exact rules run over every stock daily.
After a free sign-up: the full profile in the rule editor to copy, adjust thresholds and save as your own starting profile.
See & copy all rulesThe backtest shows a total return of +90.6%. The MSCI World reaches +240.1% over the same period.
Survivorship-free since June 30, 2015: the index composition is applied point-in-time.
Historical period, quarterly rebalancing, no taxes or fees. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.
Purely mechanical rule application, no curated-list effect: stocks with a high match can fall just like any other stock.
For structured investors who want a complete, traceable criteria catalogue and are prepared to review positions rigorously by score: the system lives on regular re-assessment, not on a one-off entry.
The 13-criteria scoring system is the best-known German approach to rule-based stock selection, popularised by former fund manager Susan Levermann. Its strength lies in completeness: fundamental quality (return on equity, margin, equity ratio), valuation (current and historical P/E), market sentiment (analyst opinion, reaction to quarterly results, earnings revisions) and price momentum are condensed into a score from −13 to +13. Since the 23 August 2026 fidelity round, earnings revisions and expected earnings growth can be scored directly. For the analyst criterion, an available consensus always takes priority; if it is missing, empirically calibrated target upside of at least 10% can serve only as an optimistic fallback signal. Analyst opinion counts as a contrarian indicator for large caps and as a trend-following signal for small and mid caps.
Each of the 13 criteria awards +1, 0 or −1. Quality: return on equity above 20%, EBIT margin above 12% (neutral for financials and real-estate companies, where the margin is not meaningful), equity ratio above 25% (financials: above 10%, because balance-sheet leverage is part of their business model). Valuation: P/E based on the current-year earnings estimate, and a 5-year P/E from three actual and two estimated years, each below 12. Market sentiment: analyst opinion, price reaction to the latest quarterly results and the 4-week revision of earnings estimates. Momentum: absolute price moves over 6 and 12 months, the momentum shift and (large caps only) the three-month reversal against a world-index benchmark.
Levermann uses its own size classes, different from the platform's usual cap grid: large cap from €5 billion market capitalisation, mid and small caps are treated identically (the €1 billion boundary is only an internal detail). Three criteria switch roles depending on size class and analyst count: analyst opinion is a contrarian indicator for large caps OR any stock with at least five analyst opinions (majority scepticism earns the point), and a trend-following signal for small and mid caps with fewer than five opinions (majority optimism counts positively). If consensus is missing, target upside of at least 10% with documented analyst coverage is treated as optimistic. An available neutral or sceptical consensus is never overwritten, and a low target price is not converted into a sceptical fallback signal. The three-month reversal (three consecutive months behind or ahead of the market) applies only to large caps, where exaggerations are arbitraged quickly.
The upper threshold is 4 points for large caps and a uniform 7 points for mid and small caps; below 3 and 5 points respectively the lower zone begins. Mid and small caps need more points because thinner analyst coverage means more data noise.
Quality: (1) return on equity > 20%, (2) EBIT margin > 12% (financials/real estate: neutral), (3) equity ratio > 25% (financials > 10%).
Valuation: (4) P/E on current-year estimate 0–12, (5) 5-year P/E from three actual and two estimated years 0–12, each −1 above 16, or with a negative or missing value.
Market sentiment: (6) analyst opinion (large cap or ≥ 5 opinions: contrarian; small/mid with < 5 opinions: trend-following; optimistic target-upside proxy from +10% when consensus is missing), (7) price reaction to quarterly results vs. market, (8) 4-week earnings-estimate revision ± 5%.
Momentum: (9) absolute 6-month price move ± 5%, (10) absolute 12-month price move ± 5%, (11) fresh uptrend (6M strong, 12M not yet), (12) three-month reversal month by month against the world index (large caps only), (13) expected earnings growth (next-year vs. current-year estimate) ± 5%.
The system's strength is the interaction of factor families: fundamental strength alone is not enough, it needs technical confirmation, and vice versa. Exactly this combination makes the approach more robust than pure value or momentum strategies.
Fidelity update as of 23 August 2026: criterion 8 (earnings revision) now genuinely measures the 4-week change in earnings estimates instead of an analyst-sentiment proxy, and criterion 13 (expected earnings growth) the actual comparison of next-year to current-year estimates. Criteria 9 through 11 and the tiebreaker run on ABSOLUTE price moves instead of relative strength versus the market, as described in the book; the three-month reversal (criterion 12) checks month by month against the market instead of cumulatively. The benchmark is a world index (MSCI World via the URTH ETF) instead of a home index, because the universe is international. Deviation for criterion 6: the analyst consensus only counts from five opinions onwards, since a thinly staffed view would otherwise decide an entire criterion. Where it is missing, StockScorer uses target upside as a one-sided optimistic proxy.
Documented implementation details: the price reaction to quarterly results is measured market-adjusted with a neutral zone of ±1%. Missing fundamentals (criteria 1–5) conservatively count to the minus tier (a tool convention, not an original requirement); missing market and sentiment data (criteria 6–13) stays neutral, so thinly covered small caps are not systematically penalised. The target-price proxy applies only when analyst consensus is missing, at least three analysts are reported and target upside is at least 10%. The 10% threshold was calibrated against US stocks carrying both data types; the inverse proxy did not separate sceptical ratings reliably enough.
In the backtest, the sentiment criteria (analysts, quarterly reaction, revisions) and the size-dependent rules are neutralised for lack of historical data points. The data-quality panel in the backtest discloses this transparently.
For investors who want to apply a proven, complete criteria catalogue systematically, and who bring the discipline to critically review positions when the score drops.