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Investing » How to Use GuruFocus Stock Screener to Identify the Best Investments

How to Use GuruFocus Stock Screener to Identify the Best Investments

Discover how to use GuruFocus stock screener tools to filter and identify high-quality investment opportunities based on top guru strategies and financial metrics.
Author: Baruch Mann (Silvermann)
Interest Rates Last Update: April 1, 2025
The banking product interest rates, including savings, CDs, and money market, are accurate as of this date.
Author: Baruch Mann (Silvermann)
Interest Rates Last Update: April 1, 2025

The banking product interest rates, including savings, CDs, and money market, are accurate as of this date.

We earn a commission from our partner links on this page. It doesn't affect the integrity of our unbiased, independent editorial staff. Transparency is a core value for us, read our advertiser disclosure and how we make money.

The information provided on this website is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute financial, investment, or legal advice. We do not provide personalized investment recommendations or act as financial advisors.

The GuruFocus Stock Screener offers a robust set of tools that allow investors to identify top-performing stocks based on various fundamental criteria.

It is especially valuable for investors focused on long-term value, growth, and guru-driven strategies.

While the free GuruFocus version has some limitations, it still provides a solid foundation for screening stocks that align with one's investment objectives.

s&p 500 grid screener, Gurufocus free plan

Best Free GuruFocus Stock Screener Features

The GuruFocus Stock Screener helps investors narrow down potential investments by using filters based on key financial metrics, valuation models, and sector-specific performance.

It is an ideal tool for value-focused investors looking for stocks with strong fundamentals.

1. Stock Valuation Metrics

While advanced valuation models are locked behind the paid plan, the free version still provides access to some basic but essential valuation metrics to assess whether a stock is overvalued or undervalued.

  • Price-to-Earnings (P/E) Ratio: A fundamental metric used to compare a company’s stock price with its earnings per share.

  • Price-to-Book (P/B) Ratio: This ratio helps investors assess whether a stock is trading for less than its book value, indicating potential undervaluation.

  • Price-to-Sales (P/S) Ratio: A useful metric for evaluating companies that might not yet be profitable but have strong sales growth.

stock financials, Gurufocus free plan

An investor might want to find undervalued stocks.

They could use the P/E ratio filter to identify companies with a P/E ratio below 15, indicating potential value opportunities in the market.

2. Value and Growth Screening

GuruFocus’s screener is especially powerful for those using value investing or growth investing strategies. The platform allows users to screen stocks based on both fundamental metrics and performance criteria tied to these strategies.

  • Growth Filters: Use metrics such as EPS growth, revenue growth, and high forward P/E to find companies in an expansion phase.

  • Value Filters: Filter stocks based on metrics like low P/E, low P/B, and undervalued stocks to find companies trading below their intrinsic value.

  • Hybrid Strategy (GARP): Combine both growth and value filters to discover stocks that offer strong potential at a reasonable price.

A growth-oriented investor may set:

  • P/E Ratio: Under 15

  • Revenue Growth: Positive over 3 years

  • Market Cap: Over $5B

This will help uncover value stocks with growth potential, which is ideal for long-term investors aiming to capitalize on undervalued stocks that have solid growth prospects.

3. Dividend Screening

The GuruFocus Stock Screener allows users to filter for dividend-paying stocks, helping income investors find opportunities with reliable and consistent yields.

  • Dividend Yield: Filter for companies offering attractive dividend yields to build a reliable income stream.

  • Payout Ratio: Use this filter to evaluate how sustainable the dividend is. Lower payout ratios often signal room for growth and stability during economic downturns.

  • Dividend Growth: Identify companies with a track record of increasing their dividend payouts year over year, a sign of financial health and long-term shareholder value.

An income-focused investor may set the following filters:

  • Dividend Yield: 4%+

  • Payout Ratio: <60%

  • Dividend Growth: Positive over 5 years

This would help investors pinpoint companies with a history of sustainable dividend growth and sound financial health.

4. Sector and Industry Screening

GuruFocus offers sector and industry-specific filters, allowing investors to focus on particular market areas or diversify across different sectors.

  • Sector Filter: Narrow your search to broad sectors like Technology, Healthcare, or Energy to align your investments with your market view.

  • Industry Filter: Drill deeper into specific industries, such as technology hardware or biotech, for more focused investment strategies.

  • Diversification Strategy: Using these filters, you can build a diversified portfolio that spans both defensive and growth-oriented sectors.

An investor targeting the clean energy sector might set:

  • Sector: Energy

  • Industry: Clean Energy

  • Market Cap: Over $2B

This would allow them to focus on high-growth stocks within the clean energy industry, which has strong future potential.

Best Paid GuruFocus Screener Features

Subscribed GuruFocus users can use a set of advanced paid stock screening tools that cater to serious investors looking for deep insights, expert research, and smarter stock filtering capabilities.

1. Peter Lynch & Warren Buffett Screener

The Peter Lynch & Warren Buffett Screener is a tool that combines the investment strategies of two of the most successful investors in history: Peter Lynch and Warren Buffett.

This screener helps identify stocks that meet the key criteria both investors use when selecting stocks, such as strong fundamentals, growth potential, and reasonable valuation.

  • P/E Ratio: Filter for companies with a low P/E ratio compared to their sector, a strategy both Buffett and Lynch often employ to identify undervalued stocks.

  • Return on Equity (ROE): Focus on companies with high ROE, indicating strong profitability.

  • Earnings Growth: Filter for companies with strong earnings growth, a characteristic valued by both Lynch and Buffett.

see warren buffet stock picks, Gurufocus free plan

An investor following the Buffett-Lynch strategy might set:

  • P/E Ratio: Under 15

  • ROE: Over 15%

  • Earnings Growth: Positive over 5 years

This returns a list of companies that meet the growth and valuation criteria that Buffett and Lynch prioritize, such as Coca-Cola or American Express, both of which fit their investment approach.

2. Piotroski F-Score Screener

The Piotroski F-Score is a fundamental analysis tool that evaluates the financial strength of a company. It uses a series of 9 criteria to assess whether a stock is a good investment based on its financial performance.

  • Piotroski F-Score: The screener ranks stocks based on their financial health, with scores from 0 to 9. A higher score indicates a stronger financial position.

  • Liquidity and Profitability: Filters stocks based on positive cash flow, return on assets, and profitability.

  • Debt Levels: Use the Piotroski F-Score to identify companies with manageable debt levels and low financial risk.

An investor seeking financially strong stocks with minimal debt might filter for:

  • Piotroski F-Score: 7+

  • Cash Flow: Positive

  • Debt-to-Equity: Under 0.5

This would return companies with strong financial health and low debt, indicating lower risk and better stability for long-term investments.

3. GuruFocus All-In-One Screener

The All-In-One Screener is a comprehensive tool that allows you to filter stocks across a wide array of financial metrics and performance indicators.

This screener helps you identify stocks that meet specific criteria, such as valuation ratios, profitability measures, and other key metrics.

  • Market Cap: Filter stocks based on market capitalization to focus on large, mid, or small-cap stocks, depending on your investment goals.

  • Valuation Ratios: Use filters for P/E, P/B, and P/S ratios to find undervalued stocks or those trading at fair value.

  • Profitability: Filter by ROE (Return on Equity) and ROA (Return on Assets) to identify highly profitable companies.

valuation screeners, Gurufocus

An investor looking for undervalued mid-cap stocks with strong profitability might set:

  • Market Cap: $2B – $10B

  • P/E Ratio: Under 15

  • ROE: Over 15%

This would return a list of companies that are profitable, undervalued based on their P/E ratio, and fall within the mid-cap range, offering growth potential at a reasonable price.

4. Hedge Fund Guru Top 10 Aggregated Screener

The Hedge Fund Guru Top 10 Aggregated Screener aggregates the top 10 holdings of multiple prominent hedge fund managers. 

  • Top 10 Holdings: View stocks widely held by hedge funds to identify large, well-regarded companies that institutional investors trust.

  • Ownership Trends: Spot changes in hedge fund ownership, allowing investors to follow the flow of institutional money into or out of stocks.

  • Sector Exposure: Focus on stocks that appear in the top holdings of hedge funds across different sectors, allowing for diversified exposure.

An investor may want to mirror the top picks of successful hedge funds. They could set:

  • Top Holdings: In the top 10 of hedge fund portfolios

  • Sector: Technology

  • Market Cap: Over $50B

This could return major tech companies such as Apple and Microsoft, which are popular picks among hedge funds due to their consistent performance and market leadership.

5. Dividend Kings Screener

The Dividend Kings 2025 Screener is designed to help investors identify stocks that have a long history of increasing dividends year after year.

The Dividend Kings are companies that have consistently raised their dividends for 50 years or more, making them ideal for income-focused investors looking for stability and reliability.

  • Dividend Growth: Focuses on companies with long-term dividend growth, typically at least 50 consecutive years of increases.

  • Financial Stability: Targets companies with stable financials and the ability to continue paying out dividends over the long term.

  • Income Reliability: Ideal for retirees or income-focused investors looking for reliable dividend-paying stocks to build a steady income stream.

An investor might use this screener to find Coca-Cola or Johnson & Johnson, both of which have long histories of dividend growth.

By focusing on companies that have increased dividends for decades, investors can ensure they are investing in companies with strong fundamentals and reliable income potential.

FAQ

The GuruFocus stock screener allows you to filter stocks using valuation metrics like P/E, P/B, and P/S ratios, helping to find undervalued companies.

The All-In-One Screener is one of the leading paid stock screeners that filters stocks based on over 500 financial metrics, including profitability, growth, and valuation ratios.

Yes, the screener provides filters for dividend yield, growth, and payout ratios, helping investors identify stocks that offer stable and growing dividends.

Yes, the screener includes an Analyst Ratings filter to find stocks that analysts recommend, such as “Buy” or “Strong Buy” ratings.

The Piotroski F-Score screener helps evaluate the financial health of a company, using a set of criteria to assess profitability, cash flow, and debt levels.

Yes, the Smart Money Screener tracks institutional activity and identifies stocks with high hedge fund or mutual fund ownership.

The Guru Strategies Screener allows users to apply the stock-picking strategies of famous investors like Warren Buffett or Peter Lynch to filter stocks based on their criteria.

Picture of Baruch Mann (Silvermann)

Baruch Mann (Silvermann)

Baruch Silvermann is a financial expert, experienced analyst, and founder of The Smart Investor.  Silvermann has contributed to Yahoo Finance and cited as an authoritative source in financial outlets like Forbes, Business Insider, CNBC Select, CNET, Bankrate, Fox Business, The Street, and more.
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This website does not include all card companies or all card offers available in the marketplace. This website may use other proprietary factors to impact card offer listings on the website such as consumer selection or the likelihood of the applicant’s credit approval.

This allows us to maintain a full-time, editorial staff and work with finance experts you know and trust. The compensation we receive from advertisers does not influence the recommendations or advice our editorial team provides in our articles or otherwise impacts any of the editorial content on The Smart Investor.

While we work hard to provide accurate and up to date information that we think you will find relevant, The Smart Investor does not and cannot guarantee that any information provided is complete and makes no representations or warranties in connection thereto, nor to the accuracy or applicability thereof.

Learn more about how we review products and read our advertiser disclosure for how we make money. All products are presented without warranty.