Gross profit indicator (Historical) Formula in Excel

Understanding Gross profit indicator (Historical)

The Gross profit indicator (Historical) formula is designed to help Excel users analyze a company’s gross profit trends over a chosen historical period. By revealing changes in the gross profit margin, this formula provides insight into past performance and can help you make more informed decisions regarding future profitability.

• Purpose: Quickly access gross profit data for a specific year and quarter or trailing twelve months (TTM).
• Key Benefits:
  • Simplifies retrieving historical fundamental data directly in Excel.
  • Helps track trends in gross profit ratios over different periods.
  • Assists in forecasting potential future performance based on historical data.
• When to Use: Use this formula when you need a fast, reliable way to analyze or compare gross profit indicators across different years and quarters for stocks, indices, options, or crypto symbols.

Syntax and Parameters

=hf_Gross_Profit_Indicator(Symbol, year, [quarter], [TTM])

?? Note: The formula returns a numeric value if successful, or "NA" if the symbol is invalid, the license is not valid, or an error occurs.

Return Value

• Returns a numeric value indicating the gross profit indicator for the specified period.
• Returns "NA" if the symbol is invalid, a license check fails, or an internal error occurs.

? Pro Tip: You can use dynamic references for the year or quarter parameters (e.g., referencing cells that contain the year or quarter values).

Date Input Formats

Although this function typically expects a year or special keyword, you can still reference date cells or Excel date functions if needed to populate the year parameter:

1. Cell references:

   =hf_Gross_Profit_Indicator(A1, B1)

   (Where A1 might contain a symbol like "MSFT" and B1 might contain "2023" or "ly".)

2. Direct dates:

   =hf_Gross_Profit_Indicator("MSFT", "2024-03-15")

   (If your workflow involves storing full dates in cells, you can adapt the year portion.)

3. Excel date functions:

   =hf_Gross_Profit_Indicator("MSFT", TEXT(A1,"yyyy-mm-dd"))

Examples and Usage

1. Retrieving gross profit for a specific year:

   =hf_Gross_Profit_Indicator("MSFT", 2022)

   Returns the gross profit indicator for Microsoft in 2022.

2. Including the quarter parameter:

   =hf_Gross_Profit_Indicator("MSFT", 2022, 2)

   Returns the indicator for Microsoft in 2022, quarter 2.

3. Using trailing twelve months (TTM):

   =hf_Gross_Profit_Indicator("MSFT", 2022, 3, "TTM")

   Calculates trailing 12 months up to quarter 3 of 2022.

4. Special keywords (“ly” for last year, “lq” for last quarter):
   » Last Year

   =hf_Gross_Profit_Indicator("MSFT", "ly")

   » Last Quarter - 1

   =hf_Gross_Profit_Indicator("MSFT", "lq-1")

   » Last 12 Months

   =hf_Gross_Profit_Indicator("MSFT", "lt")

5. Using different symbol types:

   • Indices:

     =hf_Gross_Profit_Indicator("^SPX", 2022)

   • Options:

     =hf_Gross_Profit_Indicator("@MSFT 110122C00020000", "ly-1")

   • Crypto:

     =hf_Gross_Profit_Indicator("BTCUSD:DEFAULT", "lq")

? Pro Tip: Combine the results of multiple calls to analyze a stock’s gross profit trend over consecutive quarters or years, making it easier to spot growth or setbacks.

Common Questions

1. Why am I getting "NA"?

   • The symbol may be invalid. Double-check the symbol string (e.g., "MSFT" vs. "MSTF").
   • The license check may have failed; ensure your MarketXLS subscription is valid.
   • There could be a temporary data or network issue.

2. Is it possible to reference cell values for quarter and year?

   • Yes. For instance, if cells A1 and B1 contain the symbol and the year, respectively, use:

     =hf_Gross_Profit_Indicator(A1, B1)

3. How do I speed up my workbook when calling multiple historical formulas?

   • Limit the number of real-time calls by caching data into another sheet.
   • Use best practices such as referencing cells and updating them less frequently.

4. What if I need more fundamental metrics?

   • MarketXLS includes other historical formulas like hf_Revenue, hf_Gross_Profit, and hf_R_and_D_Expenses for a deeper analysis.

?? Note: This formula relies on external data sources through MarketXLS. Network speed and data availability can affect performance.

• Related Functions:
  • Revenue (Historical)
  • Cost Of Revenue (Historical)
  • Gross Profit (Historical)
  • R & D Expenses (Historical)
  • Selling General and Administrative Expense (Historical)