Stockpicking is hard. Finding companies with excellent prospects, secure competitive positions, effective management teams, the track records to back it up and all at a reasonable (let alone a cheap) valuation involves heaps of research, digging and reading.
So if you feel overwhelmed – or just want a place to start – a simple heuristic might be of use.
That is one way of describing the Investors' Chronicle stock screens. A quantitative approach to investing begins with a few rules, applies them to the market, and whittles down the potential avenues for research into a more manageable shortlist.