What Is Free Cash Flow — and Why Investors Trust It
Free cash flow shows the cash a company really keeps after capex. Here’s the formula, real Big Tech examples, and why FCF beats earnings.
investing basics
What Is EBITDA — And What It Doesn’t Tell You
EBITDA strips out interest, tax, and non-cash charges. Here’s how to calculate it, why Wall Street uses it, and where it misleads.
How Treasury Auctions Work: Bid-to-Cover and Tails
How the U.S. Treasury actually raises money: single-price auctions, competitive vs noncompetitive bids, primary dealers, and what tails reveal.
QE vs QT: How the Fed Balance Sheet Actually Works
A plain-English guide to how the Fed creates reserves to buy bonds (QE) and lets them mature to shrink the balance sheet (QT), with 2026 numbers.
Bond Duration & Convexity: Why Long Bonds Move Most
What is bond duration? A plain-English guide with the rule of thumb, the formula, and a worked example using current Treasury yields.
Options 101: Calls, Puts, Strike, and Expiry Explained
A plain-English guide to stock options: how calls, puts, strike, expiration, and premium work, with payoff charts and a worked example.
Stock Buybacks vs. Dividends: How Companies Pay You Back
Buybacks and dividends both return cash to shareholders, but they work very differently. Here’s the math, the tax rules, and when each one wins.
CLOs Explained: How Collateralized Loan Obligations Work
What is a CLO? How collateralized loan obligations slice up leveraged corporate loans into rated tranches and where the AAAs actually stand.
IPO vs Direct Listing vs SPAC: How Companies Go Public
A side-by-side guide to the three paths to public markets — traditional IPO, direct listing, and SPAC merger — with real examples and trade-offs.
What Is the P/E Ratio — and When Does It Mislead?
P/E in plain English: the formula, a worked example, sector ranges from NYU’s Damodaran, and why the Shiller CAPE near 42 sits within a whisker of the 1999 peak.