I agree - I have been telling investors for years that is a huge mistake to look at the revenue first. If the financials are truthful - everything you need to know is on the Balance Sheet. I personally look at the profit/Loss from Operations - this tells me how efficient the company is operated. One company I have been following for 6 years has increasing revenue but so are the COGS and SGA - so they have never had a profitable quarter. Also, a huge red flag is when the SGA is a one line entry. IG