A stock screener is a tool that filters stocks based on criteria you set. Instead of manually checking thousands of companies one by one, a screener does the work in seconds and shows you only the stocks that match what you're looking for.
Why Use a Screener?
There are roughly 6,000 publicly traded stocks in the US alone. Nobody has time to research all of them. A screener narrows the field so you can focus your limited research time on the best candidates.
Think of it like apartment hunting. You wouldn't visit every apartment in a city. You'd filter by price range, neighborhood, and number of bedrooms first. A stock screener does the same thing for investments.
Common Screening Criteria
Conviction Score
On ConvictionStocks, the Conviction Score is a 0-to-100 rating that combines valuation, growth, analyst consensus, momentum, and sentiment into a single number. Filtering for stocks above 60 or 70 gives you a shortlist of companies that look strong across multiple dimensions.
This is a good starting point, but it's not a buy signal. It's a way to prioritize where to spend your research time.
Sector
Different sectors perform differently depending on economic conditions. Technology stocks tend to do well when interest rates are low and growth is valued. Energy and utility stocks often outperform during periods of high inflation or economic uncertainty.
Filtering by sector lets you focus on industries you understand or want exposure to.
Market Capitalization
Market cap tells you the size of a company:
- Mega cap (over $200 billion): Companies like Apple, Microsoft, and Amazon. Very stable, well-covered by analysts, lower risk but often slower growth.
- Large cap ($10B to $200B): Established companies with solid track records. Good balance of stability and growth potential.
- Mid cap ($2B to $10B): Companies that are still growing. More volatile than large caps but with more room to expand.
- Small cap (under $2B): Younger or niche companies. Higher risk, potentially higher reward, less analyst coverage.
Most beginners should start with large and mega cap stocks. They're easier to research because there's more information available about them.
Price and Performance
You can filter by current price, daily change percentage, or price trends. This helps you find stocks that are moving in a particular direction or trading within a range you're comfortable with.
How to Screen Effectively
Start Broad, Then Narrow
Don't set too many filters at once. Start with one or two criteria (like sector and minimum conviction score) and see what comes up. If the list is too long, add another filter. If it's too short, loosen your criteria.
Don't Over-Optimize
A common mistake is setting filters so tight that you only get two or three results. This doesn't mean you've found the "best" stocks. It means you've probably excluded good candidates with criteria that are too rigid.
Use the Screener as Step One
The screener gives you a shortlist, not a portfolio. After filtering, click through to individual stock pages and actually read the research. Check the company description, look at the score breakdown, review analyst consensus if available.
The screening phase should take 5 minutes. The research phase is where you spend real time.
Screen Regularly
Markets change. A stock that didn't pass your filters last month might look different now after an earnings report or market shift. Check your screener weekly or bi-weekly to catch new opportunities.
Common Screening Strategies
High Conviction, Any Sector
Set the minimum conviction score to 70+ and leave everything else open. This gives you the strongest overall candidates regardless of industry. Good for building a diversified watchlist.
Sector Deep Dive
Pick one sector you understand well and filter just within that space. If you work in healthcare, screening healthcare stocks with a conviction score above 50 might surface companies you already have insight into.
Value Hunting
Filter for lower conviction scores (40 to 60) in large cap stocks. Sometimes a good company with temporary headwinds shows up in this range. If you can identify why the score is lower and believe the issue is temporary, it might be a contrarian opportunity.
Growth Screening
Filter by mid-cap stocks with high conviction scores. These are companies big enough to be stable but small enough to still have significant growth potential.
What a Screener Cannot Do
A screener filters data. It doesn't predict the future. No combination of filters will guarantee a stock goes up. The screener removes noise and helps you focus, but the final investment decision always requires judgment and additional research.
Also, screeners only work with quantitative data. They can't capture things like management quality, competitive moats, or industry disruption risks. Those require reading, thinking, and forming your own view.
Try It
Head to the ConvictionStocks screener and start with a simple filter: minimum conviction score of 60, any sector. Browse the results, click on a few companies that interest you, and start building your research habit.
The goal isn't to find the perfect stock in one session. It's to develop a repeatable process for finding good candidates and researching them thoroughly.
This content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice.