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C9

Capital Investment Imbalance

Composite / composite / 6 to 12 months

What it detects

Fixed-asset stock relative to annual revenue falls outside the healthy PS benchmark band, signaling either under-investment in delivery infrastructure or capital tied up in assets relative to revenue. C9 is a balance-sheet stock variant of the same investment-adequacy concept S32 measures on a P&L flow basis.

When it fires

Fixed-asset intensity (`balanceSheet.totalFixedAssets` divided by `incomeStatement.netSalesAnnual`) is less than [redacted] percent (`underInvesting` branch) OR greater than [redacted] percent (`overInvesting` branch). The composite is two-sided: a firm can fire on either deviation from the [redacted] to [redacted] percent benchmark band. Emit location: `lib/financial-engine/src/financialEngine.js:[redacted]`.

Why it matters

A PS firm with fixed-asset intensity below [redacted] percent is unlikely to be replacing tooling, infrastructure, or delivery equipment at a rate that keeps pace with growth; the next major equipment failure becomes a forced crisis purchase. A PS firm with intensity above [redacted] percent has capital tied up in assets that could otherwise fund working capital, hiring, or growth runway; the asset base produces a fixed-cost drag without offsetting capacity.

What it looks like in practice

A $[redacted]M-revenue consulting firm carrying $[redacted]K in fixed assets sits at [redacted] percent intensity. The firm runs on aging equipment with no replacement-cycle plan, and balance-sheet decay is invisible until the equipment fails mid-engagement. A similar firm carrying $[redacted]K in fixed assets sits at [redacted] percent intensity. Equipment was acquired for a prior engagement that ended; the assets now drag on depreciation without producing offsetting revenue, and the firm cannot reallocate that capital to working capital or hiring without selling assets at a discount.

Severity levels

  • MEDIUM

Thresholds

  • FIXED_ASSET_INTENSITY_BAND_HIGH
  • FIXED_ASSET_INTENSITY_BAND_LOW
  • FIXED_ASSET_INTENSITY_OVER
  • FIXED_ASSET_INTENSITY_UNDER

Exact thresholds, formulas, and severity bands are omitted from this public view. The full methodology, with every figure, is available in the authenticated app.

How it connects

[redacted]

Sources

  • Professor Aswath Damodaran
  • Translation to stock-based metric (practitioner-derived)
  • Firing thresholds (practitioner-derived asymmetric bounds)

SEE IT ON REAL NUMBERS

The exact thresholds, the formula, and your own figures are in the authenticated app. See it against a real, simulated dataset for Integra Executive Services, our public demo company, or connect your own QuickBooks Online account.

Get accessSee the nightly proof