Trailing 12 Months (TTM): Definition, Calculation, and How It's Used

What Is Trailing 12 Months (TTM)?

Trailing 12 months (TTM) is a term that describes the past 12 consecutive months of a company's performance data used for reporting financial figures. These figures represent a more current picture of a business's financial performance than using its annual filings and reports, which, at times, can contain information that is nearly one year old.

The 12 months studied do not necessarily coincide with a fiscal-year ending period. TTM figures are produced for various metrics, including earnings, EPS, P/E, and yield.

Understanding Trailing 12 Months (TTM)

Analysts and investors use TTM to dissect a wide swath of financial data, such as balance sheet figures, income statements, and cash flows. The methodology for calculating TTM data may differ from one financial statement to the next.

In the equity research space, some analysts report earnings quarterly, while others do so annually. But investors who seek daily information about stock prices and other current data may look to TTMs as more relevant measures because they're more current and seasonally adjusted.

TTM figures can also be used to calculate financial ratios. The price/earnings ratio is often called the P/E (TTM) and is calculated as the stock's current price divided by a company's trailing 12-month earnings per share (EPS).

Much of fundamental analysis involves comparing a measurement against a like measurement from a prior term to decipher how much growth was realized. For example, although the company that reports $1 billion in revenues is undoubtedly impressive, this achievement is even more notable if that same company's revenues increased from $500 million to $1 billion within the last 12 months. This marked improvement provides a clear snapshot of the company's growth trajectory.

Where to Find the TTM Measures

The 12-month measure is typically reported on a company’s balance sheet, which is customarily updated every quarter to comply with generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). However, some analysts take an average of the first and last quarters.

Line items on the cash flow statement (e.g., working capital, capital expenditures, and dividend payments) should be treated based on the feeding financial statement. For example, working capital is compiled from balance sheet line items, which are averaged. However, depreciation is deducted from income on a quarterly basis; so analysts look at the last four quarters as reported on the income statement.

TTM Revenue

TTM Revenue describes the revenue that a company earns over the trailing 12 months (TTM) of business. This data is instrumental in determining whether or not a company has experienced meaningful top-line growth, and can pinpoint precisely where that growth is coming from. However, this figure is often overshadowed by a company’s profitability and capability to generate earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA).

To calculate TTM revenue, simply add up the previous four quarters of revenues.

TTM Revenue = current Q earnings + Q-1 earnings + Q-2 earnings + Q-3 earnings.

So, if XYZ Corp. generated $29.4 billion in revenue in Q1, $33.5 billion in Q4, $30 billion in Q3, and $21.9 billion in Q2, TTM revenue would be:

$29.4 + $33.5 + $30 + $21.9 = $87.8 billion

TTM Yield

Used to analyze mutual fund or exchange-traded fund (ETF) performance, TTM yield is the percentage of income a portfolio has returned to investors over the last 12 months. This number is calculated by taking the weighted average of the yields of all holdings housed within a fund, whether they be stock, bonds, or other funds.

TTM yield can also refer to the dividend yield for a stock paid out over the prior 12 months. For instance, if a company with $100 stock paid a $0.10 quarterly dividend over the past four quarters, the TTM yield would be: (0.10 + 0.10 + 0.10 + 0.10)/$100 = 0.4%.

TTM Price/Earning Ratio

TTM is also used to examine the trailing P/E ratio of a company's stock. Trailing P/E is a relative valuation multiple based on the last 12 months of actual earnings. It is calculated by taking the current stock price and dividing it by the TTM earnings per share (EPS).

Trailing P/E Ratio = Current Share Price / TTM EPS

Trailing P/E can be contrasted with the forward P/E, which instead uses projected future earnings to calculate the price-to-earnings ratio.

The Bottom Line

Trailing 12-month (TTM) figures report metrics based on the last 12 months (or four quarters) to date on a rolling basis. In addition to measuring recent trends or annual performance, TTM financial metrics are frequently used to compare the relative performance of similar companies within an industry or sector. Financial metrics commonly considered by looking at the last twelve months of figures include a company's sales, stock returns, dividend yield, price-earnings (P/E) ratio, and earnings per share (EPS).