THE METHODOLOGY · SCORE

The Walter Score

One number, 0 to 100, recalculated every day. It's built from four parts on a locked formula — the same weights for every newsletter, never adjusted for anyone.

The formula

Score = 35% Performance + 35% Risk + 15% Process + 15% Consistency

Performance

35%

How much the newsletter made, and how much of that beat its peer benchmark (its alpha). Both matter: a big return in a roaring market isn't the same as genuinely outperforming peers. Performance is about return and outperformance — not risk-adjusted ratios. Walter shows Sharpe, Sortino, and alpha as context on the detail view, but the score rewards real, peer-relative results.

Risk

35%

Walter rewards capital preservation. It looks at how deep the losses got and how long they lasted, how choppy the ride was, how much of the movement was downside, and how the newsletter held up when the market fell. Steady beats whipsaw.

Process

15%

Discipline. Clear entries and exits, calls that don't contradict each other, and no quietly editing a recommendation after the fact. Good process is repeatable; sloppiness gets penalized.

Consistency

15%

Repeatability over luck. Steady results across time, a solid hit rate, and returns that don't hang on one or two outsized bets.

How it's calculated

The Score runs on a rolling six-month window, mark-to-market — open positions are valued at current prices, not ignored until they close. It updates daily after market close (16:00 ET). The Score is absolute: an 82 means the same thing in every peer group. Where a newsletter ranks against its peers is the Grade.