Financial Growth

Retrieve and analyze comprehensive year-over-year growth in key financial metrics for public companies using Octagon MCP.

Prerequisites

Ensure Octagon MCP is configured in your AI agent (Cursor, Claude Desktop, Windsurf, etc.). See references/mcp-setup.md for installation instructions.

Query Format

Retrieve year-over-year growth in key financial metrics for <TICKER>, limited to <N> records and filtered by period <FY|Q>.

MCP Call:

{
  "server": "octagon-mcp",
  "toolName": "octagon-agent",
  "arguments": {
    "prompt": "Retrieve year-over-year growth in key financial metrics for AAPL, limited to 5 records and filtered by period FY"
  }
}

Output Format

The agent returns a comprehensive table with YoY growth percentages:

Fiscal Year	Revenue Growth (%)	Gross Profit Growth (%)	Operating Income Growth (%)	Net Income Growth (%)	EPS Growth (%)	Free Cash Flow Growth (%)
2025	6.43%	8.04%	7.98%	19.50%	22.59%	-5.73%
2024	2.02%	6.82%	7.80%	-3.36%	-0.81%	6.98%
2023	-2.80%	-0.96%	-4.30%	-2.81%	0.16%	-10.64%
2022	7.79%	11.74%	9.63%	5.41%	8.47%	19.89%
2021	33.26%	45.62%	64.36%	64.92%	71.30%	26.70%

Data Source: octagon-financials-agent

Key Insights Pattern

After receiving data, generate insights:

1. Peak performance years: Identify years with highest growth across all metrics
2. Earnings vs cash flow divergence: Compare Net Income growth to FCF growth
3. Margin trends: Compare Gross Profit and Operating Income growth to Revenue
4. EPS enhancement: Note when EPS growth exceeds Net Income growth (buybacks)
5. Challenging periods: Flag years with broad-based declines

Metrics Reference

Metric	Definition
Revenue Growth	YoY change in total sales
Gross Profit Growth	YoY change in Revenue minus COGS
Operating Income Growth	YoY change in income from operations
Net Income Growth	YoY change in bottom-line profit
EPS Growth	YoY change in earnings per share
Free Cash Flow Growth	YoY change in operating cash flow minus capex

Analysis Tips

Exceptional Growth Years

When all metrics show double-digit growth:

• Identify specific drivers (new products, markets, pricing)
• Assess sustainability of growth rate
• Compare to industry and competitors

Earnings Quality Check

When Net Income Growth >> Free Cash Flow Growth:

• Potential working capital build
• Aggressive revenue recognition
• One-time items boosting earnings
• Investigate cash conversion

Share Buyback Impact

When EPS Growth > Net Income Growth:

• Active share repurchase program
• Check shares outstanding trend
• Assess capital allocation priorities

Margin Expansion

When Operating Income Growth > Revenue Growth:

• Operating leverage at work
• Cost discipline showing results
• Pricing power in action

Contraction Periods

When multiple metrics decline:

• Identify root cause (demand, competition, costs)
• Check if industry-wide or company-specific
• Look for recovery signals in subsequent periods

Follow-up Queries

Based on results, suggest deeper analysis:

• "What factors contributed to the significant [YEAR] growth spike?"
• "How did the [YEAR] downturn impact [COMPANY]'s long-term strategy?"
• "What explains the [YEAR] net income growth despite lower free cash flow?"
• "Compare [COMPANY]'s growth metrics to [PEER1] and [PEER2]"