Lag, period, and multiplier are the inputs in a filter's Advanced panel that shift or scale what a metric reads before it is compared. Lag moves the reading back in time, Period sets the window it covers, and Multiplier scales it. Each input carries a unit that depends on the filter — Months Ago, Reports Ago, Quarters, Days, Bars, or Std Devs — so the same control means "four reports ago" on a fundamental filter and "twenty days" on a technical one. They change only the reading, never the comparison mode or the operator applied to it.
What the lag and period units mean
You set the number; the filter decides which unit it counts in.
| Unit | Used on | Means |
|---|---|---|
| Months Ago | fundamental / price-history filters | shift the reading back by that many calendar months |
| Reports Ago | fundamental filters | shift back by that many financial reports (filings) |
| Quarters | fundamental filters | count in three-month reporting quarters |
| Days | technical / price filters | count in trading days |
| Bars | technical filters | count in price bars (data points on the chart) |
| Std Devs | technical filters | scale in standard deviations of the metric |
The Period input is separate and sets the length of a windowed metric, in Months or Years.
Defaults in Fincanva
- The unit is fixed by the filter — you enter the number, the filter decides whether it counts in reports, months, days, bars, or standard deviations.
- Lag is optional; leaving it at zero compares the metric at its latest reading.
- Period sets a window length (in Months or Years) for metrics that summarise a span rather than a single point.
Worked example
A revenue filter in vs Lagged Self mode uses Reports Ago as its lag unit. Set the lag to 4 and the filter reads each company's revenue from four financial reports back — for a company reporting quarterly, roughly a year earlier — and compares it to the latest revenue. "Reports Ago" counts filings, not calendar time, so a company that files quarterly and one that files half-yearly are shifted by different spans for the same lag of 4.
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Fincanva provides no financial advice. Backtests show what would have happened — not what will.
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