Screener backtest

How a screener backtest differs from a strategy backtest

A backtest of a strategy replays that strategy's own allocation, rebalancing, and exit rules over history and produces an equity curve plus a full metrics table. A screener backtest never builds a portfolio: it repeats the screen on a monthly cadence, then averages what the selected instruments did over the next 1, 2, 3, 6, 12, and 24 months. So a strategy backtest has one path and one final value, while a screener backtest has six per-horizon averages and no equity curve. The two also answer to different inputs — a strategy backtest changes when you change allocation or exits, a screener backtest changes only when the filters or the universe change.

What happens while a screener backtest runs

A run is submitted and then watched until it finishes, so the view moves through named states rather than blocking:

Cancel stops watching the run; it does not undo anything, and a previously completed result stays on screen rather than blanking.

What the verdict band shows

The verdict band is the standing answer to "did these filters beat the market?", and it appears on both the Matches and Backtest sub-views. It carries the benchmark it measured against (in the Benchmark universe dock), one hero figure — the annualized edge at the best horizon, read as "annualized above the benchmark" or "annualized below the benchmark" — and then all six horizons as compact figures. Every figure in the band is an edge, so it is quoted in percentage points (pp) rather than as a return: +3.4 pp means the matches annualized 3.4 points above the benchmark over that horizon, not that they returned 3.4%. A zero reads as a tie, in neutral styling, never as a win.

What the "Out of date" banner means

When you change the filters after a run, the app keeps the previous result and marks it out of date rather than deleting it. The banner reads:

Out of date — filters changed since the last backtest. Showing the previous run.

The fix is the Re-run backtest action beside it. The old result stays visible but dimmed, so you can still read it while knowing it belongs to the earlier filter set.

Defaults in Fincanva

• Every screener backtest starts in 2000 and ends at the latest available market data, and it re-screens on a monthly cadence — the methodology strip states "Rebalanced monthly".
• The six holding horizons are fixed at 1, 2, 3, 6, 12, and 24 months and are not configurable.
• The run tests the saved screener, not unsaved edits — which is why saving a change marks the last result out of date.
• The Backtest action needs at least one saved filter; with no rules the view shows "Backtest your screening rules" and points you at the filter bar instead.
• A completed result is not carried across visits: reopening the screener returns the Backtest sub-view to its never-run state, so you press Backtest again.
• That second run comes back quickly rather than recomputing, because the finished result is reused for an unchanged screener until new market data arrives — which is also why the same screener's figures can shift from one day to the next with no change to its filters.

Worked example

A screener over US stocks holds three filters: P/E < 20, Sector = Technology, and Market cap > $10B. You press Backtest. The run steps to "Backtesting 41%", then completes. The verdict band names the benchmark, shows one hero figure — say +2.8 pp annualized at the 3-month horizon, marked as the best horizon — and lists all six horizons beside it, some positive and some negative. You then loosen the first filter to P/E < 25. Nothing recomputes on its own: the banner appears, the old result dims, and the numbers you are looking at still belong to P/E < 20 until you press Re-run backtest.

These figures describe what a screener's matches would have done on historical data, not what they will do. Fincanva provides no financial advice — see Is this financial advice?.