GAAP / Non-GAAP (adjusted earnings)
The difference between official earnings reported under the set accounting rules (GAAP) and the adjusted (Non-GAAP) earnings a company reports separately after excluding certain items.
GAAP = official earnings calculated under the set accounting rules
It is common for adjusted earnings to be somewhat larger than GAAP earnings.
In plain terms
GAAP is "the accounting rulebook everyone has agreed to follow." US-listed companies must report their official results under these rules. Only when the ruler is the same can companies be compared.
Still, companies often also report Non-GAAP (adjusted) earnings, saying "this cost is one-off or involves no cash going out, so leaving it aside, here is our underlying performance." For example, they may exclude the cost of shares given to employees (stock compensation expense) or restructuring costs.
What it tells you
Non-GAAP can strip out one-off noise and show the flow of the core business, but it can also become a tool for presenting results so they "look better." So when the gap between the two is large, that gap reveals "what the company would like to leave out."
When a news headline says EPS came in above market expectations, the meaning differs depending on whether it is GAAP or adjusted EPS. Companies usually put forward the adjusted figure, which looks better.
Formula
GAAP = official earnings calculated under the set accounting rules Non-GAAP (adjusted) = the company's own figure, calculated by removing certain costs (stock compensation, restructuring, etc.) from GAAP
What high or low means
It is common for adjusted earnings to be somewhat larger than GAAP earnings. But if that gap is large every year and the excluded items repeat each time (for example, stock compensation expense being excluded as if it were "one-off" year after year), those items are hard to call one-off.
Whether the excluded items are truly one-time (restructuring, litigation settlements) or in fact costs that recur every year changes what the adjusted figures mean.
If items excluded as "one-time" show up year after year, they are no longer one-time. Stock-based compensation (SBC) in particular is often excluded on the grounds that no cash goes out, but the share count rises by that much and shareholders' stakes are diluted — a real cost.
With Non-GAAP, each company sets its own standard for what to exclude, so comparing companies is difficult. As a basis for comparison, GAAP, with its common rules, is safer.
When a company highlights adjusted earnings prominently and prints GAAP in small type, that is a signal to check once more "why the gap exists."
Metrics to read alongside
See it in real stocks
Search US stocks on Stocklore to see GAAP alongside the sector benchmark.
This explanation is for information and reference only and is not a recommendation to buy or sell any security. Investment decisions and their consequences are your own.