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Operating Income Growth Rate Screener — Filter Stocks by EBIT Growth
Mid and large-cap stocks ranked by year-over-year operating income (EBIT) growth. Filter by sector and growth threshold to shortlist companies whose core business profitability is expanding — before interest costs and taxes distort the bottom line — for deeper quality and valuation analysis.
How to Read the Operating Income Growth Screener
Operating income — also called EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) — is the profit a business generates from its core operations after paying all operating costs: cost of goods sold, salaries, rent, depreciation, and other overhead. It excludes interest expenses and income taxes, which are financing and tax decisions rather than operating performance. That makes EBIT one of the cleanest measures of whether a business is actually getting more profitable, independent of how it is financed.
The Op Income Growth YoY column compares the most recent reported fiscal year's EBIT to the prior year. The Operating Income column shows the latest absolute figure so you can verify the growth rate rests on a meaningful base — a jump from $20M to $60M is 200% growth but may matter less than steady 15% growth on $5B of operating profit.
Operating Income vs. Net Income: Why the Distinction Matters
Net income is operating income minus interest expense minus taxes plus any non-operating items. A company can report flat net income growth while operating income grows 20% — if rising interest rates on floating-rate debt ate the gains. Conversely, a one-time tax benefit can make net income growth look spectacular while the underlying business is stagnating. Screening for operating income growth cuts through those distractions and focuses on the engine of the business.
Operating leverage is the other reason to track EBIT separately. High-fixed-cost businesses (software, media, manufacturing) can see operating income grow two to three times as fast as revenue once they clear their breakeven. That inflection — revenue tipping from covering fixed costs to flowing straight into profit — shows up dramatically in EBIT growth before it reaches net income.
Pairing This Screener with Margin and Valuation Tools
Operating income growth answers the speed question; operating margin answers the quality question. The strongest setups show both: expanding margin and accelerating EBIT. Use the Operating Margin Screener to identify which of the high-growth businesses here are also widening their margins — those are the compounders. Then use the EV/EBITDA Calculator or DCF Calculator to ask what the market is pricing in for continued EBIT growth and whether the current price is reasonable.
Frequently asked questions
How is operating income calculated in this screener?
Operating income uses EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) from each company's most recent annual income statement. The growth rate compares the latest fiscal year to the prior year. EBIT is the standard operating profitability measure used in EV/EBITDA and other valuation multiples.
Why might a company show negative operating income growth?
Several causes: rising input costs outpacing price increases, heavy investment in sales and marketing to capture growth, a revenue shortfall that exposes fixed-cost leverage in reverse, or deliberate reinvestment. A single year of negative EBIT growth on a healthy base is often noise — look at the multi-year trend and the revenue context.
How does operating income growth differ from EPS growth?
EPS growth is affected by share buybacks (fewer shares = higher EPS even if earnings are flat), tax-rate changes, and non-operating income. Operating income growth reflects only the core business. A company can grow EPS 15% via buybacks while EBIT is flat — meaning the business itself is not getting more profitable. EBIT growth is the harder test.
How often does this screener update?
Operating income growth data refreshes daily using the latest available annual financial statements from Yahoo Finance. The underlying figures change when companies report their annual results. The screener covers mid and large-cap companies across seven sectors.