The Altman Z-score blends five balance-sheet and profitability ratios into a single bankruptcy-risk number: above ~3 is safe, 1.8–3 is the gray zone, below ~1.8 flags distress risk. This heatmap colors US stocks by Z-score, sized by market cap and grouped by sector — a solvency map of the whole market.
Greener tiles are safer on the Z-score model, redder tiles are closer to distress. Financial-sector names score differently by design — read them with sector context.
Below 1.8 is the distress zone in the original model, 1.8–3.0 is gray, above 3.0 is safe. The model was built for manufacturers — financials and utilities need different interpretation.
It flagged ~70–80% of failures in backtests a year or two early, with meaningful false positives. Treat it as an early-warning screen, not a verdict.
The model penalizes high working-capital deficits and leverage — capital-light or buyback-heavy firms can score poorly while being perfectly solvent. Combine with FCF-margin for the fuller picture.
Heatmap data updates through the trading session. Fundamentals come from Finnhub and SEC filings; scores are simplified heuristics for screening — not investment advice.