How to compute TTM of fundamentals? (trailing twelve months) yahoo finance uses secret sauce?

Question

Anyone knows how the TTM column is computed on yahoo finance?

I would have thought that the TTM column would be the sum of the four last available quarterly reports, based on the definition, but it doesn't add up. Is there some linear interpolation at play here?

Screenshot below accessed on July 31st 2023. Trailing twelve months would start July 31st 2022.

E.g. Summing up "Total Revenue": 94,836,000 + 117,154,000 + 90,146,000 + 82,959,000 = 385,095,000

!= 387,537,000

shown is Apple Inc. quarterly reports, on July 31st 2023https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/AAPL.NE/financials?p=AAPL.NE

Other

• Specific to P/E. How is yahoo finance P/E Ratio TTM calculated?
• Doesn't quite explain what to do when return statements don't line up. What are "trailing 12-month total returns"?

Annual reports: yahoo finance also gives out annual reports, with TTM. Seems to be the same numbers as in the quarterly image.

(shown is Apple Inc. quarterly reports, on July 31st 2023)

Answer 1

Nope, no linear interpolation at play, but you have to remember that U.S. public companies report quarterly financials (and usually semi-annually in other countries, like the UK). So as of July 31, 2023, the most recent quarterly financials then available were for the quarter ended 4/1/2023 (Apple appears to use an atypical quarter-end date), as the most recent quarter's financials were not released until August 4, 2023. So its correct that the TTM (or LTM as some also call it) figures shown on Yahoo Finance would have been as of 4/1/2023 on 7/31/2023.

In our world of near-real-time data availability, it's important to note that public company financial statements are fairly high-touch from a human review perspective. Releasing quarterly financials just 30 days after quarter end is on the faster side of things. A good rule of thumb is the larger the company, the faster they will release their quarterly financial reports, and it's market custom that the large U.S. banks release their quarterly numbers the earliest (usually 15-20 days after quarter end) and then everyone else comes later.