Interview by Skyla Valade
STOCKCALC IS TAKING THEIR NEXT STEP
Back in 2013, Brian Donovan incorporated stockcalc when he had the perfect opportunity to switch gears in his professional life. As an expert with a background and interest in stock valuation who found himself between jobs, he decided that the startup journey was worth a shot. We had the chance to sit down with Brian and hear all about what happened next, and the journey that stockcalc has been on since then.
The Early Days
For the first few years, the top priority was building a successful software platform. With a small team and a big idea, they took their time crafting what is now known as stockcalc. But, their hard work paid off as they began to gain recognition. stockcalc was accepted onto TD Ameritrade and Charles Schwab advisor sites, and other investment platforms.
Although their initial goal was to build a B2C business model, they quickly realized that the complexity of their information made it difficult to engage the typical retail investor. Partnering with large platforms allowed them to grow a B2B2C model and truly find their stride.
Reaching the Growth Stage
Today, stockcalc provides daily reports on 9000 stocks and 2000 ETFs, giving users a unique view into valuation to help them make more informed decisions. Their data is used daily on The Globe and Mail, and they have a 76% accuracy rate, which is one of the highest in the industry. One of stockcalc’s attributes that has helped them capture attention and success is their use of actual stock valuations. Rather than giving a rating, as is common in the industry, they actually assign dollar amounts to their valuations.
What’s Next?
More recently, stockcalc launched their unique consumer facing blog. Their custom-built automated blog is all about the overall mission of helping retail investors make more informed decisions. They generate over 1400 blog posts every month, offering up more in-depth and publicly available insights on valuations.
In tandem, they’ve been setting up a new feature which appeals to more short-term investors or swing traders. Each night, they use a new regression model to understand what factors are impacting a stock’s price. The platform then uses that data to calculate what the stock should be worth right now, compared to what it’s currently trading at.
Brian is most excited about seeing where the foundational work leads the company in the coming years, and they’re not done innovating yet.
“We spent a lot of time building the platform for everything we’ve done,
but now we can grow from that platform.”
Brian Donovan, founder, stockcalc
stockcalc & fintech hub
stockcalc is a part of the Fintech Hub, a long-term no-fee no-equity program for startups with bold ideas. The Atlantic Division of the Fintech Hub is proudly run in partnership with Atlantic FinTech.
- To learn more about Fintech Cadence, click here.
- To learn more about stockcalc, click here.
- To check out their new blog, click here.
