One important issue in the formation of the cluster portfolios was the selection of the accounting variables to be used in the analysis. Many may be selected, but inclusion of variables which are not related to equity risk will hinder the accuracy of the analysis. In our tests we use two sets of accounting variables, each of which is primarily from the components of return on shareholders’ equity (ROE), the closest accounting analog to actual returns to shareholders. The use of ROE to analyze corporate performance is widely accepted, both in the presence of market data and also when market data are not available. Higgins (2008) presents evidence that ROE is effective at predicting the ratio of market value of equity to book value of equity (see figures 2.1 and 2.2 in Higgins). Following the classic DuPont method, we use net profit margin, total asset turnover, and a leverage ratio as the three ROE components. In addition to the components of ROE, we include cash flow from operations in every analysis, and we also examine measures of variability in net income and cash flow, cash flows required for capital expenditures, and sales growth.