I keep coming back to investors when I think of ratios. To me ratios are extremely important to the investors in that it adds depth to the financial statements and thus to the overall perception of a company. Now there is no substitute for a detailed financial statement analysis, however the ratios can let you rank potential investments from the investors viewpoint. That shows the importance of the ratios as well as how ratios can potentially save an investor time during the review of a company.

Any other potential use of ratios that may not be apparent.