jumped sharply in 2016 , leading to an attractive cash flow to price ratio . The surge in earnings and resultant increase in stock price also caused the stock to score well in the momentum category . Finally , the surge in earnings contributed to a solid return on equity , which combined with Big Five's low debt to equity ratio to produce a strong quality score . Yet not all investors were so impressed with Big Five's stock . While quant investors piled into the stock , short sellers bet aggressively against it, so aggressively that the short position reached a highly unusual 50% of shares outstanding . Moreover , Big Five's largest long - time stakeholder , a traditional concentrated value investor called Stadium Capital , took advantage of the stock price surge to unload its entire position in Big Five . Thus , Big Five pitted the quants with their computer algorithms and financial formulas against the traditional fundamental analysts with their deep fundamental research on the company . Have the quants missed something or are the fundamental analysts succumbing to behavioral biases ? The purpose of this case is to try and figure out which side is right . Big Five's Form 10 -K for the year ended December 31, 2016 is provide d on Canvas . Use this information to answer the following questions : Questions 1. Summarize Big Five 's business stra tegy . Evaluate the industry competition and discuss how Big Five plans to compete in the industry 2. Identify the key risks associated with Big Five's business strategy 3. Do you think that the solid earnings growth that Big Five experienced in the second half of 2016 is sustainable ? Explain your