Well, yeah, sure. But that doesn't make it a meaningless exercise. I'm not suggesting it is a better or different way of calculating the "P/E." I'd be happy to call it a "Cash-Adjusted P/E" or something. And everyone can decide whether it should carry any weight at all or if it is completely nonsensical (for reasons I'd like to understand). I'm sure it isn't an original thought; I'll try to find time for some googling.
EDIT: YCharts, for what it's worth, seems to think it is a thing.
Further EDIT: The more I look at that link, the less I understand it. The text description sorta sounds like what I proposed above, but it also suggests -- and the "formula" indicates that they are subtracting cash per share from earnings per share. That sounds super bizarre to me and truly is commingling apples and oranges. And very different from what I meant. I'm tempted to wonder if it isn't an error, but even my ego isn't that big...
EDIT: YCharts, for what it's worth, seems to think it is a thing.
Further EDIT: The more I look at that link, the less I understand it. The text description sorta sounds like what I proposed above, but it also suggests -- and the "formula" indicates that they are subtracting cash per share from earnings per share. That sounds super bizarre to me and truly is commingling apples and oranges. And very different from what I meant. I'm tempted to wonder if it isn't an error, but even my ego isn't that big...