The money a company spends on factories, machines, software or buildings. Often shortened to capex.
MoatLens tip: The crucial distinction is one no report spells out: part of this spending merely keeps the business running, another part makes it grow. A company that must invest heavily every year just to hold its position is a worse business than one that gets by on little capital — even at identical profit. A good gauge: capital spending relative to revenue, viewed across ten years.
In MoatLens this explanation sits right next to the number — one tap away. And you see the ten-year trend instead of a single value.
