mathematics

Article
Decision Analysis on the Financial Performance of Companies
Using Integrated Entropy-Fuzzy TOPSIS Model
Weng Hoe Lam , Weng Siew Lam * , Kah Fai Liew and Pei Fun Lee

Department of Physical and Mathematical Science, Faculty of Science, Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman,
Kampar Campus, Jalan Universiti, Bandar Barat, Kampar 31900, Perak, Malaysia; whlam@utar.edu.my (W.H.L.);
liewkf@utar.edu.my (K.F.L.); pflee@utar.edu.my (P.F.L.)
* Correspondence: lamws@utar.edu.my

Abstract: Sustainable economic development plans have been shattered by the devastating COVID-19
crisis, which brought about an economic recession. The companies are suffering from financial losses,
leading to financial distress and disengagement from sustainable economic goals. Many companies
fail to achieve considerable financial performances, which may lead to unachieved organizational goal
and a loss of direction in decision-making and investment. According to the past studies, there has
been no comprehensive study done on the financial performance of the companies based on liquidity,
solvency, efficiency, and profitability ratios by integrating the entropy method and fuzzy technique
for order reference based on similarity to the ideal solution (TOPSIS) model in portfolio investment.
Therefore, this paper aims to propose a multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM) model, namely the
entropy-fuzzy TOPSIS model, to evaluate the financial performances of companies based on these
important financial ratios for portfolio investment. The fuzzy concept helps reduce vagueness and
strengthen the meaningful information extracted from the financial ratios. The proposed model is
illustrated using the financial ratios of companies in the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA). The
results show that return on equity and debt-to-equity ratios are the most influential financial ratios
for the performance evaluation of the companies. The companies with good financial performance,
such as the best HD company, have been determined based on the proposed model for portfolio
selection. A mean-variance (MV) model is used to validate the proposed model in the portfolio
Citation: Lam, W.H.; Lam, W.S.; Liew, investment. At a minimum level of risk, the proposed model is able to generate a higher mean
K.F.; Lee, P.F. Decision Analysis on
return than the benchmark DJIA index. This paper is significant as it helps to evaluate the financial
the Financial Performance of
performance of the companies and select the well-performing companies with the proposed model
Companies Using Integrated
for portfolio investment.
Entropy-Fuzzy TOPSIS Model.
Mathematics 2023, 11, 397. https://
Keywords: entropy; fuzzy; TOPSIS; multi-criteria decision making; financial ratio; ranking
doi.org/10.3390/math11020397

Academic Editors: Qun Li and MSC: 90B50

Aihua Wood

Received: 21 December 2022

Revised: 8 January 2023
Accepted: 9 January 2023
1. Introduction
Published: 12 January 2023 The present needs must be attained without adversely affecting our future or the Earth,
our home. This notion has moved into the center of discussion since the late 1980s and
has since been put into writing as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2015 to
be achieved in the next 15 years [1]. The call for the understanding, implementation, and
Copyright: © 2023 by the authors. management of SDGs is urgent, with the ultimate goal of generating long-term values for
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. businesses, societies, and the environment. Several insightful companies have taken this
This article is an open access article
initiative to apply various indicators under the SDGs to scan for business opportunities
distributed under the terms and
and global risks to enhance their financial performances through sustainable economic
conditions of the Creative Commons
developments [2]. The companies pay notable attention to their financial performances
Attribution (CC BY) license (https://
because financial results reflect the quantifiable aspects of organizational goal achievements
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/
and, hence, allow companies to gauge their successes on a timely basis. In addition, based
4.0/).

Mathematics 2023, 11, 397. https://doi.org/10.3390/math11020397 https://www.mdpi.com/journal/mathematics

Mathematics 2023, 11, 397 2 of 18

on recent financial performances, the management team is able to make prudent budgets
and decisions to position the company strategically in the local and international markets.
Investors also look at financial performances to establish their intentions for initial or
continuous support of a company after weighing the risks and returns.
However, COVID-19 has impeded some progress toward sustainable economic devel-
opments in many parts of the world, which has then affected their financial performances.
Safitri et al. [3] studied the impacts of COVID-19 on these efforts in Indonesia and found
that social and economic sectors had been hit hard since 2020. Many industrial activities
were also disrupted due to strict protocols to control this infectious disease. A study by
Suriyankietkaew and Nimsai [4] also proved that economic activities have been stagnant
as COVID-19 cases soared. In addition, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) pointed
out that fiscal stimulus during this time could help improve resiliency and reduce the
divergence from sustainable economic development goal attainment. As a result, countries
in America, Asia, and Europe are standing together in solidarity and have responded by
providing assistance to individuals and businesses [5]. However, despite governmental
aid, high financial impacts are still felt by businesses, with many facing closure due to
financial instability [6].
Over the years, sustainable economic development has helped countries develop
economies and assisted companies in strengthening their financial statuses. However, as
a result of the outbreak, commercial activities face labor, occupational health and safety,
sales, and cash flow challenges that blur the future of businesses. In addition, individuals,
families, and corporations tend to be conservative and save their capital, which then
results in slower economic growth [7]. Furthermore, amid Omicron-variant concerns in
the United States, with many flights halted for the 2021 year-end holidays, the Dow Jones
Industrial Average (DJIA) plummeted more than 400 points, leading to growing anxieties
among the listed companies [8]. This has reversed many companies’ plans to perform
expansions deemed risky, as there is a clear sign of a sluggish recovery from the recession
and businesses could continue to suffer from weak balance sheets [9]. As much as they
focus on strengthening their bottom lines, companies also realize the necessity of improving
liquidity and leverage levels in a financial crisis [10]. In fact, financial strategies should be
in place to be activated instantly during a crisis to reduce its daunting consequences [11].
Achim et al. [12] found that the large listed companies in Romania still faced a notable
drop in quick ratio (QR), return on equity (ROE), and return on assets (ROA) in 2020. The
results from Karim et al. [13] also indicated drops in liquidity, solvency, and operating
efficiency of companies in Bangladesh during this health crisis. As a large economic zone,
companies in the European Union began suffering from revenue shocks and deteriorating
solvency levels since the start of the pandemic, with no definite timetable for recovery, as
proven in research by Mirza et al. [14]. In China, listed companies also saw reductions in
ROE and asset turnover (AT) [15]. Vito and Gómez [16] explained that companies tend
to experience lower sales, which led to a cash crunch, causing the companies to resort to
borrowing to reduce short-term liquidity concerns. Rababah et al. [17] revealed that some
industries had worrying declines in financial performances as they were worst hit by the
outbreak. In addition, financial distress could lead to operational issues such as debts,
lower employee morale, and reduced productivity [18]. Given that the financial positions
of a large number of companies are highly volatile, there is a pressing need for companies
to continuously assess their financial health.
The financial performance of a company can be assessed using a multi-criteria decision-
making (MCDM) model. The MCDM is popular due to its success in allowing simultaneous
assessment of both optimistic and pessimistic decision criteria, where some criteria generate
values while others incur expenses for a decision alternative [19]. Generally, the MCDM
model involves the ranking of decision alternatives with regards to various criteria in
order to obtain the best solution. Shaverdi et al. [20] studied the financial performance
of petrochemical companies in Iran using a combination of the fuzzy analytic hierarchy
process (AHP) and the fuzzy Technique for Order Performance by Similarity to an Ideal
Mathematics 2023, 11, 397 3 of 18

Solution (TOPSIS). In this study, the decision criteria were made up of liquidity, leverage,
activity, and profitability ratios such as the current ratio (CR), the quick ratio (QR), the
debt-to-equity ratio (DER), the debt-to-assets ratio (DAR), the AT, the ROA, and the ROE.
Shaverdi et al. [20] also noted that uncertainties in real-life situations could be mitigated
using fuzzy logic to overcome the limitations of the traditional MCDM model. A fuzzy
AHP with CR, QR, DER, DAR, ROA, and ROE was also used in a separate study in Iran [21].
Further, researchers in India also categorized financial ratios into liquidity, leverage, and
profitability ratios and adopted CR, QR, DAR, and ROE to evaluate the performances
of companies in India with AHP [22]. In Turkey, commercial banks were investigated
based on their financial performances with various financial indicators using AHP [23].
The financial aspects of the service and banking industries were examined with financial
indicators using fuzzy AHP in Taiwan [24]. CR, QR, DER, DAR, AT, ROA, and ROE were
also applied to assess technology companies in Turkey using TOPSIS to increase the power
of assessment [25]. In measuring the efficiency of ports in India, Gayathri et al. [26] found
that debt ratios had the greatest significance and that integrated MCDM models offered
better evaluation.
According to Shannon [27], in decision-making analysis, the quantity and quality of
data greatly influence the precision and reliability of the results. Shannon’s entropy reflects
the amount of useful information within a set of data to determine criteria weights in
MCDM models such as TOPSIS. In addition, Shannon theorized that as an entropy value
gets smaller, the criterion weight shall be greater with additional information carried by the
criterion and greater effects on the research objective [28]. Shannon’s entropy’s application
to determining the objective weights of decision criteria before the alternatives are ranked
using the TOPSIS model can be found in a study on the selection of industrial robots
in India, and the results of entropy TOPSIS were found to be useful [29]. Furthermore,
Shannon’s entropy was proven to be prominent when this method was integrated with
TOPSIS to assess the risks present in heritage sites in China, which then assisted the
local government in risk mitigation in culturally preserved areas [30]. Moreover, flood
vulnerability assessments and rail system performance research were also done with
Shannon’s entropy and TOPSIS [31,32].
The introduction of fuzzy set theory by Zadeh [33] has had extensive use for the
quantification of linguistic aspects of data. The fuzzy set theory offers higher flexibility
in decision boundaries and can therefore, reflect particularities more precisely [34]. In
addition, when crisp data is less suitable to model an event due to vagueness, interval
judgment with linguistic terms can be used for initial evaluation. All linguistic terms can
be transformed into triangular fuzzy numbers (TFNs) for quantitative computations [35].
The TOPSIS model is applicable to rank decision alternatives by calculating Euclidean
intervals. This means obtaining distances from positive (PIS) and negative ideal solutions
(NIS). The most feasible alternative shall have the shortest Euclidean interval from PIS
and the furthest interval from NIS simultaneously. After identifying the decision criteria
and alternatives in TOPSIS, the next step is to assign significance levels to the decision
criteria by assigning weights to each criterion. The literature does not provide a definite
computational method to find criteria weights [36]. Therefore, in this research, entropy is
proposed to quantify the weights of the criteria before fuzzy TOPSIS is applied. The fuzzy
integration with TOPSIS has been applied for project selection [37,38], dry bulk carrier
selection [39], and website evaluation [40].
According to the past studies, there has been no comprehensive study done on the
financial performance of the companies based on liquidity, solvency, efficiency, and prof-
itability ratios by integrating the entropy method and fuzzy TOPSIS model in portfolio
investment. The novelty of this research lies in the integrated entropy-fuzzy TOPSIS
model used to evaluate the financial performance of companies and determine the best
performing companies for portfolio investment. Secondly, this paper employs TFNs to
reduce the vagueness of data obtained from financial ratios. Therefore, this research adopts
a comprehensive set of financial ratios that involve liquidity, solvency, efficiency, and
Mathematics 2023, 11, 397 4 of 18

profitability ratios for their financial performance evaluation of companies based on the
financial statements. This paper intends to contribute by identifying the influential financial
ratios that contribute to the financial performance of the companies so that the companies
can work on enhancing critical ratios to increase the companies’ values. This study can
also serve as a reference for investors making portfolio investments. The investors can
determine an optimal portfolio from the well-performing companies in terms of financial
performance for portfolio investment based on the proposed model. Section 2 demonstrates
the methodology of the proposed entropy-fuzzy TOPSIS model. Section 3 presents the
empirical results of this study. Section 4 summarizes the findings of this research and
its conclusion.

2. Materials and Methods

This research aims to propose an MCDM model, namely the entropy-fuzzy TOPSIS
model, to assess and compare the financial performance of all components of the DJIA
with a total of 30 companies from 2015 to 2021 for portfolio investment. Throughout
the years, TOPSIS has emerged as one of the most powerful and reliable methods to
provide resolutions to managerial policy implementations and complications [41]. In real
life, financial information incorporated into the coefficients of objective functions and
constraints contains vagueness, which could be eliminated with fuzzy set theory.
In fact, there has been no proper judgment on the exact value of a financial ratio that
reflects the best performance of a company. Moreover, a considerably fair ratio
Mathematics 2023, 11, x FOR PEER REVIEW 5 of value
19 in an
industry in a region may not reflect the same information in other sectors and nations due
to the adoption of different strategies and external factors such as legalities and level of
competition. However,
CVX a rise or decline in a ratio value over consecutive
MMM WBA years may not
necessarily signalGSa success or hazard in a company’s
MRK business structure
WMT and operation [42].
Therefore, due to HDsubjectivity, the entropy-fuzzy
MSFT TOPSIS model is proposed
DIS in this research.
Figure 1 showsHON NKE
the flowchart for this research. DOW

Figure 1.
Figure 1. Process
Processflowchart
flowchart.

Table 1 highlights the framework proposal of this research, including the objective,
decision criteria, and decision alternatives to assess and rank the financial performance of
companies under the DJIA. The DJIA is a prominent US equity index, which consists of
the 30 listed companies in the United States [43,44]. In addition, the DJIA measures the
Mathematics 2023, 11, 397 5 of 18

The proposed model consists of two stages, as shown below:

Stage-1: Compute the weights of decision criteria (financial ratios) using Shannon’s
entropy method.
Stage-2: Assess and rank the decision alternatives (companies) with a fuzzy TOP-
SIS model.
Table 1 presents the research framework proposal to assess the financial performances
of 30 companies under the DJIA using the entropy-fuzzy TOPSIS model.

Table 1. Research framework proposal.

Hierarchy Description
Objective Assessment and Ranking of the Financial Performances of Companies under DJIA
Current Ratio (CR)
Quick Ratio (QR)
Debt-to-Equity Ratio (DER)
Decision Criteria Debt-to-Assets Ratio (DAR)
Asset Turnover (AT)
Return on Asset (ROA)
Return on Equity (ROE)
AXP IBM PG
AMGN INTC TRV
AAPL JNJ UNH
BA KO CRM
CAT JPM VZ
Decision Alternatives
CSCO MCD V
CVX MMM WBA
GS MRK WMT
HD MSFT DIS
HON NKE DOW

Table 1 highlights the framework proposal of this research, including the objective,
decision criteria, and decision alternatives to assess and rank the financial performance of
companies under the DJIA. The DJIA is a prominent US equity index, which consists of the
30 listed companies in the United States [43,44]. In addition, the DJIA measures the entire
direction of the stock market. As the index goes up, the market is usually doing well. If
the index falls, the stocks are underperforming [45,46]. Seven sets of prominent financial
ratios, including CR, QR, DER, DAR, AT, ROA, and ROE, are fixed as the decision criteria.
According to González et al. [47], financial ratios are categorized into four types: liquidity,
solvency, efficiency, and profitability. The liquidity-type ratios reflect information on the
ability to meet short-term obligations. However, solvency ratios consider the potential to
meet long-term debts and are most likely linked to the financial health of a company. The
efficiency ratios are highly operational measures that analyze the effective deployment of
resources for sales generation and are commonly related to cash flows. In fact, investors
and shareholders postulate on profitability ratios, which indicate the value creation of
a company [48,49]. Furthermore, these four categories of financial ratios have also been
supported in a study by Horta [50] and reported by S&P, a giant credit rating company [51].
As a result, this research incorporates all four categories of financial ratios, in which CR
and QR are used to study liquidity, DER and DAR for solvency, AT for efficiency, and ROA
and ROE are adopted to observe the profitability of a company [52–54]. The 30 companies
under DJIA then serve as the decision alternatives in this research. The proposed model is
presented in Section 2.1.

2.1. Proposed Entropy-Fuzzy TOPSIS Model

Upon the collection of financial ratio data from the financial statements of the 30 com-
panies, Shannon’s entropy method is applied in Stage-1 to compute the objective weights of
the decision criteria due to the vagueness and ambiguity of the financial ratios [55,56]. The
Mathematics 2023, 11, 397 6 of 18

implicit information existing among various criteria can be captured to obtain the value
dispersion for analysis, which is the strength of Shannon’s entropy method [57]. However,
as the entropy value gets larger, the entropy weight will become smaller, reflecting less
information and the lesser importance of the criteria in a research study, and vice versa. In
addition, Shannon’s entropy has also received great interest in TOPSIS studies [58]. The
details of Shannon’s entropy method in Stage-1 are presented in the following steps:
Step-1: Determine the weights of the decision criteria with Shannon’s entropy method [59].
When there are h alternatives and k criteria, the initial decision matrix, D, is:


D = xij hxk (1)

xij shows the value of jth criterion from the ith alternative.
Step-2: Normalize the initial decision matrix, D.
xij
pij = h
, i = 1, 2, 3, . . . , h; j = 1, 2, 3, . . . , k (2)
∑i=1 xij

Step-3: Obtain the information entropy, e j , of criterion k.

h
1
ej = −
ln m ∑ pij ln pij , j = 1, 2, 3, . . . , k (3)
i =1

Step-4: Compute the entropy weight, w j of criterion k.

1 − ej
wj =
, j = 1, 2, 3, . . . , k (4)
∑kj=1 1 − ej

where 0 ≤ w j ≤ 1 and ∑kj=1 w j = 1.

Stage-2 of this research incorporates a fuzzy TOPSIS model to assess and rank the
decision alternatives. Due to the limitation of providing unconcise information in TOPSIS,
a fuzzy TOPSIS was then proposed by Chen [60]. The fuzzy TOPSIS is based from cardinal
data on the criteria. The most critical concept of fuzzy TOPSIS is the interval or extent
between fuzzy positive ideal solutions (PIS) and fuzzy negative ideal solutions (NIS) for
the alternatives, respectively. In order to improve the suitability and reputability of this re-
search, the assessment and ranking of the alternatives engage the use of linguistic variables
with triangular fuzzy numbers (TFNs), which could exist in vector forms xe = ( p, q, r ). The
membership of a TFN can be found below:

 0 if g < p
 g− p

 if p ≤ g < q
x ( g) qr−−pt (5)
 r −q i f q ≤ g < r


0 if g > r


where p ≤ q ≤ r.
Due to this, the chances of capturing imprecise data will be reduced with the adop-
tion of mathematical means [61]. The steps for the entropy-fuzzy TOPSIS model are
explained below.
Step-5: Construct a fuzzy decision matrix, D e from the ratings of h alternatives and
k criteria [58]. Rating is given to each alternative using linguistic variables of TFNs as
shown in Table 2 [61–64].

xe11 xe12 ... xe1j

 
 xe21 xe22 ··· xe2j 
e=
D , i = 1, 2, 3, . . . , h; j = 1, 2, 3, . . . k (6)

 . .. ..
 .. . . ... 
xei1 xei2 ··· xeij
Mathematics 2023, 11, 397 7 of 18

where xeij = aij , bij , cij where aij is the lower bound, bij is the median, and cij is the upper
bound, with i = 1, 2, 3, . . . , h; j = 1, 2, 3, . . . , k.
Table 2. Linguistic variables corresponding to TFNs.

Linguistic Terms TFNs

Very low 1, 1, 3
Low 1, 3, 5
Medium 3, 5, 7
High 5, 7, 9
Very high 7, 9, 9

According to Table 2, the rating from the fuzzy decision matrix is converted into TFNs.
This conversion is based on where the rating will fall between the intervals of minimum
value and maximum value for each financial ratio. For instance, the ratings with lower
values will be rated as having very low linguistic terms. On the other hand, the ratings with
higher values will be classified as very high linguistic terms. The ratings with intermediate
values will be categorized as low, medium, or high in linguistic terms based on the interval
between the minimum value and maximum value of the financial ratios.
Step-6: Compute the normalized fuzzy decision matrix, peij .
In this step, the optimistic and pessimistic criteria are classified. In this research, CR,
QR, AT, ROA, and ROE are the optimistic criteria expecting maximum values, whereas
DER and DAR are the pessimistic criteria with a minimum value to be obtained [59,62].
For the optimistic criteria, normalization can be computed as follows.
!
aij bij cij +

peij = + , + , + , j ∈ G, c j = maxi cij : i = 1, 2, 3, . . . , h (7)
cj cj cj

For the pessimistic criterion, normalization can be performed as follows.

a− −
j aj aj
−!
, j ∈ H, a−

peij = , , j = mini aij : i = 1, 2, 3, . . . , h (8)
aij bij cij

where G = optimistic criterion and H = pessimistic criterion.

Step-7: Calculate the weighted normalized fuzzy decision matrix, veij by multiplying
the normalized fuzzy decision matrix, peij , with the entropy weight of criteria, w j .

veij = peij × w j (9)

Step-8: Determine the fuzzy PIS, A+ and fuzzy NIS, A− .

A+ = ve1+ , ve2+ , ve3+ , . . . , ve+ e+

k , where v j = maxi vij (10)
e

A− = ve1− , ve2− , ve3− , . . . , ve− e−

k , where v j = mini vij (11)
e

Step-9: Calculate the extent of every alternative with A+ and A− .

Extent of alternative to A+ :
  r1
+ 2 + 2 + 2
d veij , vej = [( a − a+
j ) + ( bij − b j ) + ( cij − c j ) ] (12)
3 ij

Extent of alternative to A− :
  r 1 2 − 2 − 2
d veij , ve− = [( a − a−
j ) + ( bij − b j ) + ( cij − c j ) ] (13)
j 3 ij
Mathematics 2023, 11, 397 8 of 18

Step-10: Determine the overall extent of an alternative to A+ , Yi+ , and A− , Yi− .

k  
Yi+ = ∑d veij , ve+
j , i = 1, 2, 3, . . . , h; j = 1, 2, 3, . . . , k (14)
j =1

k  
Yi− = ∑d veij , ve−
j , i = 1, 2, 3, . . . , h; j = 1, 2, 3, . . . , k (15)
j =1

Step-11: Calculate the closeness coefficient (CCi ) for every alternative [63].

Yi−
CCi = (16)
Yi− + Yi+

The alternative with the greatest CCi value is the best alternative, while the remaining
alternatives can be ranked based on the descending order of CCi values [64].

2.2. Validation of the Proposed Model in Portfolio Investment

In this paper, the proposed model is validated in portfolio investment with a real-life
case study on the DJIA. The portfolio optimization is determined by the mean-variance
(MV) model. The MV model is developed by Markowitz [65] to construct an optimal
portfolio to achieve the expected return at a minimum level of risk [66–70]. Furthermore,
the investor is assumed to be rational in maximizing returns and minimizing risks. In
this study, the top 15 companies, which are determined by the ranking of the proposed
model, are selected for portfolio investment. Further, the MV portfolio optimization model
is adopted to determine an optimal portfolio [71]. According to the previous studies, the
researchers used the MV model to construct the optimal portfolio [72–78].
The MV portfolio optimization model’s formulation is demonstrated as follows:
n n
Minimize ∑ ∑ σij xi x j (17)
i =1 j =1

Subject to
n
∑ xj = 1 (18)
j =1
n
∑ rj xj ≥ ρ (19)
j =1

x j ≥ 0, j = 1, 2, 3, . . . , n (20)
where
ρ denotes a parameter representing the target rate of return required by an investor,
x j denotes the weight invested in asset j,
σij denotes covariance between assets i and j,
r j denotes the expected return of asset j per period,
n denotes the number of assets,
xi denotes weight invested in asset i.
The objective function of the MV portfolio optimization model is to minimize portfolio
risk, which is indicated in Equation (17). The purpose of Equation (18) is to make sure that
the total of all the weights of assets is equal to one. In addition, Equation (19) is utilized
to get the returns at the desired level of return. Moreover, the weights of the assets must
be positive. This constraint is presented in Equation (20). The Equation (20) shows that
short sales are also not allowed for the MV portfolio optimization model since they require
Mathematics 2023, 11, 397 9 of 18

positive weights for assets. Therefore, it is a limitation of the proposed entropy-fuzzy

TOPSIS model integrated into a portfolio optimization model for portfolio investment.
Equation (21) shows the portfolio mean return [79].
n
rp = ∑ rj xj (21)
j =1

where
r j denotes the expected return of asset j per period,
x j denotes the weight invested in asset j,
r p denotes the portfolio’s mean return.
The portfolio performance ratio is determined based on the equation below [75].

Portfolio mean return

Portfolio performance ratio = (22)
Portfolio risk
The performance of the optimal portfolio is compared with the benchmark DJIA in
terms of mean return.

3. Empirical Results
The results of this study consist of three sections. Section 3.1 presents the priorities of
financial ratios using the entropy weight method as described in Stage 1 of the proposed
model. In addition, Section 3.2 presents the financial performance evaluation and ranking
of the companies using fuzzy TOPSIS as presented in Stage 2 of the proposed model.
Finally, Section 3.3 presents the validation of the proposed entropy-fuzzy TOPSIS model in
portfolio investment.

3.1. Priorities of Financial Ratios with Entropy Weight Method

The weights of the financial ratios are determined using the entropy weight method.
Table 3 displays the initial decision matrix for the companies with respect to all financial ratios.

Table 3. The initial decision matrix for the companies with respect to all financial ratios.

Companies CR QR DER DAR AT ROA ROE

MMM 1.7400 1.2100 134.4386 38.3543 0.8386 13.8314 46.3529
AXP 1.1347 1.1347 257.5771 30.3486 0.1673 3.2200 26.5114
AMGN 3.0971 2.8086 256.5757 48.6843 0.3471 10.8200 49.4629
AAPL 1.2629 1.2271 115.2043 30.5629 0.8043 18.1143 63.9543
BA 1.2271 0.3586 1329.2100 21.0657 0.7671 2.1971 459.5800
CAT 1.3829 0.9800 253.5143 47.2471 0.6043 4.8886 26.2443
CVX 1.1529 0.9314 25.5686 14.8700 0.5257 2.2371 3.8286
CSCO 2.3329 2.2757 48.2171 21.1129 0.4557 9.7943 22.5071
KO 1.1343 1.0000 203.8743 50.3757 0.4314 8.4271 35.9286
DOW 1.8500 1.3250 97.3975 25.7400 0.7033 3.3433 14.1867
GS 1.1002 1.1002 435.3043 39.2800 0.0474 1.0057 11.8657
HD 1.2171 0.3671 810.5420 55.6857 2.2414 20.1857 2932.2020
HON 1.3257 1.0786 93.5800 29.1529 0.6686 9.3443 29.0271
IBM 1.1357 1.0929 272.6314 38.0429 0.5557 7.3100 54.6171
INTC 1.8657 1.5014 38.5686 22.0929 0.5400 13.3329 23.1929
JNJ 1.6200 1.3543 45.9986 18.8486 0.5200 10.2650 25.0067
JPM 1.1050 1.1050 195.3814 18.5686 0.0396 1.1443 12.7429
MCD 1.6629 1.6443 340.3300 76.9371 0.5857 14.4514 118.6800
MRK 1.3371 1.0800 85.3800 29.6357 0.4529 6.5629 18.8200
MSFT 2.5386 2.5000 72.3214 26.8100 0.4843 12.9114 34.0871
NKE 2.5714 1.7586 48.5114 17.7286 1.5000 16.1900 36.4957
PG 0.8729 0.7043 60.3671 25.9871 0.5614 8.1900 18.8129
CRM 0.9786 0.9792 27.0286 11.7143 0.4929 1.8514 3.1914
TRV 1.3065 1.3065 26.2729 6.1457 0.2838 2.6986 11.3929
UNH 1.5156 1.5156 72.0386 24.2114 1.5049 7.6743 22.6257
VZ 0.9100 0.8650 271.4600 42.2200 0.4786 6.3843 50.7843
V 1.7543 1.7551 46.2486 21.9929 0.3029 14.1786 30.5643
WBA 0.9600 0.5214 61.7471 22.5371 1.7414 5.0429 12.5686
WMT 0.8686 0.2686 59.2043 22.7214 2.3871 6.2714 16.4629
DIS 1.0129 0.9414 49.9386 24.2100 0.5100 7.1771 14.2443
Mathematics 2023, 11, 397 10 of 18

Next, the initial decision matrix is normalized to form the normalized decision matrix
as presented in Table 4.

Table 4. The normalized decision matrix for the companies with respect to all financial ratios.

Companies CR QR DER DAR AT ROA ROE

MMM 0.0396 0.0330 0.0230 0.0425 0.0389 0.0555 0.0110
AXP 0.0258 0.0309 0.0441 0.0336 0.0078 0.0129 0.0063
AMGN 0.0704 0.0765 0.0440 0.0539 0.0161 0.0434 0.0117
AAPL 0.0287 0.0334 0.0197 0.0339 0.0373 0.0727 0.0151
BA 0.0279 0.0098 0.2278 0.0233 0.0356 0.0088 0.1088
CAT 0.0314 0.0267 0.0435 0.0523 0.0280 0.0196 0.0062
CVX 0.0262 0.0254 0.0044 0.0165 0.0244 0.0090 0.0009
CSCO 0.0531 0.0620 0.0083 0.0234 0.0212 0.0393 0.0053
KO 0.0258 0.0273 0.0349 0.0558 0.0200 0.0338 0.0085
DOW 0.0421 0.0361 0.0167 0.0285 0.0326 0.0134 0.0034
GS 0.0250 0.0300 0.0746 0.0435 0.0022 0.0040 0.0028
HD 0.0277 0.0100 0.1389 0.0617 0.1040 0.0811 0.6939
HON 0.0301 0.0294 0.0160 0.0323 0.0310 0.0375 0.0069
IBM 0.0258 0.0298 0.0467 0.0421 0.0258 0.0294 0.0129
INTC 0.0424 0.0409 0.0066 0.0245 0.0251 0.0535 0.0055
JNJ 0.0368 0.0369 0.0079 0.0209 0.0241 0.0412 0.0059
JPM 0.0251 0.0301 0.0335 0.0206 0.0018 0.0046 0.0030
MCD 0.0378 0.0448 0.0583 0.0852 0.0272 0.0580 0.0281
MRK 0.0304 0.0294 0.0146 0.0328 0.0210 0.0264 0.0045
MSFT 0.0577 0.0681 0.0124 0.0297 0.0225 0.0518 0.0081
NKE 0.0585 0.0479 0.0083 0.0196 0.0696 0.0650 0.0086
PG 0.0198 0.0192 0.0103 0.0288 0.0261 0.0329 0.0045
CRM 0.0223 0.0267 0.0046 0.0130 0.0229 0.0074 0.0008
TRV 0.0297 0.0356 0.0045 0.0068 0.0132 0.0108 0.0027
UNH 0.0345 0.0413 0.0123 0.0268 0.0699 0.0308 0.0054
VZ 0.0207 0.0236 0.0465 0.0468 0.0222 0.0256 0.0120
Mathematics 2023, 11, x FOR PEER REVIEW 11 of 19
V 0.0399 0.0478 0.0079 0.0244 0.0141 0.0569 0.0072
WBA 0.0218 0.0142 0.0106 0.0250 0.0808 0.0202 0.0030
WMT 0.0198 0.0073 0.0101 0.0252 0.1108 0.0252 0.0039
DIS 0.0230 0.0257 0.0086 0.0268 0.0237 0.0288 0.0034
VZ 0.0207 0.0236 0.0465 0.0468 0.0222 0.0256 0.0120
V 0.0399 0.0478 0.0079 0.0244 0.0141 0.0569 0.0072
WBA 0.0218
After that, 0.0142
the information 0.0106
entropy 0.0250
(e j ) and0.0808
the 0.0202 weight
entropy 0.0030(w ) of the financial
j
WMT 0.0198 0.0073 0.0101 0.0252 0.1108 0.0252 0.0039
ratiosDIS are determined
0.0230 as shown
0.0257 in
0.0086Table 5.
0.0268 0.0237 0.0288 0.0034

5. The
TableAfter information
that, entropy
the information (e j ) (𝑒
entropy and thethe
) and entropy weight
entropy weight(w
(𝑤j )) of
of the
the financial
financial ratios.
ratios are determined as shown in Table 5.
Financial Ratio CR QR DER DAR AT ROA ROE
Table 5. The information entropy (𝑒 ) and the entropy weight (𝑤 ) of the financial ratios
ej 0.9816 0.9681 0.8271 0.9681 0.9215 0.9403 0.4190
Financial
wj Ratio CR
0.0188 QR 0.0328 DER 0.1774DAR AT
0.0327 ROA
0.0806 ROE
0.0613 0.5964
𝑒 0.9816 0.9681 0.8271 0.9681 0.9215 0.9403 0.4190
𝑤 0.0188 0.0328 0.1774 0.0327 0.0806 0.0613 0.5964
Based on Table 5, the information entropy (e j ) for CR, QR, DER, DAR, AT, ROA, and
Based on Table 5, the information entropy (𝑒 ) for CR, QR, DER, DAR, AT, ROA, and
ROE are 0.9816, 0.9681, 0.8271, 0.9681, 0.9215, 0.9403, and 0.4190, respectively. Next, the
ROE are 0.9816, 0.9681, 0.8271, 0.9681, 0.9215, 0.9403, and 0.4190, respectively. Next, the
entropy weight
entropy weight (𝑤(w) ofj ) the
of the financial
financial ratios ratios
can be can be determined.
determined. Figurethe
Figure 2 displays 2 displays
en- the entropy
weights of the
tropy weights financial
of the financialratios.
ratios.

ROE 0.5964

DER 0.1774

AT 0.0806

ROA 0.0613

QR 0.0328

DAR 0.0327

CR 0.0188

0.0000 0.1000 0.2000 0.3000 0.4000 0.5000 0.6000 0.7000

Figure 2. Entropy weights of financial ratios

Figure 2. Entropy weights of financial ratios.
According to Figure 2, the weights of financial ratios are determined using the en-
tropy weight method. Based on the results, ROE is identified as the most influential finan-
cial ratio in determining the companies’ financial performance. The ROE has the highest
weight of 0.5964. In addition, the DER achieves the second highest weight of 0.1774. The
AT obtained a weight of 0.0806, followed by ROA (0.0613), QR (0.0328), DAR (0.0327), and
finally CR (0.0188).
Mathematics 2023, 11, 397 11 of 18

According to Figure 2, the weights of financial ratios are determined using the entropy
weight method. Based on the results, ROE is identified as the most influential financial ratio
in determining the companies’ financial performance. The ROE has the highest weight
of 0.5964. In addition, the DER achieves the second highest weight of 0.1774. The AT
obtained a weight of 0.0806, followed by ROA (0.0613), QR (0.0328), DAR (0.0327), and
finally CR (0.0188).

3.2. Financial Performance Evaluation and Ranking of Companies with the Proposed
Entropy-Fuzzy TOPSIS Model
The financial performance of the companies is assessed by the proposed entropy-fuzzy
TOPSIS model. The initial decision matrix from Table 3 is used to assess the financial
performance and determine the ranking of the companies. Initially, the ratings from Table 3
are converted into TFNs, and then the fuzzy decision matrix is formed. This conversion is
based on where the rating will fall between the intervals of minimum value and maximum
value for each financial ratio. The fuzzy decision matrix for the companies with respect to
all financial ratios is shown in Table 6.

Table 6. The fuzzy decision matrix for the companies with respect to all financial ratios.

Companies CR QR DER DAR AT ROA ROE

MMM (1, 3, 5) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (3, 5, 7) (1, 3, 5) (5, 7, 9) (1, 1, 3)
AXP (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3)
AMGN (7, 9, 9) (7, 9, 9) (1, 1, 3) (5, 7, 9) (1, 1, 3) (3, 5, 7) (1, 1, 3)
AAPL (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 3, 5) (7, 9, 9) (1, 1, 3)
BA (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (7, 9, 9) (1, 3, 5) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3)
CAT (1, 3, 5) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (3, 5, 7) (1, 3, 5) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3)
CVX (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3)
CSCO (5, 7, 9) (5, 7, 9) (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (3, 5, 7) (1, 1, 3)
KO (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (5, 7, 9) (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3)
DOW (3, 5, 7) (3, 5, 7) (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3)
GS (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 3, 5) (3, 5, 7) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3)
HD (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (5, 7, 9) (5, 7, 9) (7, 9, 9) (7, 9, 9) (7, 9, 9)
HON (1, 3, 5) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 3, 5) (3, 5, 7) (1, 1, 3)
IBM (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (3, 5, 7) (1, 3, 5) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3)
INTC (3, 5, 7) (3, 5, 7) (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 3, 5) (5, 7, 9) (1, 1, 3)
JNJ (1, 3, 5) (3, 5, 7) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (3, 5, 7) (1, 1, 3)
JPM (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3)
MCD (1, 3, 5) (3, 5, 7) (1, 3, 5) (7, 9, 9) (1, 3, 5) (5, 7, 9) (1, 1, 3)
MRK (1, 3, 5) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3)
MSFT (5, 7, 9) (7, 9, 9) (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (5, 7, 9) (1, 1, 3)
NKE (5, 7, 9) (3, 5, 7) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (5, 7, 9) (5, 7, 9) (1, 1, 3)
PG (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 3, 5) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3)
CRM (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3)
TRV (1, 1, 3) (3, 5, 7) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3)
UNH (1, 3, 5) (3, 5, 7) (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (5, 7, 9) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3)
VZ (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (3, 5, 7) (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3)
V (1, 3, 5) (3, 5, 7) (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (5, 7, 9) (1, 1, 3)
WBA (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (5, 7, 9) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3)
WMT (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (7, 9, 9) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3)
DIS (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3) (1, 3, 5) (1, 3, 5) (1, 3, 5) (1, 1, 3)

For the fuzzy decision matrix, all the financial ratios for each company are translated
into TFNs due to the presence of uncertainty and ambiguity in the data. Next, the nor-
malized fuzzy decision matrix is created by normalizing the fuzzy decision matrix. The
weighted normalized fuzzy decision matrix is formed by multiplying the normalized fuzzy
decision matrix with the entropy weights of the financial ratios. The weighted normalized
fuzzy decision matrix for the companies with respect to their financial ratios is presented
in Table 7.
Mathematics 2023, 11, 397 12 of 18

Table 7. The weighted normalized fuzzy decision matrix for the companies with respect to all
financial ratios.

Companies CR QR DER DAR AT ROA ROE

(0.002, 0.006, (0.004, 0.011, (0.059, 0.177, (0.005, 0.007, (0.009, 0.027, (0.034, 0.048, (0.066, 0.066,
MMM
0.010) 0.018) 0.177) 0.011) 0.045) 0.061) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.002, (0.004, 0.011, (0.059, 0.177, (0.007, 0.011, (0.009, 0.009, (0.007, 0.007, (0.066, 0.066,
AXP
0.006) 0.018) 0.177) 0.033) 0.027) 0.020) 0.199)
(0.015, 0.019, (0.025, 0.033, (0.059, 0.177, (0.004, 0.005, (0.009, 0.009, (0.020, 0.034, (0.066, 0.066,
AMGN
0.019) 0.033) 0.177) 0.007) 0.027) 0.048) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.002, (0.004, 0.011, (0.059, 0.177, (0.007, 0.011, (0.009, 0.027, (0.048, 0.061, (0.066, 0.066,
AAPL
0.006) 0.018) 0.177) 0.033) 0.045) 0.061) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.002, (0.004, 0.004, (0.020, 0.020, (0.007, 0.011, (0.009, 0.027, (0.007, 0.007, (0.066, 0.066,
BA
0.006) 0.011) 0.025) 0.033) 0.045) 0.020) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.006, (0.004, 0.011, (0.059, 0.177, (0.005, 0.007, (0.009, 0.027, (0.007, 0.020, (0.066, 0.066,
CAT
0.010) 0.018) 0.177) 0.011) 0.045) 0.034) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.002, (0.004, 0.011, (0.059, 0.177, (0.011, 0.033, (0.009, 0.027, (0.007, 0.007, (0.066, 0.066,
CVX
0.006) 0.018) 0.177) 0.033) 0.045) 0.020) 0.199)
(0.010, 0.015, (0.018, 0.025, (0.059, 0.177, (0.007, 0.011, (0.009, 0.009, (0.020, 0.034, (0.066, 0.066,
CSCO
0.019) 0.033) 0.177) 0.033) 0.027) 0.048) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.002, (0.004, 0.011, (0.059, 0.177, (0.004, 0.005, (0.009, 0.009, (0.007, 0.020, (0.066, 0.066,
KO
0.006) 0.018) 0.177) 0.007) 0.027) 0.034) 0.199)
(0.006, 0.010, (0.011, 0.018, (0.059, 0.177, (0.007, 0.011, (0.009, 0.027, (0.007, 0.007, (0.066, 0.066,
DOW
0.015) 0.025) 0.177) 0.033) 0.045) 0.020) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.002, (0.004, 0.011, (0.035, 0.059, (0.005, 0.007, (0.009, 0.009, (0.007, 0.007, (0.066, 0.066,
GS
0.006) 0.018) 0.177) 0.011) 0.027) 0.020) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.002, (0.004, 0.004, (0.020, 0.025, (0.004, 0.005, (0.063, 0.081, (0.048, 0.061, (0.464, 0.596,
HD
0.006) 0.011) 0.035) 0.007) 0.081) 0.061) 0.596)
(0.002, 0.006, (0.004, 0.011, (0.059, 0.177, (0.007, 0.011, (0.009, 0.027, (0.020, 0.034, (0.066, 0.066,
HON
0.010) 0.018) 0.177) 0.033) 0.045) 0.048) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.002, (0.004, 0.011, (0.059, 0.177, (0.005, 0.007, (0.009, 0.027, (0.007, 0.020, (0.066, 0.066,
IBM
0.006) 0.018) 0.177) 0.011) 0.045) 0.034) 0.199)
(0.006, 0.010, (0.011, 0.018, (0.059, 0.177, (0.007, 0.011, (0.009, 0.027, (0.034, 0.048, (0.066, 0.066,
INTC
0.015) 0.025) 0.177) 0.033) 0.045) 0.061) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.006, (0.011, 0.018, (0.059, 0.177, (0.011, 0.033, (0.009, 0.027, (0.020, 0.034, (0.066, 0.066,
JNJ
0.010) 0.025) 0.177) 0.033) 0.045) 0.048) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.002, (0.004, 0.011, (0.059, 0.177, (0.011, 0.033, (0.009, 0.009, (0.007, 0.007, (0.066, 0.066,
JPM
0.006) 0.018) 0.177) 0.033) 0.027) 0.020) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.006, (0.011, 0.018, (0.035, 0.059, (0.004, 0.004, (0.009, 0.027, (0.034, 0.048, (0.066, 0.066,
MCD
0.010) 0.025) 0.177) 0.005) 0.045) 0.061) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.006, (0.004, 0.011, (0.059, 0.177, (0.007, 0.011, (0.009, 0.009, (0.007, 0.020, (0.066, 0.066,
MRK
0.010) 0.018) 0.177) 0.033) 0.027) 0.034) 0.199)
(0.010, 0.015, (0.025, 0.033, (0.059, 0.177, (0.007, 0.011, (0.009, 0.009, (0.034, 0.048, (0.066, 0.066,
MSFT
0.019) 0.033) 0.177) 0.033) 0.027) 0.061) 0.199)
(0.010, 0.015, (0.011, 0.018, (0.059, 0.177, (0.011, 0.033, (0.045, 0.063, (0.034, 0.048, (0.066, 0.066,
NKE
0.019) 0.025) 0.177) 0.033) 0.081) 0.061) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.002, (0.004, 0.004, (0.059, 0.177, (0.007, 0.011, (0.009, 0.027, (0.007, 0.020, (0.066, 0.066,
PG
0.006) 0.011) 0.177) 0.033) 0.045) 0.034) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.002, (0.004, 0.011, (0.059, 0.177, (0.011, 0.033, (0.009, 0.009, (0.007, 0.007, (0.066, 0.066,
CRM
0.006) 0.018) 0.177) 0.033) 0.027) 0.020) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.002, (0.011, 0.018, (0.059, 0.177, (0.011, 0.033, (0.009, 0.009, (0.007, 0.007, (0.066, 0.066,
TRV
0.006) 0.025) 0.177) 0.033) 0.027) 0.020) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.006, (0.011, 0.018, (0.059, 0.177, (0.007, 0.011, (0.045, 0.063, (0.007, 0.020, (0.066, 0.066,
UNH
0.010) 0.025) 0.177) 0.033) 0.081) 0.034) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.002, (0.004, 0.011, (0.059, 0.177, (0.005, 0.007, (0.009, 0.009, (0.007, 0.020, (0.066, 0.066,
VZ
0.006) 0.018) 0.177) 0.011) 0.027) 0.034) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.006, (0.011, 0.018, (0.059, 0.177, (0.007, 0.011, (0.009, 0.009, (0.034, 0.048, (0.066, 0.066,
V
0.010) 0.025) 0.177) 0.033) 0.027) 0.061) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.002, (0.004, 0.004, (0.059, 0.177, (0.007, 0.011, (0.045, 0.063, (0.007, 0.020, (0.066, 0.066,
WBA
0.006) 0.011) 0.177) 0.033) 0.081) 0.034) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.002, (0.004, 0.004, (0.059, 0.177, (0.007, 0.011, (0.063, 0.081, (0.007, 0.020, (0.066, 0.066,
WMT
0.006) 0.011) 0.177) 0.033) 0.081) 0.034) 0.199)
(0.002, 0.002, (0.004, 0.011, (0.059, 0.177, (0.007, 0.011, (0.009, 0.027, (0.007, 0.020, (0.066, 0.066,
DIS
0.006) 0.018) 0.177) 0.033) 0.045) 0.034) 0.199)
Mathematics 2023, 11, 397 13 of 18

The fuzzy PIS (A+ ) and the fuzzy NIS (A− ) for each financial ratio are determined
and shown in Table 8.

Table 8. The fuzzy PIS (A+ ) and the fuzzy NIS (A− ).

Financial Ratio CR QR DER DAR AT ROA ROE

(0.015, 0.019, (0.025, 0.033, (0.059, 0.177, (0.011, 0.033, (0.063, 0.081, (0.048, 0.061, (0.464, 0.596,
A+
0.019) 0.033) 0.177) 0.033) 0.081) 0.061) 0.596)
(0.002, 0.002, (0.004, 0.004, (0.020, 0.020, (0.004, 0.004, (0.009, 0.009, (0.007, 0.007, (0.066, 0.066,
A−
0.006) 0.011) 0.025) 0.005) 0.027) 0.020) 0.199)

The fuzzy PIS (A+ ) and the fuzzy NIS (A− ) for each financial ratio in the weighted
normalized fuzzy decision matrix are established. In this study, the fuzzy PIS (A+ ) for CR,
QR, DER, DAR, AT, ROA, and ROE are (0.015, 0.019, 0.019), (0.025, 0.033, 0.033), (0.059,
0.177, 0.177), (0.011, 0.033, 0.033), (0.063, 0.081, 0.081), (0.048, 0.061, 0.061), and (0.464, 0.596,
0.596) respectively. On the other hand, the fuzzy NIS (A− ) for CR, QR, DER, DAR, AT,
ROA, and ROE are (0.002, 0.002, 0.006), (0.004, 0.004, 0.011), (0.020, 0.020, 0.025), (0.004,
0.004, 0.005), (0.009, 0.009, 0.027), (0.007, 0.007, 0.020), and (0.066, 0.066, 0.199), respectively.
For the next step, the extent of each company from the fuzzy PIS and the fuzzy NIS is
computed and presented in Table 9.

Table 9. Extent of all companies with fuzzy PIS and fuzzy NIS.

Companies Extent with Fuzzy PIS Extent with Fuzzy NIS

MMM 0.557 0.193
AXP 0.599 0.151
AMGN 0.553 0.192
AAPL 0.541 0.212
BA 0.720 0.031
CAT 0.583 0.168
CVX 0.574 0.173
CSCO 0.552 0.200
KO 0.600 0.147
DOW 0.573 0.180
GS 0.676 0.101
HD 0.183 0.560
HON 0.562 0.193
IBM 0.585 0.164
INTC 0.538 0.217
JNJ 0.542 0.206
JPM 0.586 0.158
MCD 0.623 0.159
MRK 0.587 0.166
MSFT 0.534 0.218
NKE 0.488 0.262
PG 0.583 0.171
CRM 0.586 0.158
TRV 0.579 0.165
UNH 0.534 0.221
VZ 0.597 0.150
V 0.554 0.198
WBA 0.549 0.205
WMT 0.534 0.217
DIS 0.578 0.177

After that, the closeness coefficients of the companies are determined. The companies’
rankings are determined based on the closeness coefficients achieved. Table 10 presents the
entropy-fuzzy TOPSIS closeness coefficients as well as the ranking of companies.
Mathematics 2023, 11, 397 14 of 18

Table 10. The entropy-fuzzy TOPSIS closeness coefficients and ranking of companies.

Companies Entropy-Fuzzy TOPSIS Closeness Coefficients Ranking

MMM 0.2578 13
AXP 0.2017 26
AMGN 0.2578 12
AAPL 0.2812 7
BA 0.0418 30
CAT 0.2235 19
CVX 0.2313 17
CSCO 0.2659 10
KO 0.1967 28
DOW 0.2388 15
GS 0.1302 29
HD 0.7534 1
HON 0.2555 14
IBM 0.2191 22
INTC 0.2870 6
JNJ 0.2758 8
JPM 0.2125 23
MCD 0.2030 25
MRK 0.2202 21
MSFT 0.2900 4
NKE 0.3490 2
PG 0.2269 18
CRM 0.2125 23
TRV 0.2216 20
UNH 0.2925 3
VZ 0.2004 27
V 0.2634 11
WBA 0.2718 9
WMT 0.2885 5
DIS 0.2344 16

3.3. Validation of the Proposed Entropy-Fuzzy TOPSIS Model in Portfolio Investment

Finally, the validation of the proposed entropy-fuzzy TOPSIS model in portfolio
investment is performed with a real-world case study on DJIA. Based on the proposed
model, the optimal MV portfolio is determined by the selected companies with good
financial performance. Table 11 presents the summary statistics and performance of the
optimal MV portfolio.

Table 11. Summary statistics and performance of the optimal MV portfolio.

Optimal Portfolio Value

Portfolio mean return 0.0225
Portfolio risk 0.0445
Portfolio performance ratio 0.5056
DJIA index return (Benchmark) 0.0095

According to Table 10, the values of the closeness coefficients are determined based
on the proposed entropy-fuzzy TOPSIS model. A larger value of the closeness coefficients
implies the most performing companies. Based on the results, the closeness coefficients of
the companies range from 0.0418 to 0.7534. Among the companies, HD is identified as the
best company in terms of financial performance, with the largest closeness coefficient of
0.7534. This implies that HD has the closest proximity to the ideal solution, considering
the presence of uncertainty and fuzziness in the data. As a result, HD outperforms other
companies and thus achieves the first ranking based on the proposed entropy-fuzzy TOPSIS
model. The second ranking is obtained by NKE, followed by UNH, MSFT, WMT, INTC,
Mathematics 2023, 11, 397 15 of 18

AAPL, JNJ, WBA, CSCO, V, AMGN, MMM, HON, DOW, DIS, CVX, PG, CAT, TRV, MRK,
IBM, JPM, CRM, MCD, AXP, VZ, KO, GS, and finally BA. In this study, BA scored the lowest
value of 0.0418. Additionally, this study has indicated that there are ample opportunities for
the companies with low performances to make continuous improvements by considering
the good companies for future benchmarking.
The entropy-fuzzy TOPSIS model is proposed in this paper because the fuzzy analysis
takes the vagueness and uncertainty of the data into account. The results of this study are
converted into TFNs, and then the fuzzy decision matrix is formed. The fuzzy method is
taken into consideration in this study since uncertainty and vagueness of data are involved.
In this paper, the companies’ financial performances are assessed by seven important
financial ratios, which are CR, QR, DER, DAR, AT, ROA, and ROE. After analyzing the
financial ratios with the entropy weight method, the weights and priorities of the financial
ratios are determined. The financial ratio with the highest weight is ROE, followed by DER,
AT, ROA, QR, DAR, and CR. In this research, an entropy-fuzzy TOPSIS model is proposed
to evaluate the financial performances of companies based on liquidity, solvency, efficiency,
and profitability ratios to determine the companies with good financial performance for
portfolio investment.
According to Table 11, the proposed model generates a portfolio mean return of 0.0225
at a portfolio risk of 0.0445. The proposed model gives a portfolio performance ratio of
0.5056. The results of this study show that the optimal MV portfolio of the proposed model
is able to generate a higher mean return (0.0225) than the benchmark DJIA index return
(0.0095). Therefore, it shows the effectiveness of the proposed model, which outperforms
the benchmark DJIA index with a higher mean return. The proposed model provides
insights to the investors in identifying and selecting the good performing companies in
terms of financial performance for portfolio investment.

4. Conclusions
In this paper, an entropy-fuzzy TOPSIS model is proposed to evaluate the financial
performance of companies based on liquidity, solvency, efficiency, and profitability ratios
to determine the companies with good financial performance for portfolio investment. The
proposed entropy-fuzzy TOPSIS model consists of two stages. The first stage involves
Shannon’s entropy weight method to determine the objective weights of the financial ratios,
which are CR, QR, AT, DER, DAR, ROA, and ROE. In this study, ROE and DER are identified
as the influential financial ratios for the financial performance evaluation of companies
which are the components of the DJIA. The second stage includes the fuzzy TOPSIS model
to assess and rank the companies based on their financial performance. Regarding the
ranking of the companies, HD is determined to be the best company, followed by NKE,
UNH, MSFT, WMT, INTC, and AAPL. The companies with good financial performance
have been determined based on the proposed model for portfolio selection.
The validation of the proposed entropy-fuzzy TOPSIS model in portfolio investment
is performed using the MV model. Based on the proposed model, the optimal MV portfolio
is determined by the selected companies with good financial performance. The results
indicate that the proposed model is able to generate an optimal MV portfolio with higher
mean return than the benchmark DJIA index. This implies that the proposed model
outperforms the benchmark DJIA index with a higher portfolio mean return based on
the selection of well-performing companies. This study provides insights to investors
in portfolio investment. The investors can determine an optimal portfolio from the well-
performing companies in terms of financial performance for portfolio investment based on
the proposed model. The limitation of the proposed model is that it does not allow short
selling in portfolio investment.
The companies could embark on making decisions and taking initiatives to enhance
the top financial ratios to improve their financial performance. The financial ratios used in
this research include liquidity, solvency, efficiency, and profitability ratios. Based on the
integration of fuzzy in the proposed model, uncertainties in financial data can be reduced,
Mathematics 2023, 11, 397 16 of 18

which is important for decision making in financing, expansion, and growth. Future studies
could consider the application of the proposed entropy-fuzzy TOPSIS model for portfolio
investment in other stock markets, such as developed, emerging, or developing markets.

Author Contributions: Conceptualization, W.H.L. and W.S.L.; methodology, W.H.L., W.S.L. and
K.F.L.; software, W.H.L., W.S.L. and K.F.L.; validation, W.H.L., W.S.L. and P.F.L.; formal analysis,
W.H.L., W.S.L., K.F.L. and P.F.L.; investigation, W.H.L., W.S.L., K.F.L. and P.F.L.; resources, W.H.L. and
W.S.L.; data curation, W.H.L., W.S.L., K.F.L. and P.F.L.; writing—original draft preparation, W.H.L.,
W.S.L., K.F.L. and P.F.L.; writing—review and editing, W.H.L., W.S.L., K.F.L. and P.F.L.; supervision,
W.H.L. and W.S.L. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Funding: This research received no external funding.
Data Availability Statement: The data presented in this study are available on request from the
corresponding author.
Acknowledgments: This research is supported by the Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia.
Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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