Latest Ratios: P/E Ratio -8.9x · EV/EBITDA N/A · ROE -115.6%. (1996–2025 historical series)
Price-based multiples — how expensive the stock is relative to earnings, sales, book value, and cash flow
| Metric | TTM | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 | FY 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Market Cap | $19M | $44M | $57M | $34M | $61M | $54M | $88M | $90M | $40M | $25M | $44M |
| Enterprise Value | $19M | $45M | $57M | $32M | $57M | $55M | $85M | $85M | $38M | $23M | $42M |
| P/E Ratio → | -8.89 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| P/S Ratio | 16.81 | 39.31 | 42.92 | 37.15 | 113.50 | 43.10 | 106.80 | 57.76 | 27.20 | 16.57 | 35.40 |
| P/B Ratio | 19.49 | 47.21 | 22.01 | 9.61 | 12.77 | 14.39 | 16.61 | 12.80 | 13.06 | 9.74 | 8.92 |
| P/FCF | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| P/OCF | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
P/E links to full P/E history page with 30-year chart
Enterprise-value multiples — capital-structure-neutral measures of total business value
| Metric | TTM | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 | FY 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EV / Revenue | — | 39.76 | 42.40 | 34.72 | 106.52 | 43.39 | 102.02 | 54.17 | 25.21 | 15.42 | 34.03 |
| EV / EBITDA | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| EV / EBIT | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| EV / FCF | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Margins and return-on-capital ratios measuring operating efficiency
Full margin charts and quarterly trend are on the Earnings History page
| Metric | TTM | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 | FY 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gross Margin | 83.4% | 83.4% | 80.3% | -159.4% | 100.0% | 100.0% | -235.3% | -135.1% | -62.4% | -107.3% | -230.6% |
| Operating Margin | -190.2% | -190.2% | -108.0% | -223.5% | -486.4% | -145.6% | -311.1% | -201.4% | -162.4% | -160.3% | -345.3% |
| Net Profit Margin | -182.4% | -182.4% | -98.2% | -209.8% | -494.6% | -146.2% | -282.6% | -243.5% | -180.4% | -160.0% | -342.9% |
| Metric | TTM | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 | FY 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ROE | -115.6% | -115.6% | -42.8% | -45.9% | -62.2% | -40.5% | -37.8% | -75.0% | -94.8% | -64.6% | -60.6% |
| ROA | -65.0% | -65.0% | -33.2% | -41.4% | -53.9% | -34.4% | -32.4% | -61.9% | -77.4% | -59.2% | -57.2% |
| ROIC | -95.7% | -95.7% | -67.3% | -130.4% | -75.9% | -49.9% | -137.7% | -300.9% | -378.0% | -89.7% | -97.3% |
| ROCE | -74.5% | -74.5% | -39.3% | -47.1% | -56.4% | -36.0% | -37.2% | -54.9% | -78.4% | -64.7% | -61.1% |
Solvency and debt-coverage ratios — lower is generally safer
| Metric | TTM | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 | FY 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Debt / Equity | 1.25 | 1.25 | 0.50 | 0.08 | 0.10 | 0.17 | 0.15 | 0.14 | — | — | — |
| Debt / EBITDA | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Net Debt / Equity | — | 0.54 | -0.27 | -0.63 | -0.79 | 0.10 | -0.74 | -0.80 | -0.96 | -0.68 | -0.34 |
| Net Debt / EBITDA | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Debt / FCF | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Interest Coverage | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Short-term solvency ratios and asset-utilisation metrics
| Metric | TTM | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 | FY 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Current Ratio | 3.84 | 3.84 | 10.21 | 12.89 | 16.30 | 13.26 | 24.01 | 18.86 | 8.11 | 7.54 | 12.43 |
| Quick Ratio | 3.84 | 3.84 | 10.21 | 12.89 | 16.30 | 13.26 | 24.01 | 18.86 | 8.11 | 7.54 | 12.43 |
| Cash Ratio | 2.23 | 2.23 | 7.41 | 8.92 | 14.02 | 10.15 | 21.11 | 17.01 | 6.49 | 5.54 | 8.71 |
| Asset Turnover | — | 0.50 | 0.33 | 0.24 | 0.10 | 0.28 | 0.13 | 0.19 | 0.37 | 0.52 | 0.23 |
| Inventory Turnover | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Days Sales Outstanding | — | 133.03 | 179.89 | 402.64 | 398.76 | 240.33 | 263.60 | 153.11 | 169.10 | 144.50 | 329.88 |
Earnings, FCF, buyback, and dividend yields — total returns to shareholders
Full dividend history and growth charts are on the Dividend History page
| Metric | TTM | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 | FY 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dividend Yield | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Payout Ratio | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Metric | TTM | FY 2025 | FY 2024 | FY 2023 | FY 2022 | FY 2021 | FY 2020 | FY 2019 | FY 2018 | FY 2017 | FY 2016 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Earnings Yield | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| FCF Yield | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Buyback Yield | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Total Shareholder Yield | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Shares Outstanding | — | $34M | $34M | $33M | $32M | $32M | $31M | $30M | $26M | $24M | $24M |
Imminent liquidity and dilution
According to current market data, REFR trades at a price-to-sales ratio of 16.48, a valuation that appears disconnected from the company's negative net margins and the 16.04% year-over-year revenue decline reported in recent financial filings, suggesting investors are pricing in extreme, unproven future adoption scenarios.
The elevated P/S multiple relative to the company's lack of profitability indicates that the market is valuing the firm as a high-growth technology play rather than a struggling licensing entity. This valuation gap warrants caution, as the absence of positive earnings or cash flow makes traditional valuation metrics like P/E or EV/EBITDA effectively meaningless for assessing intrinsic value.
Based on reported figures, the company's ROIC has remained deeply negative, reaching -25.9% in 2026Q1, which highlights a long-term trend of capital destruction where the firm consistently fails to generate returns exceeding the cost of maintaining its intellectual property portfolio and administrative overhead.
The inability to achieve positive returns on invested capital over the past ten quarters suggests that the business model is structurally incapable of compounding value under its current scale. Investors should monitor whether management can ever pivot toward a self-sustaining return profile, as current trends point toward continued erosion of shareholder equity.
As indicated by the company's financial statements, the asset turnover ratio remains critically low at 0.05 in 2026Q1, reflecting a business model that struggles to convert its limited asset base into meaningful revenue, further exacerbated by a high DSO of 315 days during the same period.
The extremely high days sales outstanding suggests significant friction in royalty collection or a reliance on a very small number of customers with slow payment cycles. This inefficiency in working capital management places additional pressure on the firm's already strained liquidity position, as cash remains trapped in receivables rather than funding operations.
According to recent SEC filings, the company's current ratio has fluctuated significantly, settling at 6.38 in 2026Q1, yet this figure masks the underlying risk posed by a cash balance of only $664,299 against persistent, high-burn operating losses that threaten the firm's near-term solvency.
While the current ratio appears superficially healthy, the absolute level of liquid assets is insufficient to support the company's ongoing R&D and legal expenses for an extended period. The reliance on external financing appears increasingly likely, which may lead to significant dilution for existing shareholders if royalty revenues do not improve immediately.
As reported in financial statements, analysts frequently misapply the gross margin metric to REFR, viewing its near-100% level as a sign of scalability, when in reality, the company's negative operating margin reveals that the business lacks the operational leverage required to cover its fixed patent maintenance costs.
The focus on gross margin obscures the reality that this is a high-fixed-cost business disguised as a low-cost licensing model. Instead of gross margin, investors should prioritize the operating cash burn and the cash-to-burn ratio, which provide a more accurate assessment of the company's survival risk and its dependence on external capital.
Includes 30+ ratios · 30 years · Updated daily
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Quick answers to the most common questions about buying REFR stock.
Research Frontiers Incorporated's current P/E ratio is -8.9x. This places it at the 50th percentile of its historical range.
Research Frontiers Incorporated's return on equity (ROE) is -115.6%. The historical average is -64.0%.
Based on historical data, Research Frontiers Incorporated is trading at a P/E of -8.9x. This is at the 50th percentile of its historical P/E range. Compare with industry peers and growth rates for a complete picture.
Research Frontiers Incorporated has 83.4% gross margin and -190.2% operating margin.