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REFRResearch Frontiers Incorporated
$0.54$19M
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  4. Financial Ratios

Research Frontiers Incorporated (REFR) Financial Ratios

Latest Ratios: P/E Ratio -8.9x · EV/EBITDA N/A · ROE -115.6%. (1996–2025 historical series)

Income StatementBalance SheetCash FlowRatios
AnnualQuarterly

REFR Valuation Multiples

Price-based multiples — how expensive the stock is relative to earnings, sales, book value, and cash flow

MetricTTMFY 2025FY 2024FY 2023FY 2022FY 2021FY 2020FY 2019FY 2018FY 2017FY 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 Ratio16.8139.3142.9237.15113.5043.10106.8057.7627.2016.5735.40
P/B Ratio19.4947.2122.019.6112.7714.3916.6112.8013.069.748.92
P/FCF———————————
P/OCF———————————

P/E links to full P/E history page with 30-year chart

REFR EV Ratios

Enterprise-value multiples — capital-structure-neutral measures of total business value

MetricTTMFY 2025FY 2024FY 2023FY 2022FY 2021FY 2020FY 2019FY 2018FY 2017FY 2016
EV / Revenue—39.7642.4034.72106.5243.39102.0254.1725.2115.4234.03
EV / EBITDA———————————
EV / EBIT———————————
EV / FCF———————————

REFR Profitability

Margins and return-on-capital ratios measuring operating efficiency

Margins

Full margin charts and quarterly trend are on the Earnings History page

MetricTTMFY 2025FY 2024FY 2023FY 2022FY 2021FY 2020FY 2019FY 2018FY 2017FY 2016
Gross Margin83.4%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%

Return on Capital

MetricTTMFY 2025FY 2024FY 2023FY 2022FY 2021FY 2020FY 2019FY 2018FY 2017FY 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%

REFR Leverage & Debt

Solvency and debt-coverage ratios — lower is generally safer

MetricTTMFY 2025FY 2024FY 2023FY 2022FY 2021FY 2020FY 2019FY 2018FY 2017FY 2016
Debt / Equity1.251.250.500.080.100.170.150.14———
Debt / EBITDA———————————
Net Debt / Equity—0.54-0.27-0.63-0.790.10-0.74-0.80-0.96-0.68-0.34
Net Debt / EBITDA———————————
Debt / FCF———————————
Interest Coverage———————————

REFR Liquidity & Efficiency

Short-term solvency ratios and asset-utilisation metrics

MetricTTMFY 2025FY 2024FY 2023FY 2022FY 2021FY 2020FY 2019FY 2018FY 2017FY 2016
Current Ratio3.843.8410.2112.8916.3013.2624.0118.868.117.5412.43
Quick Ratio3.843.8410.2112.8916.3013.2624.0118.868.117.5412.43
Cash Ratio2.232.237.418.9214.0210.1521.1117.016.495.548.71
Asset Turnover—0.500.330.240.100.280.130.190.370.520.23
Inventory Turnover———————————
Days Sales Outstanding—133.03179.89402.64398.76240.33263.60153.11169.10144.50329.88

REFR Shareholder Yields

Earnings, FCF, buyback, and dividend yields — total returns to shareholders

Dividends

Full dividend history and growth charts are on the Dividend History page

MetricTTMFY 2025FY 2024FY 2023FY 2022FY 2021FY 2020FY 2019FY 2018FY 2017FY 2016
Dividend Yield———————————
Payout Ratio———————————

Total Shareholder Return Metrics

MetricTTMFY 2025FY 2024FY 2023FY 2022FY 2021FY 2020FY 2019FY 2018FY 2017FY 2016
Earnings Yield———————————
FCF Yield———————————
Buyback Yield0.0%0.0%0.0%0.0%0.0%0.0%0.0%0.0%0.0%0.0%0.0%
Total Shareholder Yield0.0%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

Key Metrics

Growth RegimeContracting
ProfitabilityNegative
Balance SheetVulnerable
Cash FlowBurning
Top Statement Risk

Imminent liquidity and dilution

Verified Source

Metrics are mathematically derived from official filings.

SEC 10-K (2026Q1)

Speculative Multiples Defy Fundamental Reality

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.

Persistent Capital Erosion and Decay

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.

Working Capital Inefficiency and Stagnation

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.

Liquidity Buffer Nearing Critical Threshold

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.

Misapplied Metrics in Licensing Models

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.

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Includes 30+ ratios · 30 years · Updated daily

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REFR — Frequently Asked Questions

Quick answers to the most common questions about buying REFR stock.

What is Research Frontiers Incorporated's P/E ratio?

Research Frontiers Incorporated's current P/E ratio is -8.9x. This places it at the 50th percentile of its historical range.

What is Research Frontiers Incorporated's ROE?

Research Frontiers Incorporated's return on equity (ROE) is -115.6%. The historical average is -64.0%.

Is REFR stock overvalued?

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.

What are Research Frontiers Incorporated's profit margins?

Research Frontiers Incorporated has 83.4% gross margin and -190.2% operating margin.