Research Frontiers Inc. (REFR)
NASDAQ:REFR
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Research Frontiers
(NASDAQ:REFR)
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Rating:44Neutral
Price Target:
$0.91
▼(-28.43% Downside)
Action:ReiteratedDate:03/21/26
The score is held down primarily by weak financial performance (negative and worsening operating cash flow, fragile profitability quality, and higher leverage) and a bearish technical setup (below key moving averages with negative MACD). The earnings call provides a modest offset due to improved balance-sheet position and a broader commercial pipeline, but near-term revenue and collections remain uncertain and valuation support is limited due to losses.
Positive Factors
Licensing-based Royalty Model
A licensing/royalty model is capital-light and scalable: Research Frontiers earns recurring royalties as partners manufacture SPD products, allowing revenue to grow with partner volumes without heavy manufacturing capex. This structural model supports margin leverage as adoption scales over months to years.
Negative Factors
Persistent Negative Operating Cash Flow
Continued negative operating cash flow signals insufficient internal cash generation to fund operations and commercialization. Reliance on external funding or equity raises is likely if royalty receipts lag, which can pressure execution, force dilutive financing, and constrain the company’s ability to invest in partner support or scale production.
Read all positive and negative factors
Positive Factors
Negative Factors
Licensing-based Royalty Model
A licensing/royalty model is capital-light and scalable: Research Frontiers earns recurring royalties as partners manufacture SPD products, allowing revenue to grow with partner volumes without heavy manufacturing capex. This structural model supports margin leverage as adoption scales over months to years.
Read all positive factors
Research Frontiers (REFR) vs. SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY)
Market Cap
$32.02M
Dividend YieldN/A
Average Volume (3M)54.56K
Price to Earnings (P/E)―
Beta (1Y)0.42
Revenue Growth-16.49%
EPS Growth-59.21%
CountryUS
Employees6
SectorTechnology
Sector Strength88
IndustryHardware, Equipment & Parts
Share Statistics
EPS (TTM)-0.02
Shares Outstanding34,748,222
10 Day Avg. Volume80,091
30 Day Avg. Volume54,565
Financial Highlights & Ratios
PEG Ratio-0.39
Price to Book (P/B)47.21
Price to Sales (P/S)39.31
P/FCF Ratio-33.15
Enterprise Value/Market Cap1.02
Enterprise Value/Revenue29.01
Enterprise Value/Gross Profit30.27
Enterprise Value/Ebitda-16.76
Forecast
1Y Price TargetN/A
Price Target UpsideN/A
Rating ConsensusN/A
Number of Analyst Covering0
EPS Forecast (FY)N/A
Revenue Forecast (FY)N/A
Research Frontiers Business Overview & Revenue Model
Company Description
Research Frontiers Incorporated develops and markets technology and devices to control the flow of light worldwide. The company develops and licenses suspended particle device (SPD-Smart) light-control technology to companies that manufacture and ...
How the Company Makes Money
Research Frontiers makes money primarily by licensing its SPD-SmartGlass intellectual property to third parties and earning royalties tied to commercial sales of SPD-enabled products. Under its model, the company licenses the right to use its pate...
Research Frontiers Earnings Call Summary
Earnings Call Date:Mar 05, 2026
(Q4-2025)
| % Change Since: |
Next Earnings Date:Apr 30, 2026
Earnings Call Sentiment Positive
The call communicated a constructive operational and commercial outlook: management highlighted expanded OEM engagements (including Cadillac, Ferrari, McLaren), a broader automotive pipeline with four high-volume quotations, launch of an architectural retrofit product, technical progress on Black SPD, and a strengthened, debt-free balance sheet supported by a targeted $1.1M private placement. Offsetting these positives were near-term headwinds tied to Gauzy's French rehabilitation and related liquidity reallocation that slowed collections, royalty impacts from licensee bankruptcies (six-figure effect), geopolitical disruptions affecting logistics, and the inherent timing lag between automotive integration and royalty revenues. On balance, the strategic progress and diversification of programs and markets outweigh the short-term payment and timing risks, though investors should expect revenue realization to follow program production ramps rather than immediately.Positive Updates
Debt-Free Balance Sheet and Fresh Capital
Company entered 2026 debt-free, strengthened working capital, and completed an oversubscribed $1.1 million private placement at $1 per share (with 5-year warrants); participants included long-term shareholders and the owner of an SPD licensee involved in architectural retrofit.
Negative Updates
Gauzy French Rehabilitation and Liquidity Reallocation
Gauzy's French subsidiaries entered a court-supervised rehabilitation process that reallocated liquidity to satisfy monitors, temporarily reducing access to funds for other parts of Gauzy and slowing payments to Research Frontiers; approximately half of Research Frontiers' receivables from Gauzy are subject to the French process.
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Q4-2025 Updates
Positive
Negative
Debt-Free Balance Sheet and Fresh Capital
Company entered 2026 debt-free, strengthened working capital, and completed an oversubscribed $1.1 million private placement at $1 per share (with 5-year warrants); participants included long-term shareholders and the owner of an SPD licensee involved in architectural retrofit.
Read all positive updates
Company Guidance
Guidance from the call was that Research Frontiers entered 2026 debt‑free with strengthened working capital after completing an oversubscribed $1.1 million private placement at $1 per share (5‑year warrants at escalating strike prices; shares subject to ≥6‑month hold), and management said royalties improved when adjusted for one‑time licensee events despite a six‑figure hit in 2025 from AGP/Soliver bankruptcies; Ferrari production was successfully transitioned to Isoclima (exceeding minimum annual royalty thresholds in Q3 and Q4 2025), Gauzy’s French subsidiaries entered court‑supervised rehabilitation in mid‑November (Nov. 13) while SPD emulsion production in Israel and film production in Germany continue, and Gauzy backlog was described in the “tens of millions”; commercial momentum includes production with Ferrari, McLaren and Cadillac (Celestiq), a Mercedes concept covering ~75% glazing, four high‑volume automotive quotations plus specialty programs with potential annual volumes in the “tens of thousands,” launch of four initial architectural retrofit projects, continued R&D (Black SPD, IR/UV variants, yield improvements) and the company noted over $125 million historically invested in SPD—management reiterated that revenue should follow as programs move from quotation to production and pointed to cost reductions from scale and licensee investments.Research Frontiers Financial Statement Overview
Summary
Income Statement
24
Negative
Balance Sheet
38
Negative
Cash Flow
18
Very Negative
| Breakdown | Dec 2025 | Dec 2024 | Dec 2023 | Dec 2022 | Dec 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Income Statement | |||||
| Total Revenue | 1.12M | 1.34M | 909.60K | 539.69K | 1.26M |
| Gross Profit | 934.57K | 1.07M | -1.45M | 539.69K | 1.26M |
| EBITDA | -1.95M | -1.18M | -1.86M | -2.45M | -1.66M |
| Net Income | -2.05M | -1.31M | -1.91M | -2.67M | -1.85M |
Balance Sheet | |||||
| Total Assets | 2.25M | 4.04M | 3.85M | 5.37M | 4.55M |
| Cash, Cash Equivalents and Short-Term Investments | 664.30K | 1.99M | 2.48M | 4.23M | 3.03M |
| Total Debt | 1.17M | 1.30M | 267.72K | 464.13K | 646.22K |
| Total Liabilities | 1.32M | 1.44M | 332.79K | 569.59K | 762.06K |
| Stockholders Equity | 933.63K | 2.60M | 3.52M | 4.80M | 3.78M |
Cash Flow | |||||
| Free Cash Flow | -1.33M | -790.44K | -2.30M | -2.18M | -1.81M |
| Operating Cash Flow | -1.33M | -788.82K | -2.30M | -2.18M | -1.80M |
| Investing Cash Flow | -726.00 | -1.62K | 55.59K | 2.69M | -2.78M |
| Financing Cash Flow | 0.00 | 308.67K | 484.50K | 3.45M | 86.26K |
Research Frontiers Technical Analysis
Negative
1.27
Price Trends
1.02
Negative
1.28
Negative
1.44
Negative
Market Momentum
-0.03
Negative
46.59
Neutral
71.43
Neutral
Evaluating momentum and price trends is crucial in stock analysis to make informed investment decisions. For REFR, the sentiment is Negative. The current price of 1.27 is above the 20-day moving average (MA) of 0.93, above the 50-day MA of 1.02, and below the 200-day MA of 1.44, indicating a neutral trend. The MACD of -0.03 indicates Negative momentum. The RSI at 46.59 is Neutral, neither overbought nor oversold. The STOCH value of 71.43 is Neutral, not indicating any strong overbought or oversold conditions. Overall, these indicators collectively point to a Negative sentiment for REFR.
Research Frontiers Risk Analysis
Research Frontiers disclosed 14 risk factors in its most recent earnings report. Research Frontiers reported the most risks in the "Finance & Corporate" category.
Finance & Corporate - Financial and accounting risks. Risks related to the execution of corporate activity and strategy
Latest Risks Added 0 New Risks
Research Frontiers Peers Comparison
UnderperformOutperform
Sector (61)
Name | Overall Rating | Market Cap | P/E Ratio | ROE | Dividend Yield | Revenue Growth | EPS Growth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
66 Neutral | $75.11M | 354.27 | 9.95% | ― | 2.21% | -15.60% | |
61 Neutral | $37.18B | 12.37 | -10.20% | 1.83% | 8.50% | -7.62% | |
58 Neutral | $119.42M | -3.15 | -53.09% | ― | -15.76% | -25.27% | |
52 Neutral | $24.00M | 3.44 | 50.99% | ― | -48.54% | ― | |
52 Neutral | $81.86M | 110.94 | 2.42% | ― | 38.22% | 70.68% | |
44 Neutral | $32.02M | -14.39 | -122.90% | ― | -16.49% | -59.21% |
* Technology Sector Average
REFR
Research Frontiers
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Research Frontiers Corporate Events
Private Placements and Financing
Research Frontiers Announces $1.1 Million Private Placement
Positive
Feb 18, 2026
On February 18, 2026, Research Frontiers entered into subscription agreements with private accredited investors, including family members of a company director and the owner of a licensee producing SPD-SmartGlass products, for a private placement ...
Glossary
BuyA stock rated as a "Buy" is expected to perform better than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock is likely to deliver higher returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
HoldA stock rated as a "Hold" is expected to perform in line with the overall market or a specific benchmark. This rating indicates that the stock is neither particularly compelling nor unfavorable for investment. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
SellA stock rated as a "Sell" is expected to perform worse than the overall market or a specific benchmark over the near-to-medium term. This rating suggests the stock may deliver lower returns compared to other stocks in the same sector or market index. Note: This is not investment advice; please consult a financial advisor before making investment decisions.
Disclaimer
This AI Analyst Stock Report is automatically generated by our AI systems using advanced algorithms and publicly available financial, technical, and market data. While the information provided aims to be accurate and insightful, it is intended for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial advice. Any content created by an AI (Artificial Intelligence) system may contain inaccuracies and/or contain errors. Investing in stocks carries inherent risks, and past performance is not indicative of future results. This report does not account for your personal financial circumstances, objectives, or risk tolerance. Always conduct your own research or consult with a qualified financial advisor before making investment decisions. The analysis and recommendations provided are based on historical and current data and may not fully reflect future market conditions or unexpected developments. Neither the creators of this report nor its affiliated entities guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the information presented. Use this report at your own discretion and risk.