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what it is
It licenses smart-glass tech that lets windows, sunroofs, and partitions switch from clear to dark.
how it gets paid
Last year Research Frontiers made $1M in revenue. SPD-Smart licensing royalties was the main engine at $0.45M, or 45% of sales.
why growth slowed
Revenue fell 16.0% last year. Against a $2.05M annual net loss, that financing looks like runway, not resolution.
what just happened
Latest-quarter revenue reached $1 million, while EPS stayed at -$0.04.
At a glance
C++ balance sheet — some cracks in the foundation
70/100 earnings predictability — reasonably predictable
-$0.04 fy2024 eps est
$1M fy2024 rev est
n/a operating margin
xvary composite: 43/100 — below average
What they do
It licenses smart-glass tech that lets windows, sunroofs, and partitions switch from clear to dark.
Licensing → charging other companies to use the tech → means 6 employees can reach cars, windows, and aircraft without building factories. That kept annual revenue at $1 million, not a warehouse full of inventory. Your upside comes from partner wins; your downside is a stalled royalty stream.
How they make money
$1M
annual revenue · their business grew -16.0% last year
SPD-Smart licensing royalties
$0.45M
Upfront license fees
$0.20M
Engineering and consulting
$0.15M
Light-control film and panels support
$0.10M
Other income
$0.10M
The products that matter
licenses smart-glass technology
SPD-Smart Technology
$1.12M · essentially all revenue
This is the business. It generated $1.12M last year, so every upside case depends on more royalty-bearing installations showing up in the income statement.
100% of sales
light-control material system
Chemical Emulsion
500+ patents support it
This is the technical core behind the glass. The quiet part is commercial, not scientific. The patent count is large. The revenue base is still only $1.12M.
ip backbone
Key numbers
$1.0M
annual revenue
This is the whole business in one number. You are looking at $1 million of sales against a $35 million stock market tag.
n/a
operating margin
Prior margin KPI failed sanity check — verify in filings. Operating margin → profit from the core business after costs → you lose $1.90 for every $1 sold.
3
risk rank
Risk rank → a rough danger score → 3 says average risk, but a $1 million business can still swing fast.
0.85
beta
Beta → how wild the stock moves versus the market → 0.85 means it moves less than the market, not that the business is safer.
Financial health
C++
strength
- balance sheet grade C++ — below average — limited financial resources
- risk rank 3 — safer than 50% of stocks
- price stability 10 / 100
- long-term debt $1M (3% of capital)
C++ — below average. watch for debt servicing and cash burn.
Total return vs. market
Return history isn't available for REFR right now.
source: institutional data · return history unavailable
What just happened
missed estimates
Latest-quarter revenue reached $1 million, while EPS stayed at -$0.04.
Revenue was up 192% vs. prior year, but the base stayed tiny. The business still lost money, and the annual revenue run rate stayed near $1 million.
$1.0M
revenue
$0.04
eps
192.0%
revenue vs. last year
the number that mattered
The 192% revenue jump matters because it started from a very small base. You still only got to about $1 million.
-
The company raised $1.1M in a February 2026 private placement.Against a $2.05M annual net loss, that financing looks like runway, not resolution. If you own the stock, you are now tracking capital access alongside product adoption.
-
Revenue moved the wrong way before any scale story showed up.A 16.0% decline from a year ago tells you adoption has not yet turned into stronger royalties. The patents may be valuable. The current income statement is still asking for proof.
-
A June 2024 filing disclosed litigation tied to royalty payments on patented technologies.For a company producing $1.12M of trailing revenue, legal friction is not background noise. Even a small dispute can matter when the revenue base is this small.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
the core risk is simple: royalty growth never shows up at a size that matters. When your whole revenue line is $1.12M, small disappointments do not stay small for long.
med
Cash burn keeps driving the capital structure
REFR lost $2.05M on $1.12M of revenue last year. That means the company is still consuming cash faster than the royalty model replaces it.
The February 2026 private placement added $1.1M, but that is small relative to last year's loss. If revenue does not improve, future dilution stays part of the math.
med
One revenue stream means no cushion
This page shows one economic engine: SPD-Smart licensing. There is no second mature segment to offset slow adoption or delayed orders.
If licensees disappoint, 100% of reported revenue is exposed. Welcome to concentration risk with no backup plan.
med
Royalty disputes hit harder when the base is tiny
A June 2024 filing disclosed litigation related to royalty payments on patented technologies. On a larger income statement that is annoying. On this one it matters.
With trailing revenue of only $1.12M, even modest legal friction can pressure a meaningful share of the business.
med
Valuation is pricing optionality before evidence
At roughly 31x trailing sales, the stock is being valued on what licensing might become, not what it is today.
If revenue stays near $1.12M and losses stay near current levels, that multiple has very little operating support underneath it.
A $35M market cap against $1.12M of trailing revenue works only if licensing scales from here. If revenue stays around current levels, the valuation story runs out before the technology story does.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
calendar
Q1 2026 earnings window
Expected between May 7–11, 2026. For a company this small, one quarter can move the annual revenue picture more than a polished investor deck.
royalties
Licensee activity actually turning into REFR revenue
Management can talk about adoption all day. What matters is whether partners such as Gauzy Ltd. convert design wins into royalty checks large enough to reverse a 16.0% sales decline.
liquidity
Cash burn after the private placement
The company raised $1.1M in February 2026 after losing $2.05M last year. You want to see that financing stretch the runway, not just delay the next raise.
valuation
Whether sales growth starts catching up with the multiple
A roughly 31x trailing sales multiple is venture-style pricing. If revenue stays near $1M, the stock keeps trading on hope more than proof.
Analyst rankings
earnings predictability
70 / 100
This score sits in the decent-but-not-great range. in human-speak, analysts have some visibility, but a business built on $1.12M of revenue can still surprise you fast.
beta
0.85
Beta measures how much the stock tends to move with the market. REFR is less market-linked than many names, but the bigger issue is company execution, not index exposure.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
institutional ownership data for REFR is being compiled.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
n/a
n/a
$1
current price
n/a
target midpoint · n/a from current
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