Last week, a reader requested that I take a look at Immersion (Nasdaq: IMMR), a small cap licensing company that’s on the cutting edge of developing the future of haptic technology.
So today, we’re going to see what The Value Meter has to say.
(By the way, I’m happy to keep taking your requests. If you have a stock you’d like me to run through The Value Meter, just drop the ticker in the comments section at the bottom of this article.)
For those of you who are not familiar, haptics allow people to use their sense of touch to engage with products and experience the digital world.
Immersion’s intellectual property and technological expertise enable it to develop high-quality, immersive haptic experiences across a wide range of applications, from mobile devices and interior car interfaces to gaming and virtual reality.
The stock has had a shaky ride over the past several years, but its recent performance has been impressive. Shares have more than doubled since 2022 to a current price of about $10, with the stock soaring nearly 40% in the past month alone.
This rapid appreciation in share price has caught the attention of many investors – and prompted a closer look at the company’s fundamentals and growth prospects.
Immersion currently trades at an enterprise value-to-net asset value (EV/NAV) ratio of just 0.7. That’s a 90% discount to the average EV/NAV ratio of 7 for companies with positive net assets.
However, as I always point out, a low EV/NAV ratio alone doesn’t necessarily make a stock a screaming buy. To get a more complete picture, we also need to examine the company’s ability to generate cash.
Over the past year, Immersion has recorded four straight quarters of positive free cash flow. In that span, its free cash flow has averaged 6.4% of its net asset value. That’s modestly below the 8% average among its peers, but not so far below it as to justify the clear discount on Immersion’s EV/NAV.
The company’s most recent quarterly results underscore its strong fundamentals and its tightening grip on the haptics market.
In Q1, Immersion grew revenue by a jaw-dropping 517% year over year to $43.8 million, primarily driven by a one-time licensing and settlement agreement with Meta Platforms. While this massive revenue growth rate may not be sustainable in the long run, it highlights the value of Immersion’s intellectual property and its ability to monetize its haptic technologies with major players in the industry.
The company also posted excellent profitability and free cash flow in the quarter, bolstering its cash position to a rock-solid $179 million. That gives Immersion plenty of dry powder to fund new growth initiatives, make acquisitions and keep rewarding shareholders with a steady stream of dividends.
But perhaps most exciting is Immersion’s gargantuan growth opportunity as haptics go mainstream across multiple industries. Due to the proliferation of touchscreens, wearables and virtual reality devices, the demand for realistic and engaging haptic feedback is poised to skyrocket in the coming years.
As the clear leader in this space and the owner of a massive intellectual property portfolio, Immersion is ideally positioned to capitalize on this rising tide and expand its licensing model.
Immersion checks all the boxes of a classic “growth at a reasonable price” (GARP) play: a wide moat, strong and improving financials, a below-average valuation, and exposure to multiple secular growth markets.
The stock doesn’t come without risk, but the risk/reward balance looks quite compelling at current levels. And for investors who can stomach some volatility and take a multiyear view, this is the kind of under-the-radar gem that could be a huge winner in the long run.
The Value Meter rates Immersion as “Slightly Undervalued.”
As I said above, if you have a stock that you’d like to have rated by The Value Meter, leave the ticker symbol in the comments section below.