Acacia Research (NASDAQ:ACTG) Issues Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.22 EPS

Acacia Research (NASDAQ:ACTG) issued its earnings results on Wednesday. The business services provider reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.09) by $0.22, FiscalAI reports. The firm had revenue of $114.56 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $49.50 million. Acacia Research had a negative net margin of 8.53% and a negative return on equity of 2.81%.

Here are the key takeaways from Acacia Research’s conference call:

• Q2 results were strong, with revenue of $114.6 million, total company adjusted EBITDA of $17.3 million, and adjusted net income of $12.8 million, or $0.13 per diluted share.
• Acacia ended the quarter with $334.6 million in cash, securities, and loans receivable and no parent-company debt, providing flexibility for acquisitions and investment in existing businesses. Management said its acquisition pipeline is active, particularly for bilateral and distressed opportunities.
• Benchmark delivered record revenue of $20.5 million, $9.8 million of adjusted EBITDA, and $6.5 million of free cash flow; management is evaluating additional wells and expects future drilling economics to be similar to the Cherokee development.
• The intellectual property platform generated approximately $60.6 million in licensing revenue, primarily from a Wi-Fi 6 settlement, but management cautioned that licensing revenue is episodic and is reduced by payments to counsel, inventors, and partners; settlement cash was received after quarter-end.
• Acacia fully wrote down its MalinJ1 investment following liquidity problems at Mycovia, although it is exploring a transaction that could provide direct ownership in Mycovia; any recovery depends on financing and uncertain FDA milestones for VIVJOA.

Acacia Research Stock Down 1.5%

ACTG stock traded down $0.07 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $4.54. 681,053 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 271,890. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10, a quick ratio of 8.09 and a current ratio of 8.56. Acacia Research has a 1-year low of $3.12 and a 1-year high of $5.27. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $4.61 and its 200 day simple moving average is $4.55. The firm has a market cap of $438.52 million, a P/E ratio of -25.22 and a beta of 0.45.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Acacia Research

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Acacia Research during the first quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of Acacia Research by 8.9% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 177,666 shares of the business services provider’s stock worth $569,000 after buying an additional 14,590 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Acacia Research during the 1st quarter worth $169,000. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in Acacia Research by 6.4% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 494,075 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $1,769,000 after buying an additional 29,659 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in Acacia Research by 2.8% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 114,872 shares of the business services provider’s stock valued at $411,000 after buying an additional 3,113 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Acacia Research from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “sell (d-)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $6.00.

About Acacia Research

Acacia Research Corporation is a publicly traded patent licensing company based in New York City. The firm specializes in acquiring patented technologies through a network of wholly owned subsidiaries and seeking licensing agreements or settlements with companies that utilize those technologies. Since its founding in 1993, Acacia has built a business model centered on identifying innovative inventions and monetizing them through patent enforcement and strategic partnerships.

The company’s activities span a broad range of technology sectors, including life sciences, medical devices, software, telecommunications and consumer electronics.