MXLMaxLinear, Inc.
Is the business good?
The checks split: nothing decisive, though margins compressing.
Mixed fundamental signals. Nine pass/fail tests of year-over-year health from the filings.
Operating margin has narrowed over the past few years, profitability per dollar of sales is eroding.
Where this answer is blind. The F-score rewards improvement, so an already-elite company can score mid-pack.
How good a business is MXL?
MaxLinear, Inc. earns −11% on the capital it employs against a 9.0% cost of capital, so growth costs more than it returns.
Return on invested capital · cost of capital 9.0% · 20 points below what the capital costs: growth destroys value
- Operating margin
- −14%
Operating margin · Semiconductors median 7.5% · 12 months to Q2 2026
- Share count, year on year
- +12%
Share count, year on year · shareholders own a smaller slice than a year ago
- R&D as % of revenue
- 38%
R&D as % of revenue
| Year | Operating margin |
|---|---|
| FY2020 | −21% |
| FY2021 | 7.3% |
| FY2022 | 16% |
| FY2023 | −5.5% |
| FY2024 | −62% |
| FY2025 | −27% |
Details›
- Gross margin12 months to Q2 2026
- 57%
- Operating margin12 months to Q2 2026
- −14%
- Net margin12 months to Q2 2026
- −18%
- Free cash flow margin
- 0.58%
- R&D as % of revenue
- 38%
- Revenue, trailing twelve months
- $569M
- Free cash flow, trailing twelve months
- $3.3M
- Net income, trailing twelve months
- −$104M
- Return on invested capitaloperating profit after tax ÷ debt + equity − cash
- −11%
Margins, capital and share counts from the statements as filed with the SEC; cash conversion is operating cash flow over operating profit after tax.