STAASTAAR Surgical Company

$22.86

Is the business good?

How good a business is STAA?

STAAR Surgical Company earns −11% on the capital it employs against a 9.0% cost of capital, so growth costs more than it returns.

−11%

Return on invested capital · cost of capital 9.0% · 20 points below what the capital costs: growth destroys value

Operating margin
−9.1%

Operating margin · Medical Instruments & Supplies median 5.8% · 12 months to Q1 2026

Share count, year on year
+3.1%

Share count, year on year · shareholders own a smaller slice than a year ago

R&D as % of revenue
13%

R&D as % of revenue

Operating margin by fiscal year
YearOperating margin
FY20204.1%
FY202114%
FY202218%
FY20238.7%
FY2024−4.0%
FY2025−38%
Details
Gross margin12 months to Q1 2026
77%
Operating margin12 months to Q1 2026
−9.1%
Net margin12 months to Q1 2026
−7.2%
Free cash flow margin
−19%
R&D as % of revenue
13%
Revenue, trailing twelve months
$290M
Free cash flow, trailing twelve months
−$55M
Net income, trailing twelve months
−$21M
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 from the cash flow statement.