MMarketMath

LITE

StalwartQuality: Low (37/100)3 red flags

Lumentum · Information Technology · Communications Equipment

$830.17

52w 119.25 – 1,085.68

20y monthly, adjusted

Mkt cap

$74.5B

P/E

P/FCF

226.4

FCF yield

0.4%

ROE

-149.3%

Shldr yield

0.0%

div 0.0% + bb 0.0%

What today's price assumes

At $74.5B, the market is pricing in 41.9% annual free-cash-flow growth for the next decade (10% discount rate, 2.5% terminal growth). Over the last ten years, FCF actually grew 51.9% per year — expectations are roughly in line with history.

Simple DCF per-share range: $51 · $114 · $165 (4% / base / optimistic growth). An estimate, not a target.

Adjust the assumptions yourself →

Historical multiple lens

At its own median P/OCF of 20.3× across 12 years, LITE would trade near $170/share (25th–75th percentile: $114–$530); it trades at 99.1× today.

Assumes the historical multiple regime persists — re-ratings can be permanent.

Growth record

Compound annual growth rates from as-filed 10-K data, split-adjusted

Rev 3y

+19.5%

Rev 5y

+11.6%

Rev 10y

+12.8%

EPS 5y

EPS 10y

FCF 5y

−14.4%

FCF 10y

+51.9%

Fundamentals

Fiscal 2013–2026, from SEC filings

Revenue

2013: $769.9M
2014: $817.9M
2015: $837.1M
2016: $903.0M
2017: $1.0B
2018: $1.2B
2019: $1.6B
2020: $1.7B
2021: $1.7B
2022: $1.7B
2023: $1.8B
2024: $1.4B
2025: $1.6B
2026: $3.0B
$0$1.0B$2.0B$3.0B
13
16
19
22
25

Net income

2013: $6.5M
2014: $10.7M
2015: −$3.4M
2016: $9.3M
2017: −$102.5M
2018: $248.1M
2019: −$36.4M
2020: $135.5M
2021: $397.3M
2022: $198.9M
2023: −$131.6M
2024: −$546.5M
2025: $25.9M
2026: −$6.9B
−$6.0B−$4.0B−$2.0B$0
13
16
19
22
25

Free cash flow

2013: $23.0M
2014: −$1.4M
2015: −$44.3M
2016: $4.6M
2017: −$53.1M
2018: $154.3M
2019: $164.1M
2020: $438.3M
2021: $653.9M
2022: $368.1M
2023: $51.3M
2024: −$108.3M
2025: −$104.7M
2026: $300.1M
$0$200.0M$400.0M$600.0M
13
16
19
22
25

Diluted shares (lower is better)

2014: 58.8M
2015: 58.8M
2016: 59.1M
2017: 60.6M
2018: 63.3M
2019: 70.7M
2020: 77.6M
2021: 78.4M
2022: 74.2M
2023: 68.3M
2024: 67.3M
2025: 69.6M
2026: 74.6M
020.0M40.0M60.0M
13
16
19
22
25

Margins

-200%-100%0%13151719212325
Net marginFCF marginGross margin

Capital returned (dividends + buybacks)

2018: $0
2019: $0
2020: $200.0M
2021: $236.0M
2022: $543.9M
2023: $175.6M
2024: $0
2025: $0
$0$200.0M$400.0M
13
16
19
22
25

Cash vs long-term debt

$0$1.0B$2.0B13151719212325
CashLT debt

Quarterly

Discrete quarters from 10-Q filings; Q4 derived as fiscal year minus Q1–Q3. OCF is unwound from the year-to-date figures 10-Qs report. Compare to the same quarter a year ago — most businesses are seasonal.

Revenue by quarter

Q4'23: $370.8M
Q1'24: $317.6M
Q2'24: $366.8M
Q3'24: $366.5M
Q4'24: $308.3M
Q1'25: $336.9M
Q2'25: $402.2M
Q3'25: $425.2M
Q4'25: $480.7M
Q1'26: $533.8M
Q2'26: $665.5M
Q3'26: $808.4M
Q4'26: $1.0B
$0$500.0M$1.0B
23
24
25
26
26

Net income by quarter

Q4'23: −$60.2M
Q1'24: −$67.9M
Q2'24: −$99.1M
Q3'24: −$127.0M
Q4'24: −$252.5M
Q1'25: −$82.4M
Q2'25: −$60.9M
Q3'25: −$44.1M
Q4'25: $213.3M
Q1'26: $4.2M
Q2'26: $78.2M
Q3'26: $144.2M
Q4'26: −$7.2B
−$6.0B−$4.0B−$2.0B$0
23
24
25
26
26
QuarterRevenueYoYNet incomeYoYEPSOCF
Q4'26 *$1.0B+109.3%−$7.2B−3457.6%-95.40$363.0M
Q3'26$808.4M+90.1%$144.2M1.50$203.8M
Q2'26$665.5M+65.5%$78.2M0.89$126.7M
Q1'26$533.8M+58.4%$4.2M0.05$57.9M
Q4'25 *$480.7M+55.9%$213.3M3.10$64.0M
Q3'25$425.2M+16.0%−$44.1M-0.64−$1.6M
Q2'25$402.2M+9.7%−$60.9M-0.88$24.3M
Q1'25$336.9M+6.1%−$82.4M-1.21$39.6M
Q4'24 *$308.3M−16.9%−$252.5M-3.75$35.5M
Q3'24$366.5M−4.4%−$127.0M-1.88−$7.0M
Q2'24$366.8M−27.5%−$99.1M-1.47−$1.5M
Q1'24$317.6M−37.3%−$67.9M-1.02−$2.3M
Q4'23 *$370.8M−12.2%−$60.2M−273.5%-0.89$49.2M

Track record

Compound annual growth by period. For debt and share count, negative is the good direction.

Series3y5y10y15y
Revenue+19.5%+11.6%+12.8%
Operating cash flow+61.1%+0.3%+24.1%
Free cash flow+80.2%−14.4%+51.9%
EPS (diluted)−48.3%−26.7%+6.8%
Equity+50.7%+18.7%+25.0%
LT debt−64.0%−51.6%
Diluted shares+3.0%−1.0%+2.4%
Stock price+148.5%+57.1%+37.2%

$100, 3 years ago

$1,534vs $176 in SPY

148.5% vs 20.7%/yr

$100, 5 years ago

$958vs $181 in SPY

57.1% vs 12.6%/yr

$100, 10 years ago

$2,364vs $412 in SPY

37.2% vs 15.2%/yr

Quality & capital discipline

Cash-based returns and how management deploys capital

Cash ROIC

16.0%

OCF ÷ (equity + debt)

OCF / EV yield

1.1%

MC vs 10× OCF

9.04

≤1 = priced under 10× OCF

Debt / FCF

0.1y

SBC / FCF

56.7%

Owner earnings

$129.9M

OCF − capex − SBC

OE yield

0.2%

Share count 5y

+2.0%

per year; negative = buybacks

Capital intensity

net PP&E ÷ revenue

Sales efficiency

$0.40

new PP&E per $1 new revenue, 5y

Checklist

14 of 25 checks pass · 56%. Checks with structurally missing inputs are excluded.

Growth & Consistency

2/6

  • Revenue growth

    11.6% · 5y CAGR ≥ 5%

    pass
  • EPS growth

    · 5y CAGR ≥ 5%

    na
  • FCF growth

    -14.4% · 5y CAGR ≥ 5%

    fail
  • Revenue rises consistently

    7 of 9 · up in ≥ 7 of last 10 years

    pass
  • FCF consistently positive

    7 of 10 · positive in ≥ 8 of last 10 years

    fail
  • Profitable every year

    5 of 10 · net income > 0 in ≥ 8 of last 10

    fail
  • Cash flow keeps up with sales

    0.3% vs 11.6% · OCF CAGR ≥ 0.9× revenue CAGR

    fail

Profitability

5/7

  • Net margin

    -230.1% · ≥ 8%

    fail
  • Operating margin

    17.4% · ≥ 10%

    pass
  • Gross margin stable or rising

    41.7% vs 32.2% · no drop > 2 pts over 3y

    pass
  • Return on equity

    -149.3% · ≥ 12%

    fail
  • Cash ROIC

    16.0% · ≥ 12%

    pass
  • FCF margin

    10.0% · ≥ 5%

    pass
  • Earnings back their cash

    OCF $751.4M vs NI −$6.9B · OCF ≥ net income (latest FY)

    pass

Balance Sheet

5/5

  • Debt payable from cash flow

    0.1y · LT debt ≤ 3× FCF

    pass
  • Cash cushion

    5046% · cash ≥ 50% of LT debt

    pass
  • Leverage

    0.01 · LT debt ≤ 1.5× equity

    pass
  • Equity positive and compounding

    $4.6B · equity > 0 and grew over ~5y

    pass
  • Interest burden

    4% · interest ≤ 15% of operating income

    pass

Capital Allocation

1/4

  • Share count flat or shrinking

    2.0% · ≤ +0.5%/yr over ~5y

    fail
  • Stock comp restrained

    57% · SBC ≤ 15% of FCF

    fail
  • Distributions funded by FCF

    0% · dividends + buybacks ≤ 100% of FCF

    pass
  • Repurchases are a habit

    4 of 10 · buybacks in ≥ 5 of last 10 years

    fail

Valuation Discipline

1/3

  • FCF yield

    0.4% · ≥ 3%

    fail
  • Earnings multiple

    · P/E ≤ 25

    na
  • Price asks less than history delivered

    41.9% vs 51.9% · implied FCF growth ≤ historical FCF CAGR

    pass
  • Shareholder yield

    0.0% · dividends + buybacks ≥ 2% of market cap

    fail

Red flags

Mechanical checks — a flag is a question to investigate, not a verdict

Net loss

The company reported a net loss in the latest fiscal year.

Heavy stock compensation

Stock-based compensation consumes more than 30% of free cash flow.

Shareholder dilution

Diluted share count has grown by more than 2% per year over ~5 years.

Financial data

As filed in 10-Ks; per-share figures split-adjusted. $ in millions.

FYRevenueGross profitOp incomeNet incomeEPSOCFCapExFCFDividendsBuybacksSBCCashLT debtEquityShares
20263,0141,256525-6,935-92.967514513001702,044414,64475
20251,645460-180260.37126231-10501775212,5631,13570
20241,359252-434-547-8.1225133-10801294372,50395767
20231,767569-116-132-1.93180129511761488591,35668
20221,7137893031992.68459913685441031,2902,4111,87574
20211,7437835273975.0773985654236937741,5321,97378
20201,6796502041361.7552486438200732981,5391,74978
20191,565426-22-36-0.543301661640614331,49771
20181,2484321402483.822489315404739745792663
20171,00231848-103-1.7185138-533327345761961
2016903277129-0.05878252515749759
2015837258-23-3-0.06954-44181538159
20148182579110.186364-1192033659
2013770223470.11553223168282

Some concepts are structurally absent for certain industries (banks report no gross profit or capex). Missing ≠ zero.