Owner Scorecard


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SVCO, Silvaco Group Inc.

Software asset-light Unprofitable

Silvaco Group, Inc. is a provider of technology computer aided design software, electronic data automation software and semiconductor intellectual property.

Our solutions are used by engineers to optimize semiconductor manufacturing processes and efficiently bring semiconductor products to market.

Our differentiated solutions enable our customers to increase productivity, accelerate time-to-market and reduce development and manufacturing costs.

Latest annual: FY2025 10-K
SVCO · Silvaco Group Inc.
I

The business

What it sells, where the money comes from, the kind of company it is.

Revenue · FY2025
$63M
+5.7% YoY
Vital signs · TTM, with 3-yr average
Revenue $67M 3-yr avg $59M
Gross margin 80% 3-yr avg 80%
Operating margin −47.8% 3-yr avg −46.1%
ROIC −36% 3-yr avg −28%
Owner-earnings margin −66% 3-yr avg −29%
Free cash flow margin −66% 3-yr avg −29%

The business in brief

read the 10-K →

What this business is and what moves its needle, from its own SEC filings.

What it is
Revenue is License (68%) and Maintenance and service (32%).
Situation
Unprofitable. No sustained operating profit across the record; an earnings multiple has nothing to rest on. What the record does show is revenue, the gross-margin trajectory, and the burn against the cash on hand.
What moves the needle
Operating margin has run around −67% through the cycle on a 80% gross margin, the operating line in the red even at its best — so the lever is whether the spending below the gross line can come down enough to clear a profit: revenue growth against the cost curve, and the cash runway until it does. The cash cycle has run negative through the cycle (a median of −57 days): the operation is paid before it pays, so working capital releases cash as the business grows rather than tying it up. Read this kind of business on retention and the cost of growth. On its own account, the filing leans hardest on customer concentration, set against the numbers in what the filing emphasizes, below.
Is it a good business?
Return on capital has rarely cleared the cost of capital (median −40%, above 15% in 0 of 3 years). Owner earnings, the cash-based check, have been thin too. This is price-taker territory, where the balance sheet and the cycle matter more than any multiple; the rest is in the 10-K.

Every line is arithmetic on the company's filings, shown in full in the sections below.

Where the money comes from

read the 10-K →

License is 68% of revenue, with Maintenance and service the other meaningful line at 32%.

Revenue by product line, FY2025
  • License68%$43M
  • Maintenance and service32%$20M

From the segment footnote of the company's own 10-K. Shares are of total revenue; the profit bar shows each segment's share of segment operating profit, before unallocated corporate costs.

II

The record

Ten years of arithmetic, read across the cycle.

The record, 2023–2025

realized figures from each filing · older years to the left
2023’232024’242025’25TTMTTMMar 2026
Income statement
$54M$60M$63M$67MRevenueRevenue
83%80%78%80%Gross marginGross mgn
33%63%54%49%SG&A / revenueSG&A/rev
24%35%47%51%R&D / revenueR&D/rev
$1M($40M)($46M)($32M)Operating incomeOp. inc.
2.1%−67.5%−72.8%−47.8%Operating marginOp. mgn
($316K)($39M)($41M)($28M)Net incomeNet inc.
Cash flow & returns
$1M($20M)($34M)($44M)Operating cash flowOp. cash
$601K$1M$3M$4MDepreciationDeprec.
$895K($9M)($7M)($32M)Working capital & otherWC & other
$339K$505K$618K$522KCapexCapex
0.6%0.8%1.0%0.8%Capex / revenueCapex/rev
$841K($20M)($35M)($44M)Owner earningsOwner earn.
1.6%−34.0%−54.7%−66.4%Owner earnings marginOE mgn
$841K($20M)($35M)($44M)Free cash flowFCF
1.6%−34.0%−54.7%−66.4%Free cash flow marginFCF mgn
$0$33M$21MAcquisitionsAcquis.
11%-40%-55%-36%ROICROIC
-3%-39%-55%-36%Return on equityROE
−3%−39%−55%−36%Retained to equityRetained/eq
Balance sheet
$4M$20M$9M$11MCash & investmentsCash+inv
$6M$4M$10M$9MReceivablesReceiv.
$2M$3M$3M$4MAccounts payablePayables
$4M$690K$6M$6MOperating working capitalOper. WC
$21M$107M$46M$38MCurrent assetsCur. assets
$25M$34M$38M$27MCurrent liabilitiesCur. liab.
0.8×3.1×1.2×1.4×Current ratioCurr. ratio
$9M$9M$4M$30MGoodwillGoodwill
$41M$142M$123M$111MTotal assetsAssets
1.8×-44.8×-29.6×Interest coverageInt. cov.
$9M$100M$75M$77MShareholders’ equityEquity
0.0%45.1%17.1%17.2%Stock comp / revenueSBC/rev
Per share
20.0M25.7M29.7M31.4MShares out (diluted)Shares
$2.71$2.32$2.12$2.13Revenue / shareRev/sh
$-0.02$-1.53$-1.39$-0.89EPS (diluted)EPS
$0.04$-0.79$-1.16$-1.41Owner earnings / shareOE/sh
$0.04$-0.79$-1.16$-1.41Free cash flow / shareFCF/sh
$0.02$0.02$0.02$0.02Cap. spending / shareCapex/sh
$0.47$3.90$2.52$2.45Book value / shareBVPS

The record, charted

FY2023–2025

Each measure over its full record; the current point and the worst year marked.

Share count
30Mpeak FY2025
ROIC
−55%low FY2025
Gross margin
78%low FY2025

Owner earnings vs. net income

Owner earningsNet income

The accountant's number, and the cash an owner can take; the gap is the tell.

($35M)owner earningsvs.($41M)net incomelow FY2025

Net income is the accountant's number; owner earnings is the cash an owner could take out. The walk between them, off the cash-flow statement, and whether the gap is widening or holding.

In fiscal 2025 the business turned a $41M loss into ($35M) of owner earnings: more cash than the profit line showed, after the non-cash charges and the capital it put back in.

FY2025FY2024FY2023
Reported net income($41M)($39M)($316K)
Depreciation & amortizationnon-cash charge added back+$3M+$1M+$601K
Stock-based compensationreal costnon-cash, but a real cost+$11M+$27M
Working capital & othertiming of cash in and out, other non-cash items−$7M−$9M+$895K
Cash from operations($34M)($20M)$1M
Capital expenditurecash put back in to keep running and to grow−$618K−$505K−$339K
Owner earnings($35M)($20M)$841K
Owner-earnings marginowner earnings ÷ revenue-55%-34%2%

Owner earnings is the cash an owner could pull out without starving the business: operating cash less the capital it must spend to hold its position . The cash-flow statement also adds stock comp back as non-cash, but it is a real cost paid in shares; counted as the expense it is (less $11M), owner earnings is nearer ($45M).

Maintenance capex is estimated as depreciation where a growing business invests above it; free cash flow is the figure the scorecard's free-cash margin reads.

III

Quality & stewardship

Returns, the balance sheet, capital allocation, and pay.

Owner’s Scorecard

FY2025 10-K · source on SEC EDGAR →
Material weakness in financial controls
“We have in the past identified material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting ("ICFR").”

The figures below are only as sound as the controls that produced them. read the note →

Will it survive?

  • Does not cover its interest
    Operating income ($46M) ÷ interest expense $899K
    What this means

    A full year of operating profit didn't cover the interest bill. This is the zombie zone: the business depends on refinancing, asset sales, or forbearance to service its debt.

  • Net cash, debt-free
    Cash $9M − debt $0
    What this means

    Cash and short-term investments exceed every dollar of debt by $9M, on net the company owes nothing, and can act from strength when others can't. Net debt is the leverage figure that matters: the cash is already set against the debt. Strategic or illiquid investments aren't counted here.

  • Negative, funded by others
    DSO 56 + DIO 0 − DPO 93 days
    What this means

    Days cash is tied up between paying suppliers and collecting from customers. A negative cycle is a quiet moat: suppliers and customers fund the operation (Buffett's “float”), the company grows on other people's money. (Little or no inventory, a services / asset-light model, so the inventory leg is ~0.)

Is it a good business?

  • Not enough data
    Industry peers: median -6%
    What this means

    The filing data didn't include the inputs for this check.

  • Consumes cash through the cycle
    3-yr median margin, range -55%–2%; latest ($35M) = operating cash ($34M) − maintenance capex $618K
    Industry peers: median 1%
    What this means

    What an owner could take out without starving the business: operating cash less the maintenance capital it must spend to hold its position — Buffett's owner earnings. That's -55% of revenue this year, a -34% median across 3 years. Treating stock comp as the real expense it is (less $11M of SBC) leaves ($45M).

  • Loss, and burning cash
    Net income ($41M) · cash from operations ($34M)

    In the filing’s words The filing discloses a material weakness in its financial controls — the reported numbers here, and the record built on them, are only as reliable as the controls that produced them.

    What this means

    The company reported a net loss, so a conversion ratio isn't meaningful. What matters then is whether operations still threw off cash, here, they did not.

How is the cash used?

  • Not enough data
    What this means

    The filing data didn't include the inputs for this check.

  • Investing or harvesting? 0.18×
    Harvesting
    Capex $618K ÷ depreciation $3M
    What this means

    Descriptive, not a grade. Above ~1× means investing faster than assets wear out (growth, or, sustained for years, today's earnings carrying less depreciation than tomorrow's will). Below means spending less than it's wearing out (efficiency, or a melting asset base). The ratio won't tell you which; the filings will.

Graham’s defensive tests · 0 of 2 met

Graham’s numerical criteria for the defensive investor (The Intelligent Investor, ch. 14), run on the filings. A floor of safety, not a buy signal; many fine modern businesses fail his strictest liquidity rules by design.

  • Adequate size Miss
    Revenue ≥ $2B · $63M
    What this means

    Big enough to weather a storm. Graham's 1972 floor was ~$100M of sales (≈ $700M today); we use a $2B revenue line as a conservative modern stand-in.

  • Strong liquidity Miss
    Current ratio ≥ 2× · 1.20×
    What this means

    Current assets at least twice current liabilities, near-term bills covered without touching the business. Strict by design: many cash-rich modern firms run leaner and miss it, holding their cushion in longer-dated securities.

  • Moderate price
    P/E ≤ 15 and P/E × P/B ≤ 22.5 · decided by the price
    What this means

    Graham's valuation gate, the wall he kept between a sound business and a sound investment. Three-year average earnings are $-0.83/share (latest year $-1.26), the averaged base the calculator's gate runs on, and book value is $2.29/share. Enter a price in “What the price implies” just below for the P/E, P/B, and whether it clears. But this is the rule Buffett outgrew: there's no hard P/E law, and a wonderful business can deserve a far richer multiple if the thesis holds, treat it as the bargain-hunter's floor, not a verdict on the price.

Does AI threaten the moat?

Elevated contestability

The product is software or information, the very thing capable AI now produces more cheaply, so the moat is more contestable than the record alone implies.

In its own filing A competitive risk, new this year

Its FY2025 10-K names artificial intelligence as a competitive threat, in language that was not in the prior year's filing.

“The adoption of AI technologies has brought new demands and also challenges in terms of disruption to both our business models and existing technology offerings.”

AI has collapsed the cost of building a capable substitute for the very thing this business sells. When a credible alternative can be assembled for a fraction of the incumbent's price, it is pricing power that erodes first, not revenue tomorrow. The live question is whether the moat survives that, not whether it held in the past. Whether that question is answerable at all is yours to decide, against your own circle of competence.

Read from the filing's own risk factors, paired with the industry's structure under its SIC code; the durability is read above, the price below.

All figures as filed; the source filing is linked above.

Current Position

as of the latest quarter, Mar 31, 2026

Can the business pay what it owes this year, off the freshest balance sheet: the quality of the assets, the debt actually coming due, and what a low ratio means here.

Current assets$38M
  • Cash & short-term investments$11M
  • Receivables$9M
  • Other current assets$18M
Current liabilities$27M
  • Accounts payable$4M
  • Other current liabilities$23M
Current ratio1.42×all current assets ÷ what's due · Graham looked for 2×
Quick ratio1.42×stricter: inventory excluded
Cash ratio0.41×strictest: cash alone against what's due
Working capital$11Mthe cushion left after near-term bills
Cash runway0.2 yrsthe business is consuming cash; this is how long the cash on hand lasts at that rate
Revenue, latest quarter vs. a year ago+26.0%the freshest read on whether the business is still growing
Current ratio, recent quarters2.7× → 1.4×
Deeper floors
Tangible book value$22Mequity stripped of goodwill & intangibles
Net current asset value$3MGraham's net-net: current assets less all liabilities
Debt incl. operating leases$6M$2M of it operating leases
Deferred revenue$14Mcustomer cash collected before delivery; operating float

From the company's latest filing.

Acquisitions & goodwill

from the balance sheet & the 3-year cash-flow record

Goodwill grows only when a company acquires and falls only when it concedes it overpaid. The size of that bet, the cash put into buying rather than building, and how much has already been written off.

Goodwill & intangibles$30M25% of all assets; the premium carried on the balance sheet for businesses acquired
Against book equity6%goodwill is this share of book equity; the rest is the company’s own retained and paid-in capital
Cash spent acquiring$33Mover 3 years buying other businesses, against $1M of capital spent building

None written down over the record; the goodwill is still carried at full cost. That is the deals holding their value on the books so far; whether they keep doing so is the test an owner watches, since the write-down, when it comes, is the admission the price was too high.

Goodwill, acquired intangibles and equity from the latest balance sheet; acquisition spend and write-downs summed across the 3-year record, from the company's own filings.

Management, ownership & pay

read the proxy →

From the proxy: how much of the business the people running it own, and how they are paid.

  • Insider ownership47.9%

    The stake all directors and executive officers hold together, per the 2026 proxy: skin in the game, the first thing Munger reads.

  • Stock-based compensation$11M

    The slice of the business handed to employees in shares this year, 17% of revenue. Buffett's oldest accounting fight: this is compensation, compensation is an expense, real whether or not the headline earnings admit it. One trap: the cash-flow statement adds SBC back, so the operating cash, and the owner earnings drawn from it, are flattered by exactly this amount; counted as the cost it is, what an owner keeps is lower.

What an owner would ask, FY2025

read the 10-K →
  • Which reported numbers are a judgment call?
    Management names Revenue recognition, Acquisitions, Stock compensation as critical estimates

    each rests partly on management's judgment; the filing's note sets out the assumptionsverify →

The questions the record and the charts do not answer on their own; each carries the figure and the place to look.

Peers, Software

The same industry, side by side on owner economics. Each figure is a through-cycle median, so a peak or trough year can’t distort it; the group median at the foot is the line to read each against.

CompanyRevenueGross marginOp. marginROICOwner earn. margin
SOUNSoundHound AI Inc$169M69%-308.2%-6%-150%
BLZEBackblaze Inc.$146M52%-32.1%-88%1%
BBAIBigBear.ai Inc.$128M25%-62.6%-31%-19%
RDVTRed Violet Inc. Common Stock$90M-3.0%-3%20%
SLPSimulations Plus Inc.$79M74%27.8%9%29%
SVCOSilvaco Group Inc.$63M80%-67.5%-40%-34%
RCATRed Cat Holdings Inc.$41M18%-562.0%-53%-250%
QXLQuantum X Labs Inc.$27M95%-9.4%-2%3%
Group median69%-47.3%-19%-9%
IV

The price

What a price has to assume.

What the price implies

reverse-DCF

Silvaco Group Inc. is profitable, but owner earnings are negative this year because capital spending currently outruns operating cash, a build-out, so the owner-earnings reverse-DCF has no positive base to grow. We read the price from both ends instead: type a price to see the steady-state profitability it demands, then set the mature margin you would believe and weigh the two against each other. Nothing leaves your browser unless you enter it in your notebook.

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The assumptions

Enter a price to run it.

Owner earnings it must reach
Margin the price demands
Owner-earnings margin today−66%

Two reads of one future. From your price: the owner earnings the company must reach, valued at a mature multiple and discounted back at your rate, expressed as the margin it implies on revenue grown at your rate. From your belief: the mature margin you would credit, set on the dial above. When the margin the price demands runs above the one you would believe, you are paying for a future taken on faith. For a deep cyclical at a trough, normalized through-cycle earnings are the better lens; this mode is for the genuinely unprofitable, and for the profitable business whose capital spending currently outruns its cash.

Cite: Owner Scorecard, "Silvaco Group Inc. (SVCO), the owner's record," https://ownerscorecard.com/c/SVCO, data as of 2026-07-09.

Manual order: ← SVC its page in the Manual SVRA →

Industry order: ← SSNC the Software chapter TBLA →