MeritValue

C4 Therapeutics, Inc.

CCCCdata completeness 88%7 fiscal years on file

Data notes: no data for concept 'interestExpense'

The thesis, from the filings

C4 Therapeutics, Inc. earns about -48% on invested capital, but has diluted owners by 80% over 5 years — worth asking whether the growth reaches owners. The cash-flow models don't apply cleanly here — the ledger says why below.Whether it’s worth owning at today’s price is the last question — and yours to answer, below.

i. The business — what you’d actually own
FigureFY 2021FY 2022FY 2023FY 2024FY 2025
Revenue$45.8M1$31.1M2$20.8M3$35.6M4$35.9M4
Net income−$83.9M5−$128.2M6−$132.5M7−$105.3M8−$105M8
Operating cash flow−$87M9−$105.9M10−$106.8M11−$65.2M12−$98.7M12
Capital expenditure$1.28M13$5.5M14$1.71M15$180,00016$607,00016
Free cash flow (derived)−$88.2M9−$111.4M10−$108.5M11−$65.3M12−$99.3M12
Total debt$21.5M17$23M18$018——
Cash & equivalents$76.1M19$29.8M20$126.6M21$55.5M22$74.6M22
Diluted shares46.0M48.9M49.6M69.4M82.9M

Superscripts are receipts. Each links to the SEC filing the number came from (full list at the bottom).

ii. Your slice — ownership made literal
If you owned
shares
Net assets behind them
$30.95
your share of equity
Profit it earned you last year
−$12.67
Free cash flow it threw off
−$11.98
Debt you’d be carrying
—

10 shares is a claim on $30.95 of net worth that earned you −$12.67 and generated −$11.98 of cash last year.

iii. Is this a good business?
Moat signal · return on invested capital
-48% avg · 5y
FY21 -20%FY22 -36%FY23 -87%FY24 -52%FY25 -46%

It earned an average -48% on invested capital over 5 years. Compare that to what it costs to fund the business.

seeing a moat in the numbers →
Management signal · capital allocation
+80% shares · 5y

Share count is up 80% over 5 years — owners have been diluted. Worth asking what they got for it. Total debt has fallen 100% — deleveraging.

reading capital allocation →

Signals, not verdicts — read from the filings above. Numbers don’t prove a moat; they show its footprint. You decide.

iv. What it’s worth — engine v0.1.0
DCF · Growth Exit 10Y
not applicable
3y-median FCF non-positive — growth-exit DCF not applicable (see EPV)
DCF · Growth Exit 5Y
not applicable
3y-median FCF non-positive — growth-exit DCF not applicable (see EPV)
Earnings Power Value
not applicable
normalized (5y-median) earnings non-positive — EPV undefined
Graham Number
not applicable
diluted EPS missing or non-positive — Graham Number undefined

Different models answer different questions — which to trust when →

Sources — the receipts
  1. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001628280-23-004711 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  2. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001628280-24-006144 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  3. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001628280-25-008433 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  4. 10-K · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0001628280-26-012000 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  5. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001628280-23-004711 (NetIncomeLoss)
  6. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001628280-24-006144 (NetIncomeLoss)
  7. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001628280-25-008433 (NetIncomeLoss)
  8. 10-K · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0001628280-26-012000 (NetIncomeLoss)
  9. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001628280-23-004711 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  10. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001628280-24-006144 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  11. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001628280-25-008433 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  12. 10-K · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0001628280-26-012000 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  13. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001628280-23-004711 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  14. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001628280-24-006144 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  15. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001628280-25-008433 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  16. 10-K · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0001628280-26-012000 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  17. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001628280-23-004711 (LongTermDebtNoncurrent)
  18. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001628280-24-006144 (LongTermDebtNoncurrent)
  19. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0001628280-23-004711 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)
  20. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0001628280-24-006144 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)
  21. 10-K · period ending 2023-12-31 · accession 0001628280-25-008433 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)
  22. 10-K · period ending 2024-12-31 · accession 0001628280-26-012000 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)