MeritValue

Clearside Biomedical, Inc.

CLSDQdata completeness 88%11 fiscal years on file

Data notes: no data for concept 'interestExpense'; no data for concept 'incomeTaxExpense'; no data for concept 'pretaxIncome'

The thesis, from the filings

Clearside Biomedical, Inc. earns about -172% on equity, but has diluted owners by 59% 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 2020FY 2021FY 2022FY 2023FY 2024
Revenue$7.89M1$29.6M2$1.33M3$8.23M3$1.66M3
Net income−$18.2M4$376,0005−$32.9M6−$32.5M6−$34.4M6
Operating cash flow−$13.1M7−$10.7M8−$13.4M9−$18.1M9−$24.7M9
Capital expenditure$55,00010$011$246,00012$1.78M12$977,00012
Free cash flow (derived)−$13.2M7−$10.7M8−$13.6M9−$19.9M9−$25.7M9
Total debt$991,00013————
Cash & equivalents$17.3M14$30.4M15$48.3M16$28.9M16$20M16
Diluted shares46.5M59.9M60.2M61.8M73.8M

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
−$5.26
your share of equity
Profit it earned you last year
−$4.65
Free cash flow it threw off
−$3.48
Debt you’d be carrying
—

10 shares is a claim on −$5.26 of net worth that earned you −$4.65 and generated −$3.48 of cash last year.

iii. Is this a good business?
Moat signal · return on equity
-172% avg · 5y
FY20 -208%FY21 1%FY22 -311%FY23 —FY24 —

It earned an average -172% on equity over 5 years. Compare that to what it costs to fund the business.

seeing a moat in the numbers →
Management signal · capital allocation
+59% shares · 5y

Share count is up 59% over 5 years — owners have been diluted. Worth asking what they got for it. Total debt has held roughly steady.

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 2020-12-31 · accession 0000950170-23-007732 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  2. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0000950170-24-030126 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  3. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000950170-25-046134 (RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax)
  4. 10-K · period ending 2020-12-31 · accession 0000950170-23-007732 (NetIncomeLoss)
  5. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0000950170-24-030126 (NetIncomeLoss)
  6. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000950170-25-046134 (NetIncomeLoss)
  7. 10-K · period ending 2020-12-31 · accession 0000950170-23-007732 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  8. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0000950170-24-030126 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  9. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000950170-25-046134 (NetCashProvidedByUsedInOperatingActivities)
  10. 10-K · period ending 2020-12-31 · accession 0000950170-23-007732 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  11. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0000950170-24-030126 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  12. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000950170-25-046134 (PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment)
  13. 10-K · period ending 2020-12-31 · accession 0000950170-22-003468 (LongTermDebtCurrent)
  14. 10-K · period ending 2020-12-31 · accession 0000950170-23-007732 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)
  15. 10-K · period ending 2021-12-31 · accession 0000950170-24-030126 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)
  16. 10-K · period ending 2022-12-31 · accession 0000950170-25-046134 (CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue)