A Look At Kodak’s (KODK) Valuation After The Ateios RaiCore Battery Platform Expansion

Why Kodak’s Ateios battery partnership is back in focus

Eastman Kodak (KODK) is drawing fresh attention after Ateios Systems and the company expanded the Ateios RaiCore battery electrode platform to three major cathode chemistries, alongside third party verification for eliminating PFA forever chemicals.

The collaboration, backed by U.S. National Science Foundation Energy Storage Engine funding and an expanded non FEOC supply chain, links Kodak’s manufacturing capabilities to domestic battery supply efforts that some investors are now watching more closely.

See our latest analysis for Eastman Kodak.

The Ateios update lands after a sharp move in Eastman Kodak’s shares, with a 1 day share price return of 20.32%, a 30 day share price return of 67.16%, and a 1 year total shareholder return of 99.82%. Together, these figures suggest momentum has recently picked up compared with earlier years.

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With Eastman Kodak now tied into Ateios’ battery platform and the shares up 99.82% over 1 year, is the market still underestimating this US$911.6m print and materials business, or already pricing in any future growth?

Preferred Price to Sales of 1x: Is it justified?

At a last close of $11.25 and a P/S of 1x, Eastman Kodak screens as inexpensive relative to both its direct peers and the wider US tech sector.

The price to sales ratio compares the company’s market value to its annual revenue, so for KODK the market is valuing roughly $1,069.0m of revenue at a $911.6m market cap. For a business that is still loss making, P/S is often used as a rough yardstick because earnings based metrics such as P/E are less useful when net income is negative.

According to Simply Wall St’s checks, KODK’s 1x P/S sits far below a peer average of 11.2x and below the US tech industry average of 1.7x. That wide gap suggests the market is either heavily discounting Eastman Kodak’s print and advanced materials operations or assigning very different expectations to its future compared with other tech names with similar revenue levels.

Compared with the broader tech group, KODK’s current valuation on sales looks compressed, which is a strong contrast to its recent share price strength and its classification as trading at 98.5% below the SWS DCF estimate of future cash flow value of $740.43 per share. On these metrics, the market is pricing KODK’s revenue at a much lower level than peers, while the SWS DCF model implies a very large gap between price and estimated long term cash flow value.

See what the numbers say about this price — find out in our valuation breakdown.

Result: Preferred multiple of Price to Sales of 1x (UNDERVALUED)

However, this hinges on Kodak turning its US$155.0m loss, complex multi segment model and new battery exposure into something more durable than a short term story.

Find out about the key risks to this Eastman Kodak narrative.

Another angle on valuation

While a 1x P/S suggests Eastman Kodak could be cheap compared with peers, the SWS DCF model presents a very different perspective, with an estimated future cash flow value of $740.43 per share versus a market price of $11.25. If that gap holds, is the real risk underpaying or overestimating the model?

Look into how the SWS DCF model arrives at its fair value.

Simply Wall St performs a discounted cash flow (DCF) on every stock in the world every day (check out Eastman Kodak for example). We show the entire calculation in full. You can track the result in your watchlist or portfolio and be alerted when this changes, or use our stock screener to discover 62 high quality undervalued stocks. If you save a screener we even alert you when new companies match - so you never miss a potential opportunity.

Next Steps

If this mix of potential and uncertainty leaves you on the fence, move quickly to review the numbers, sentiment and context, then weigh 1 key reward and 1 important warning sign

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.

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