One-glance verdict
Within fair range
$53.03 our estimate vs market $76.00
43% above our estimate
Fundamentals snapshot
Melexis NV
MLXSF · PNK · Technology · Semiconductors
Current price
$76.00
52-week range
$56.23 - $77.66
Market cap
$2.99B
Balance sheet
Watch
13.89x Strong cushion
Net debt $306.68M. Interest coverage shows how many times profit covers the interest bill.
What stands out
3 Rewards
2 Risks
3 rewards · 2 risks
- Reward Returns 22.0% on equity, ahead of 83% of its peers.
- Reward Free cash flow was positive in 3/10 years.
- Risk Stock trades 25.8% above its 5-year average P/E.
- Risk Operating margin compressed from 27.1% to 17.8% over 3 years.
What this company does
Melexis NV
Melexis designs and sells tiny electronic sensors and chips that act as the brains for features in modern vehicles. The company earns its money primarily from automakers who use these components for everything from tire pressure monitoring and engine controls to in-car lighting systems. As cars, especially electric ones, become more computerized, the demand for these specialized electronic parts is key to Melexis's business.
How the company got here
Founded in Belgium in 1988, Melexis started its journey in a garage and has grown into a global micro-electronic chip company. [1, 5, 13] It specializes in making semiconductors (the building blocks of modern electronics) primarily for the automotive industry. [1, 3] The company follows a 'fabless' model, which means they design and develop the chips in-house but partner with other companies to do the actual manufacturing. [4] This focus has paid off, as today the average car produced has about 18 Melexis chips inside it, helping the company become a key supplier to the world's automakers. [13]
What it actually does
Melexis creates tiny electronic components called integrated circuits, or chips, that act as a car's senses and reflexes. [1] Their sensor chips translate real-world conditions like speed, temperature, or the position of a pedal into digital information that a car's computer can understand. [8] Other chips, called driver ICs (integrated circuits that act as a control switch), take commands from the computer and make things happen, like moving a small motor for an air vent or controlling the brightness of a light. [8, 14] The main purpose of this technology is to make cars and other products safer, more energy-efficient, and more comfortable. [8]
Automotive
This is the company's main business, making up about 90% of its sales. [10, 11] Melexis designs chips for nearly every system in a modern vehicle, from the powertrain (the parts that make the car move, like the engine or electric motor) to safety and comfort features. [3, 9] For example, their sensors are critical for new 'brake-by-wire' systems where there is no physical connection between the pedal and the brakes, relying instead on electronic signals. [15] Automakers and their parts suppliers pay Melexis for these specialized chips to build smarter, safer, and more efficient vehicles, especially as the industry shifts toward electric cars. [9, 16]
Beyond Automotive
While smaller, this is a fast-growing and important part of the company's future plans. [10] Melexis applies its sensor and driver chip technology to other industries outside of cars. [8] This includes products for 'alternative mobility' like e-bikes and drones, robotics, smart home appliances, and even digital health devices that require very precise and reliable components. [8, 11] Customers in these fields pay for Melexis chips to add intelligence and control to their own products, representing a key area of expansion for the company. [10]
What management is betting on now
The company's main strategy is to deepen its leadership in the automotive world, with a special focus on the growing market for electric vehicles (EVs). [10] They are investing heavily in new chips for EV batteries, motors, and thermal management (systems that keep electronics from getting too hot or cold). [9, 23] At the same time, management is pushing to grow the 'Beyond Automotive' part of the business significantly, aiming for it to be a much larger slice of total sales in the coming years. [22] A key part of this plan involves expanding in Asia, particularly China, by adapting to the region's faster pace of innovation and building local partnerships. [10, 22]
Price history
How the share price has moved
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Is it cheap or expensive?
Fair value $53.03 vs current price $76.00
Our most-likely fair value is $53.03 a share — about 30.2% away from today's price of $76.00, so the stock currently looks fairly priced.
Is it drowning in debt?
Watch
Net debt $306.7M. Interest coverage 13.9x.
Net debt
$306.68M
Interest coverage
13.89x
Melexis NV's profit covers its interest bill about 13.9 times over. which is stronger than most peers shown here and 2 peers sit below 1x, which is the danger zone where profit does not fully cover the interest bill.
Watch
Worse cushion
Baseline
Better cushion
MLXSF
BASELINE
Melexis NV
Total debt $350.12M Interest coverage 13.89x This is the baseline the peer rows are being compared against.
Total debt $304.01M Interest coverage 1.13x -92% vs MLXSF Carries about 12.3x less debt cushion than MLXSF.
Total debt $431.30M Interest coverage -9.10x -100% vs MLXSF This peer has almost no interest-payment cushion compared with MLXSF.
Total debt $0.00 Interest coverage -72.35x -100% vs MLXSF This peer has almost no interest-payment cushion compared with MLXSF.
Total debt $130.46M Interest coverage 512.67x +3,591% vs MLXSF Carries about 36.9x more debt cushion than MLXSF.
What you should know
The case for and against MLXSF
3 Rewards
2 Risks
Rewards
-
Returns 22.0% on equity, ahead of 83% of its peers.
-
Free cash flow was positive in 3/10 years.
-
Trades at 24.4x P/E vs peer median 260.9x (90.7% cheaper).
Risks
-
Stock trades 25.8% above its 5-year average P/E.
-
Operating margin compressed from 27.1% to 17.8% over 3 years.
The numbers
All the key metrics, grouped by purpose
Tap any ? icon to learn what it means.
Valuation
How expensive the stock looks
P/E (TTM)
24.36x
Forward P/E
—
P/B
6.10x
P/S
3.53x
EV/EBITDA
17.46x
PEG ratio
2.01x
Profitability
How much profit each dollar creates
Gross margin
39.4%
Operating margin
17.8%
Net margin
12.2%
ROE
22.0%
ROA
10.0%
Health
Liquidity and balance-sheet strength
Debt / equity
0.69x
Current ratio
5.87x
Quick ratio
1.89x
Total debt
$350.12M
Total cash
$43.44M
Growth
How the business has been compounding
Revenue TTM
$987.36M
Revenue 5Y CAGR
0.1%
EPS TTM
3.12
EPS 5Y CAGR
-17.1%
Cash flow
How much cash the business throws off
Operating CF TTM
$146.90M
Free CF TTM
$112.75M
FCF margin
11.4%
Dividend
Shareholder payout
Yield
5.7%
Payout ratio
135.0%
Last ex-div date
2026-10-13