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Side-by-side financial comparison of ACACIA RESEARCH CORP (ACTG) and System1, Inc. (SST). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
System1, Inc. is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($51.9M vs $50.1M, roughly 1.0× ACACIA RESEARCH CORP). ACACIA RESEARCH CORP runs the higher net margin — 6.8% vs -26.0%, a 32.8% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, ACACIA RESEARCH CORP posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (2.6% vs -31.3%). Over the past eight quarters, ACACIA RESEARCH CORP's revenue compounded faster (43.6% CAGR vs -21.8%).
Acacia Research Corporation is a publicly traded American company based in New York City. It acquires and operates businesses in industries including the technology, energy, and industrial/manufacturing sectors. Acacia has a strategic relationship with Starboard Value, LP, the company's controlling shareholder. The company has been characterized as a patent troll.
System1 is an American Internet advertising company. Formerly known as OpenMail, it was founded in 2013. It describes itself as operating a "Responsive Acquisition Marketing Platform", and cites privacy as one of its principal foci, although it has been criticized for its influence on privacy-focused properties, including search engine Startpage.com. It is headquartered in Marina del Rey, California.
ACTG vs SST — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q4 FY2025 vs Q4 FY2025
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $50.1M | $51.9M |
| Net Profit | $3.4M | $-13.5M |
| Gross Margin | 12.8% | 41.0% |
| Operating Margin | -26.1% | -33.6% |
| Net Margin | 6.8% | -26.0% |
| Revenue YoY | 2.6% | -31.3% |
| Net Profit YoY | 125.5% | 4.8% |
| EPS (diluted) | $0.03 | $-3.58 |
Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.
8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend
Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.
| Q4 25 | $50.1M | $51.9M | ||
| Q3 25 | $59.4M | $61.6M | ||
| Q2 25 | $51.2M | $78.1M | ||
| Q1 25 | $124.4M | $74.5M | ||
| Q4 24 | $48.8M | $75.6M | ||
| Q3 24 | $23.3M | $88.8M | ||
| Q2 24 | $25.8M | $94.6M | ||
| Q1 24 | $24.3M | $84.9M |
| Q4 25 | $3.4M | $-13.5M | ||
| Q3 25 | $-2.7M | $-18.5M | ||
| Q2 25 | $-3.3M | $-17.5M | ||
| Q1 25 | $24.3M | $-15.9M | ||
| Q4 24 | $-13.4M | $-14.2M | ||
| Q3 24 | $-14.0M | $-23.6M | ||
| Q2 24 | $-8.4M | $-26.4M | ||
| Q1 24 | $-186.0K | $-10.5M |
| Q4 25 | 12.8% | 41.0% | ||
| Q3 25 | 21.2% | 36.9% | ||
| Q2 25 | 12.8% | 35.7% | ||
| Q1 25 | 47.4% | 38.2% | ||
| Q4 24 | 17.6% | 42.1% | ||
| Q3 24 | 10.1% | 28.0% | ||
| Q2 24 | 26.2% | 27.6% | ||
| Q1 24 | 49.2% | 21.9% |
| Q4 25 | -26.1% | -33.6% | ||
| Q3 25 | -10.8% | -25.3% | ||
| Q2 25 | -24.2% | -20.4% | ||
| Q1 25 | 30.8% | -17.6% | ||
| Q4 24 | -32.4% | -15.7% | ||
| Q3 24 | -44.1% | -24.6% | ||
| Q2 24 | -18.4% | -30.8% | ||
| Q1 24 | -8.6% | -30.4% |
| Q4 25 | 6.8% | -26.0% | ||
| Q3 25 | -4.6% | -30.1% | ||
| Q2 25 | -6.4% | -22.4% | ||
| Q1 25 | 19.5% | -21.3% | ||
| Q4 24 | -27.5% | -18.7% | ||
| Q3 24 | -60.0% | -26.6% | ||
| Q2 24 | -32.7% | -27.9% | ||
| Q1 24 | -0.8% | -12.4% |
| Q4 25 | $0.03 | $-3.58 | ||
| Q3 25 | $-0.03 | $-2.30 | ||
| Q2 25 | $-0.03 | $-2.23 | ||
| Q1 25 | $0.25 | $-0.21 | ||
| Q4 24 | $-0.14 | $-3.41 | ||
| Q3 24 | $-0.14 | $-3.37 | ||
| Q2 24 | $-0.08 | $-3.80 | ||
| Q1 24 | $0.00 | $-0.16 |
Balance Sheet & Financial Strength
Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand | $306.7M | $86.9M |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | $91.9M | $305.1M |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $543.5M | $30.5M |
| Total Assets | $771.0M | $405.0M |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | 0.17× | 10.01× |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | $306.7M | $86.9M | ||
| Q3 25 | $301.8M | $54.6M | ||
| Q2 25 | $316.7M | $63.6M | ||
| Q1 25 | $272.0M | $43.9M | ||
| Q4 24 | $273.9M | $63.6M | ||
| Q3 24 | $410.9M | $69.1M | ||
| Q2 24 | $441.9M | $75.7M | ||
| Q1 24 | $498.4M | $69.9M |
| Q4 25 | $91.9M | $305.1M | ||
| Q3 25 | — | $259.2M | ||
| Q2 25 | — | $263.3M | ||
| Q1 25 | — | $267.4M | ||
| Q4 24 | — | $255.1M | ||
| Q3 24 | — | $259.2M | ||
| Q2 24 | — | $263.3M | ||
| Q1 24 | — | $268.6M |
| Q4 25 | $543.5M | $30.5M | ||
| Q3 25 | $537.6M | $42.7M | ||
| Q2 25 | $538.6M | $58.2M | ||
| Q1 25 | $540.2M | $67.2M | ||
| Q4 24 | $514.8M | $80.3M | ||
| Q3 24 | $540.2M | $90.3M | ||
| Q2 24 | $560.7M | $109.4M | ||
| Q1 24 | $568.3M | $131.7M |
| Q4 25 | $771.0M | $405.0M | ||
| Q3 25 | $768.9M | $385.2M | ||
| Q2 25 | $775.5M | $429.2M | ||
| Q1 25 | $801.6M | $419.2M | ||
| Q4 24 | $756.4M | $459.1M | ||
| Q3 24 | $707.6M | $479.3M | ||
| Q2 24 | $753.6M | $511.3M | ||
| Q1 24 | $631.7M | $521.1M |
| Q4 25 | 0.17× | 10.01× | ||
| Q3 25 | — | 6.07× | ||
| Q2 25 | — | 4.53× | ||
| Q1 25 | — | 3.98× | ||
| Q4 24 | — | 3.18× | ||
| Q3 24 | — | 2.87× | ||
| Q2 24 | — | 2.41× | ||
| Q1 24 | — | 2.04× |
Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency
How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Operating Cash FlowLast quarter | $75.2M | $-10.6M |
| Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex | — | — |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | — | — |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | — | 0.0% |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | 22.01× | — |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | — | — |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | $75.2M | $-10.6M | ||
| Q3 25 | $9.5M | $-2.1M | ||
| Q2 25 | $50.1M | $24.5M | ||
| Q1 25 | $2.4M | $-15.9M | ||
| Q4 24 | $50.1M | $772.0K | ||
| Q3 24 | $-593.0K | $-5.0K | ||
| Q2 24 | $16.1M | $10.0M | ||
| Q1 24 | $54.8M | $-16.0M |
| Q4 25 | — | — | ||
| Q3 25 | — | — | ||
| Q2 25 | — | — | ||
| Q1 25 | $335.0K | $-16.0M | ||
| Q4 24 | $-98.5M | — | ||
| Q3 24 | $-2.8M | $-36.0K | ||
| Q2 24 | $-126.7M | — | ||
| Q1 24 | $54.6M | — |
| Q4 25 | — | — | ||
| Q3 25 | — | — | ||
| Q2 25 | — | — | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.3% | -21.5% | ||
| Q4 24 | -201.8% | — | ||
| Q3 24 | -12.1% | -0.0% | ||
| Q2 24 | -490.5% | — | ||
| Q1 24 | 224.4% | — |
| Q4 25 | — | 0.0% | ||
| Q3 25 | — | 0.0% | ||
| Q2 25 | — | 0.0% | ||
| Q1 25 | 1.7% | 0.1% | ||
| Q4 24 | 304.4% | 0.0% | ||
| Q3 24 | 9.6% | 0.0% | ||
| Q2 24 | 553.0% | 0.0% | ||
| Q1 24 | 1.1% | 0.0% |
| Q4 25 | 22.01× | — | ||
| Q3 25 | — | — | ||
| Q2 25 | — | — | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.10× | — | ||
| Q4 24 | — | — | ||
| Q3 24 | — | — | ||
| Q2 24 | — | — | ||
| Q1 24 | — | — |
Financial Flow Comparison
Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
ACTG
| Energy Operations | $16.0M | 32% |
| Transportation Safety | $10.4M | 21% |
| Office Storage And Display Solutions | $8.4M | 17% |
| Printers Consumables And Parts | $6.5M | 13% |
| Natural Gas Reserves | $5.1M | 10% |
| Natural Gas Liquids Reserves | $3.3M | 7% |
SST
Segment breakdown not available.
