LIQT

LiqTech is a two-decade-old silicon-carbide filtration maker that has never turned a profit at scale. FY2025 revenue of $16.5M (+13.0%) sounds like growth, but the five-year record is a flat-to-down sawtooth ($18.3M → $16.0M → $18.0M → $14.6M → $16.5M) — the company is stuck near a $16M revenue plateau while carrying a -$94.8M accumulated deficit. Every year is a loss; FY2025's -$8.53M net loss is 'improved' only in that it lost less than FY2024. Gross margin did jump to 7.6% from 1.7% on a better systems mix, but management itself flags that 'underutilization of our manufacturing capacity has a material, adverse effect on profitability' and that inventory obsolescence write-downs hit margin — a 7.6% gross line cannot cover a $9.6M operating-expense base, so the -50.3% operating margin persists.

The balance sheet is where 'avoid' becomes clear. Cash fell 51.4% to $5.07M while operating cash flow was -$6.11M — that is less than a full year of runway at the current burn. Stockholders' equity dropped 37.4% to $10.4M and liabilities/equity rose to 1.62x. The 10-K states this plainly: inadequate financing 'could also raise substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern,' and management warns that raising equity would cause 'significant dilution' — on a tiny 9.95M share count (post reverse-split), that dilution would be severe. This is a company that must raise capital soon, on whatever terms it can get.