Is NTIC's Q3 2024 performance a red flag for investors?

**Northern Technologies International Corp (NTIC) faced challenges in Q3 2024**, as evidenced by a decline in revenue and net income when compared to the previous year's quarter. Here's a detailed analysis: 1. **Revenue Decline**: NTIC's total revenue for Q3 2024 was $23.35 million. This is a decrease from the revenue of $23.71 million reported in the same quarter of the previous year. The year-over-year revenue decline is approximately 1.35%. 2. **Net Income Decrease**: The net income for Q3 2024 was $2.21 million. In the same quarter of the previous year, NTIC reported a net income of $2.31 million. This represents a decrease of about 4.3% in net income. 3. **Earnings Per Share (EPS) Comparison**: The diluted EPS for Q3 2024 was $0.11. This is lower than the EPS of $0.17 reported in Q3 2023. The decrease in EPS is approximately 35.3%. 4. **Analyst Expectations**: Analysts had expected revenue of $23.00 million for Q3 2024, which was slightly higher than the actual revenue. However, the company missed earnings per share estimates, with analysts expecting $0.24 per share and NTIC reporting $0.11 per share. 5. **Insider Activity**: On September 4, 2024, Patrick Lynch, the President & CEO, acquired 44,858 stock options, which could be seen as a positive insider sentiment. 6. **Institutional Investments**: Meros Investment Management LP increased its holdings in NTIC by 25.2% in the second quarter, indicating some confidence from institutional investors. In conclusion, while NTIC has faced challenges in Q3 2024, the decline in revenue and net income, coupled with missing earnings expectations, could raise concerns for investors. However, the company's strategic initiatives and the insider acquisition by the CEO might provide some support. Investors should consider these factors along with the broader market conditions and NTIC's long-term growth prospects before making investment decisions.