BR
BRO
Dec 31, 2023
Quarter ended Dec 31, 2023 · FY2023 Q4

Brown & Brown, Inc. stock research

Brown & Brown (BRO) Free Cash Flow — Quarter Ended Dec 31, 2023

Free cash flow was lower than the prior quarter but higher than the same quarter last year. The free cash flow margin weakened sequentially but also weakened compared to the year-ago quarter.

Free cash flow takeaway

A quick read on the company's cash generation and what it means for investors.

Free cash flow was lower than the prior quarter but higher than the same quarter last year. The free cash flow margin weakened sequentially but also weakened compared to the year-ago quarter.

  • Revenue was lower than the prior quarter but higher than the year-ago quarter. Operating cash flow decreased sequentially and increased year-over-year, while capital expenditure rose both sequentially and year-over-year, resulting in free cash flow that was lower than the prior quarter and higher than the year-ago quarter.
  • Compared to the immediately preceding quarter, revenue, operating cash flow, free cash flow, and free cash flow margin all decreased, while capital expenditure increased. Compared to the same quarter one year earlier, revenue, operating cash flow, capital expenditure, and free cash flow all increased, while free cash flow margin decreased.

FCF snapshot

Quarterly and TTM cash-flow metrics with the minimum valuation context.

TTM free cash flow

$939.9M

Trailing twelve-month free cash flow.

Quarter free cash flow

$275.0M

Free cash flow in the selected fiscal quarter.

Operating cash flow

$306.0M

Cash generated by operations before capital spending.

CapEx

$31.0M

Capital spending and related asset purchases.

FCF margin

26.8%

The share of revenue converted into free cash flow.

Cash flow trend

A short quarterly history shows whether FCF is scaling with revenue or only spiking for one period.

PeriodRevenueOperating CFCapExFCFFCF margin
2023-03-31$1.1B$60.0M$12.0M$48.0M4.3%
2023-06-30$1.0B$328.0M$13.3M$314.7M30.1%
2023-09-30$1.1B$316.0M$13.8M$302.2M28.3%
2023-12-31$1.0B$306.0M$31.0M$275.0M26.8%

Cash conversion quality

Checks that separate high-quality free cash flow from accounting noise or working-capital timing.

FCF / net income102.2%Shows whether accounting earnings convert into cash.
CapEx / revenue3.0%Lower capital intensity usually supports FCF margin.
Net cash-$3.1BCash and equivalents minus total debt.

Recent events shaping cash flow

Near-term business events that help explain the free cash flow result.

Watch

Capital Expenditure Increase

Capital expenditure was higher than both the prior quarter and the year-ago quarter, which reduced free cash flow relative to operating cash flow. This is the strongest observable driver of the change in free cash flow margin.

Higher capital expenditure lowered free cash flow and free cash flow margin compared to what operating cash flow alone would have supported.

What the cash flow says

How to interpret the company's free cash flow beyond the headline number.

Revenue was lower than the prior quarter but higher than the year-ago quarter. Operating cash flow decreased sequentially and increased year-over-year, while capital expenditure rose both sequentially and year-over-year, resulting in free cash flow that was lower than the prior quarter and higher than the year-ago quarter.

Compared to the immediately preceding quarter, revenue, operating cash flow, free cash flow, and free cash flow margin all decreased, while capital expenditure increased. Compared to the same quarter one year earlier, revenue, operating cash flow, capital expenditure, and free cash flow all increased, while free cash flow margin decreased.

Monitor the trend in capital expenditure, which increased both sequentially and year-over-year, as it directly impacts free cash flow conversion.