CA
CAH
Latest · Dec 31, 2025
Quarter ended Dec 31, 2025 · FY2026 Q2

Cardinal Health, Inc. stock research

Cardinal Health (CAH) Free Cash Flow — Quarter Ended Dec 31, 2025

Free cash flow turned positive from a negative position a year earlier, though it declined from the prior quarter. Operating cash flow weakened sequentially, while revenue increased modestly.

Free cash flow takeaway

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

Free cash flow turned positive from a negative position a year earlier, though it declined from the prior quarter. Operating cash flow weakened sequentially, while revenue increased modestly.

  • Revenue rose from both the prior quarter and the year-ago quarter. Operating cash flow improved substantially from a year ago but fell from the preceding quarter. Capital expenditure increased slightly versus both periods. Free cash flow margin strengthened year-over-year but declined sequentially.
  • Compared to the prior quarter, operating cash flow and free cash flow were both lower, resulting in a weakened free cash flow margin. Versus the same quarter one year ago, operating cash flow moved from negative to positive, and free cash flow turned from negative to positive, leading to a significantly improved margin.

FCF snapshot

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

TTM free cash flow

$5.5B

Trailing twelve-month free cash flow.

Quarter free cash flow

$555.0M

Free cash flow in the selected fiscal quarter.

Operating cash flow

$686.0M

Cash generated by operations before capital spending.

CapEx

$131.0M

Capital spending and related asset purchases.

FCF margin

0.8%

The share of revenue converted into free cash flow.

TTM FCF yield

10.2%

TTM FCF divided by market capitalization.

Cash flow trend

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

PeriodRevenueOperating CFCapExFCFFCF margin
2025-03-31$54.9B$2.9B$126.0M$2.8B5.1%
2025-06-30$60.2B$1.5B$232.0M$1.3B2.2%
2025-09-30$64.0B$973.0M$108.0M$865.0M1.4%
2025-12-31$65.6B$686.0M$131.0M$555.0M0.8%

Cash conversion quality

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

FCF / net income118.8%Shows whether accounting earnings convert into cash.
CapEx / revenue0.2%Lower capital intensity usually supports FCF margin.
Net cashn/aCash and equivalents minus total debt.

Recent events shaping cash flow

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

Watch

Operating cash flow decline

Operating cash flow decreased from the prior quarter, while revenue increased. This drove the sequential decline in free cash flow and margin, despite significant year-over-year improvement.

The shift in cash conversion efficiency from the prior quarter is the primary factor to watch for the current quarter's performance.

What the cash flow says

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

Revenue rose from both the prior quarter and the year-ago quarter. Operating cash flow improved substantially from a year ago but fell from the preceding quarter. Capital expenditure increased slightly versus both periods. Free cash flow margin strengthened year-over-year but declined sequentially.

Compared to the prior quarter, operating cash flow and free cash flow were both lower, resulting in a weakened free cash flow margin. Versus the same quarter one year ago, operating cash flow moved from negative to positive, and free cash flow turned from negative to positive, leading to a significantly improved margin.

Monitor the trajectory of operating cash flow relative to revenue, given the sequential decline despite higher revenue.

Valuation context

A cash-flow page should show how much investors are paying for the cash stream, without turning into a full DCF.

Market capitalization$54.1BUsed as the denominator for FCF yield.
TTM FCF yield10.2%TTM free cash flow divided by market capitalization.
EV / TTM FCFn/aA quick valuation bridge, not a full DCF.

Peer context

Free cash flow quality is easier to read against related public companies.

CA
CAH

Cardinal Health, Inc.

FCF margin

0.8%

FCF yield

10.2%