CI
CIEN
Latest · May 2, 2026
Quarter ended May 2, 2026 · FY2026 Q2

Ciena Corporation stock research

Ciena (CIEN) Free Cash Flow — Quarter Ended May 2, 2026

Cash conversion improved in the current quarter as revenue and operating cash flow rose while capital expenditure declined from the prior quarter. Free cash flow and its margin also increased compared to both the immediately preceding quarter and the same quarter one year earlier.

Free cash flow takeaway

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

Cash conversion improved in the current quarter as revenue and operating cash flow rose while capital expenditure declined from the prior quarter. Free cash flow and its margin also increased compared to both the immediately preceding quarter and the same quarter one year earlier.

  • Revenue generated operating cash flow, which after deducting capital expenditure resulted in free cash flow. The free cash flow margin was higher than in both the prior quarter and the year-ago quarter.
  • Compared with the prior quarter, revenue, operating cash flow, and free cash flow were all higher, while capital expenditure was lower. Versus the same quarter a year earlier, all metrics were higher, including capital expenditure.

FCF snapshot

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

TTM free cash flow

$832.7M

Trailing twelve-month free cash flow.

Quarter free cash flow

$218.7M

Free cash flow in the selected fiscal quarter.

Operating cash flow

$259.7M

Cash generated by operations before capital spending.

CapEx

$41.0M

Capital spending and related asset purchases.

FCF margin

13.9%

The share of revenue converted into free cash flow.

TTM FCF yield

1.3%

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
2025-08-02$1.2B$174.3M$39.8M$134.6M11.0%
2025-11-01$1.4B$371.1M$45.4M$325.6M24.1%
2026-01-31$1.4B$227.6M$73.9M$153.8M10.8%
2026-05-02$1.6B$259.7M$41.0M$218.7M13.9%

Cash conversion quality

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

FCF / net income100.2%Shows whether accounting earnings convert into cash.
CapEx / revenue2.6%Lower capital intensity usually supports FCF margin.
Net cash-$486.0MCash and equivalents minus total debt.

Recent events shaping cash flow

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

Supportive

Revenue Growth

Revenue was higher than both the prior quarter and the same quarter a year earlier, supporting a larger operating cash flow.

Higher revenue contributed to improved free cash flow and margin.

What the cash flow says

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

Revenue generated operating cash flow, which after deducting capital expenditure resulted in free cash flow. The free cash flow margin was higher than in both the prior quarter and the year-ago quarter.

Compared with the prior quarter, revenue, operating cash flow, and free cash flow were all higher, while capital expenditure was lower. Versus the same quarter a year earlier, all metrics were higher, including capital expenditure.

Monitor the trend in capital expenditure, which decreased from the prior quarter but increased from the year-ago level.

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$63.3BUsed as the denominator for FCF yield.
TTM FCF yield1.3%TTM free cash flow divided by market capitalization.
EV / TTM FCF76.6xA quick valuation bridge, not a full DCF.

Peer context

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

CI
CIEN

Ciena Corporation

FCF margin

13.9%

FCF yield

1.3%