Free cash flow takeaway
A quick read on the company's cash generation and what it means for investors.
In the current quarter, free cash flow turned positive compared to a year earlier, while the cash conversion margin weakened from the prior quarter. Revenue increased, but operating cash flow remained stable, leading to a lower free cash flow margin.
- Operating cash flow was unchanged sequentially, while revenue rose, resulting in a lower free cash conversion rate. Capital expenditure increased from the prior quarter, partially offsetting the higher revenue.
- Compared to the prior quarter, free cash flow and margin were lower, but revenue was higher. Year-over-year, all metrics improved significantly as the prior year had negative operating cash flow.
FCF snapshot
Quarterly and TTM cash-flow metrics with the minimum valuation context.
TTM free cash flow
$2.9B
Trailing twelve-month free cash flow.
Quarter free cash flow
$916.0M
Free cash flow in the selected fiscal quarter.
Operating cash flow
$1.1B
Cash generated by operations before capital spending.
CapEx
$168.0M
Capital spending and related asset purchases.
FCF margin
19.8%
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.
| Period | Revenue | Operating CF | CapEx | FCF | FCF margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023-12-31 | $4.1B | $415.0M | $77.0M | $338.0M | 8.2% |
| 2024-03-31 | $4.4B | $743.0M | $82.0M | $661.0M | 15.1% |
| 2024-06-30 | $4.4B | $1.1B | $92.0M | $998.0M | 22.8% |
| 2024-09-30 | $4.6B | $1.1B | $168.0M | $916.0M | 19.8% |
Cash conversion quality
Checks that separate high-quality free cash flow from accounting noise or working-capital timing.
| FCF / net income | 92.0% | Shows whether accounting earnings convert into cash. |
| CapEx / revenue | 3.6% | Lower capital intensity usually supports FCF margin. |
| Net cash | n/a | Cash and equivalents minus total debt. |
Recent events shaping cash flow
Near-term business events that help explain the free cash flow result.
Operating cash flow recovery
Operating cash flow shifted from negative to positive compared to the same quarter last year, driving a substantial improvement in free cash flow.
This recovery underpins the company's ability to generate positive free cash flow.
What the cash flow says
How to interpret the company's free cash flow beyond the headline number.
Operating cash flow was unchanged sequentially, while revenue rose, resulting in a lower free cash conversion rate. Capital expenditure increased from the prior quarter, partially offsetting the higher revenue.
Compared to the prior quarter, free cash flow and margin were lower, but revenue was higher. Year-over-year, all metrics improved significantly as the prior year had negative operating cash flow.
Monitor the trend in capital expenditure relative to operating cash flow, as it increased from the prior quarter.