HI
HII
Mar 31, 2023
Quarter ended Mar 31, 2023 · FY2023 Q1

Huntington Ingalls Industries, Inc. stock research

Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) Free Cash Flow — Quarter Ended Mar 31, 2023

The company reported negative free cash flow for the quarter, primarily due to operating cash flow being negative while capital expenditure was positive. This result represents a significant decline from the previous quarter but an improvement compared to the same quarter last year.

Free cash flow takeaway

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

The company reported negative free cash flow for the quarter, primarily due to operating cash flow being negative while capital expenditure was positive. This result represents a significant decline from the previous quarter but an improvement compared to the same quarter last year.

  • Revenue was slightly lower sequentially but higher year-over-year, while operating cash flow turned negative after a strongly positive prior quarter, leading to a weak cash conversion. Capital expenditure decreased sequentially but remained stable compared to the prior year, contributing to the negative free cash flow margin.
  • Compared to the immediately preceding quarter, free cash flow and operating cash flow were substantially lower, and the margin turned negative. Versus the same quarter one year earlier, both free cash flow and operating cash flow improved, and the margin narrowed significantly.

FCF snapshot

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

TTM free cash flow

$568.0M

Trailing twelve-month free cash flow.

Quarter free cash flow

-$52.0M

Free cash flow in the selected fiscal quarter.

Operating cash flow

-$9.0M

Cash generated by operations before capital spending.

CapEx

$43.0M

Capital spending and related asset purchases.

FCF margin

-1.9%

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
2022-06-30$2.7B$267.0M$59.0M$208.0M7.8%
2022-09-30$2.6B-$19.0M$77.0M-$96.0M-3.7%
2022-12-31$2.8B$601.0M$93.0M$508.0M18.1%
2023-03-31$2.7B-$9.0M$43.0M-$52.0M-1.9%

Cash conversion quality

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

FCF / net income-40.3%Shows whether accounting earnings convert into cash.
CapEx / revenue1.6%Lower capital intensity usually supports FCF margin.
Net cash-$2.6BCash 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 sharply from the prior quarter, the strongest observable driver of the negative free cash flow. Filing context notes that trade working capital changes contributed to the cash flow from operations.

The negative free cash flow restricts internal cash generation for capital deployment and debt service in the near term.

What the cash flow says

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

Revenue was slightly lower sequentially but higher year-over-year, while operating cash flow turned negative after a strongly positive prior quarter, leading to a weak cash conversion. Capital expenditure decreased sequentially but remained stable compared to the prior year, contributing to the negative free cash flow margin.

Compared to the immediately preceding quarter, free cash flow and operating cash flow were substantially lower, and the margin turned negative. Versus the same quarter one year earlier, both free cash flow and operating cash flow improved, and the margin narrowed significantly.

Monitor the trajectory of operating cash flow as it swung from strongly positive to negative, which will determine near-term free cash flow sustainability.