Cash flow is the net amount of cash and cash-equivalents being transferred into and out of a business. At the most fundamental level, a company’s ability to create value for shareholders is determined by its ability to generate positive cash flows, or more specifically, maximize long-term free cash flow (FCF).

AHT Free Cash Flow Analysis

Free cash flow, a measure commonly used by analysts to assess a company's profitability, represents the cash a company generates after accounting for cash outflows to support operations and maintain its capital assets.

The Free Cash Flow is calculated using a number of methods including using Operating Cash Flow. Following is the formula to calculate Free Cash Flow based on Operating Cash Flow.

Free Cash Flow = Operating Cash Flow - Capital Expenditures

Using above formula to calculate Free Cash Flow for Ashtead Group plc (AHT), the free cash flow value is 1.1006B.

All amounts in USD

Operating Cash
1.5B
Capital Expenditure
-398.4M
Free Cash Flow
1.1006B

Ashtead Group plc has a positive free cash flow as per the latest annual Cash flow statement released by the company. Positive free cash flow is cruscial for the financial health of a company, which can be used to pay dividends, expand operations, and deleverage its balance sheet (i.e., reduce debt).

AHT Cash Flow Statement History

Following table shows the history of Cash Flow Statements sheet for Ashtead Group plc (LSE:AHT).

30 Apr 2022 30 Apr 2021 30 Apr 2020 30 Apr 2019
Net Income 1.25B 920.1M 739.7M 796.9M
Depreciation 1.65B 1.53B 1.14B 889.7M
Change To Netincome -1.24B -500.8M -975M -1.12B
Change To Account Receivables -164.1M -127.8M 94.1M -84.7M
Change To Liabilities 68.8M 118.6M -13.2M 60.7M
Change To Inventory -67.2M 5.3M -500k -14.9M
Total Cash From Operating Activities 1.5B 1.94B 988.3M 526.7M
Capital Expenditures -398.4M -138.3M -208.2M -168.7M
Investments -40M -40M -40M -40M
Total Cashflows From Investing Activities -1.69B -315.1M -649.3M -749.8M
Dividends Paid -271.5M -239.1M -186.7M -164.2M
Net Borrowings 884.2M -1.66B 541.8M 855.3M
Other Cashflows From Financing Activities 2.2M 3.6M 3.6M 3.6M
Total Cash From Financing Activities 181.5M -1.91B -111.1M 216.5M
Effect Of Exchange Rate -800k 5M 700k 300k
Change In Cash -11.3M -277.8M 228.6M -6.3M
Repurchase Of Stock -433.4M -15.5M -466.2M -474.6M