Operating cash flow of $156.6M in 2026Q3 against capital expenditures of $105.5M yielded free cash flow of $51.1M, a 6.8% FCF margin that appears fragile given prior quarters of negative FCF and acquisition outflows of $84.7M in 2026Q1.
AdaptHealth Corp. (AHCO) cash flow statement — 9-year operating, investing & financing cash flows
| Metric | TTM | Dec'25 | Dec'24 | Dec'23 | Dec'22 | Dec'21 | Dec'20 | Dec'19 | Dec'18 | Dec'17 |
|---|
| Cash from Operations | 578.8M | 601.77M | 541.84M | 480.67M | 373.87M | 275.68M | 195.63M | 60.42M | 68.43M | 45.93M |
| Operating CF Margin % | - | 18.55% | 16.62% | 15.02% | 12.59% | 11.23% | 18.52% | 11.41% | 19.82% | 23.85% |
| Operating CF Growth % | 6.81% | 11.06% | 12.73% | 28.57% | 35.62% | 40.92% | 223.8% | -11.7% | 48.98% | - |
| Net Income | -406.73M | -66.04M | 94.78M | -678.89M | 73.13M | 158.15M | -194.09M | 12.24M | 2.09M | -690 |
| Depreciation & Amortization | 441.17M | 381.93M | 365.33M | 420.59M | 351.18M | 258.05M | 82.44M | 62.57M | 50.61M | 27.82M |
| Stock-Based Compensation | 18.39M | 21.88M | 14.88M | 22.47M | 22.4M | 25.32M | 18.67M | 11.07M | 884K | 48.75K |
| Deferred Taxes | -33.43M | 47.16M | 32.05M | -62.59M | 18.04M | 22.38M | -21.1M | 895.3K | -2.88M | 0 |
| Other Non-Cash Items | 519.21M | 150.26M | 60.85M | 804.2M | 17.12M | -34.92M | 232.8M | -8.16M | 65.91M | 12.02M |
| Working Capital Changes | 35.35M | 66.58M | -26.06M | -25.11M | -108M | -153.31M | 76.91M | -18.19M | 429.32K | 690 |
| Change in Receivables | -16.13M | 30.99M | -26.22M | -28.86M | -209K | -29.69M | -29.52M | -11.81M | -21.34M | -3.04M |
| Change in Inventory | -6.69M | -11.49M | -28.07M | 15.53M | -6.3M | -14.92M | -19.43M | -14.26M | 2.31M | 1.14M |
| Change in Payables | 40.62M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8.78M | -19.73K | 0 |
| Cash from Investing | -639.16M | -303.19M | -310.27M | -357.28M | -411.17M | -1.82B | -815.7M | -386K | -248.87M | -15.08M |
| Capital Expenditures | -496.88M | -382.39M | -306.06M | -337.46M | -391.42M | -203.31M | -39.76M | -21.33M | -9.95M | -6.85M |
| CapEx % of Revenue | 15.76% | 11.78% | 9.39% | 10.55% | 13.18% | 8.28% | 3.76% | 4.03% | 2.88% | 3.56% |
| Acquisitions | -151.24M | -42.38M | -9.54M | -19.69M | -19.02M | -1.62B | -769.34M | 569K | -86.33M | -8.51M |
| Investments | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Investing | 2.68M | 121.58M | 5.32M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20.38M | -238.92M | 280.51K |
| Cash from Financing | 60.7M | -302.19M | -198.95M | -92.53M | -66.05M | 1.6B | 643.15M | -13.89M | 251.33M | 119.82K |
| Debt Issued (Net) | 105.55M | -268.48M | -179.87M | -51.77M | -36.18M | 1.4B | 354.74M | 205.66M | -174.24K | -29.69M |
| Equity Issued (Net) | 1.34M | 1.21M | 0 | -29.27M | -13.99M | 278.85M | 323.33M | 101.29M | 250M | 0 |
| Dividends Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -250M | 0 | 0 |
| Share Repurchases | 0 | 0 | 0 | -29.27M | -13.99M | 0 | -44.27M | -23.71M | 0 | 25K |
| Other Financing | -46.2M | -34.92M | -19.08M | -11.48M | -15.88M | -75.68M | -34.92M | -70.84M | 1.51M | -573.96K |
| Net Change in Cash | 330K | -3.61M | 32.62M | 30.86M | -103.36M | 49.66M | 23.08M | -875K | 827.28K | -3.56M |
| Free Cash Flow | 81.92M | 219.38M | 235.78M | 143.2M | -17.56M | 72.37M | 155.88M | 39.09M | 58.48M | 39.08M |
| FCF Margin % | 2.6% | 6.76% | 7.23% | 4.47% | -0.59% | 2.95% | 14.76% | 7.38% | 16.94% | 20.29% |
| FCF Growth % | -61.57% | -6.96% | 64.65% | 915.69% | -124.26% | -53.57% | 298.81% | -33.16% | 49.64% | - |
| FCF per Share | 0.60 | 1.62 | 1.74 | 1.07 | -0.13 | 0.54 | 2.97 | 0.54 | 1.87 | 1.25 |
| FCF Conversion (FCF/Net Income) | -0.20x | -8.50x | 5.99x | -0.71x | 5.39x | 1.77x | -1.21x | -2.83x | 32.80x | -66277.97x |
| Interest Paid | 101.88M | 101.24M | 122.07M | 126.23M | 108.89M | 73.63M | 35.77M | 23.07M | 0 | 0 |
| Taxes Paid | -612K | 24.28M | 14.14M | 14.76M | 14.95M | 14.79M | 7.48M | 1.32M | 0 | 0 |
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying AHCO stock.
AdaptHealth Corp. (AHCO) generated $601.8M in net cash from operating activities in 2025. This reflects the cash generated directly from core business operations.
AdaptHealth Corp. (AHCO) generated $219.4M in free cash flow in 2025. Free cash flow is the cash left over after capital expenditures, which can be used to pay dividends, repurchase shares, or pay down debt.
AdaptHealth Corp. (AHCO) spent $382.4M on capital expenditures in 2025. CapEx represents the cash invested in physical assets like property, plant, and equipment to maintain or grow the business.
Key Metrics
Top Statement Risk
Operating cash flow conversion failure
Metrics are mathematically derived from official filings.
Net Losses Mask Positive Operating Cash
Based on reported figures, AHCO generated $156.6M of operating cash flow in 2026Q3 while posting a net loss of $154.0M, an OCF-to-net-income ratio of -1.02 that signals earnings are not converting to cash in a conventional way.
The gap between a large net loss and sizable positive operating cash flow suggests the losses are dominated by non-cash charges such as depreciation of the rental fleet and amortization, which the D&A line of $116.9M supports. The negative OCF/NI ratios across most quarters indicate that accrual-based earnings are a weak guide to cash generation here, so investors should monitor whether operating cash flow holds up once depreciation normalizes or fleet investment slows. The quality of this conversion remains uncertain without a full reconciliation of the non-cash add-backs.
Free Cash Flow Oscillates Around Breakeven
As reported in the cash flow statements, AHCO's free cash flow swung from $79.3M in 2025Q4 to negative $27.5M in 2026Q1 and back to $51.1M in 2026Q3, leaving FCF margins between roughly -3.4% and 12.4% over the period.
The trajectory is volatile rather than trending, with FCF margins peaking at 19.6% in 2024Q2 and compressing sharply through 2025 and early 2026. This pattern suggests that capital intensity and working capital swings, rather than steady operating improvement, are driving the free cash flow outcome. Investors should treat the latest positive quarter cautiously given the prior negative readings.
Fleet Reinvestment Absorbs Operating Cash
According to the reported figures, capital expenditures ran between $77.3M and $166.2M per quarter, consuming roughly 9.0% to 22.5% of revenue and absorbing most of the operating cash flow generated in the period.
The sustained CAPEX level relative to D&A of roughly $90M to $120M per quarter suggests the company is reinvesting at or above its depreciation rate, consistent with a rental-fleet model that must continually refresh devices. Because CapEx largely offsets operating cash generation, the reinvestment burden appears to limit free cash available for debt reduction. Whether this spending is maintenance or growth in character is not disclosed in the supplied data and warrants further investigation.
Capital Returns Absent, Acquisitions Intermittent
Based on reported figures, AHCO paid no dividends across the ten quarters and made negligible buybacks, while acquisition outflows of $84.7M in 2026Q1 and $42.7M in 2026Q2 appear to be the main discretionary use of cash.
The absence of dividends and minimal repurchases indicates that retained cash is being directed toward reinvestment and deal activity rather than shareholder distributions. The acquisition spending in recent quarters is consistent with the roll-up strategy noted in prior analysis, yet with net losses persisting it is unclear whether these purchases are generating adequate returns. Investors should monitor whether acquired cash flows begin to offset the capital consumed by these transactions.
Operating Cash Could Be Overstated
Based on reported figures, the positive operating cash flow in recent quarters may reflect working capital timing and non-cash add-backs rather than durable cash generation, given that working capital changes swung between negative $15.6M and positive $40.9M.
Working capital movements of this magnitude can materially lift or depress quarterly operating cash flow, meaning the apparent 2025Q4 and 2026Q3 cash strength could partly reverse. The data does not disclose receivables or billing lag detail, so the contribution of collections timing cannot be confirmed. Given the high provision for doubtful accounts typical of this sector, investors should treat reported operating cash as provisional until collection trends are verified.