Free cash flow turned positive at $109.3M in 2026Q3 (6.4% margin) after a $174.7M burn in 2026Q1, while zero dividends and buybacks across all periods indicate cash is directed toward operations and debt service rather than shareholder returns.
AMC Entertainment Holdings, Inc. (AMC) cash flow statement — 18-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 | Dec'16 | Dec'15 | Dec'14 | Dec'13 | Dec'12 | Mar'12 | Mar'11 | Mar'10 | Mar'09 |
|---|
| Cash from Operations | 411.2M | -119.8M | -50.8M | -215.2M | -628.5M | -614.1M | -1.13B | 579M | 523.2M | 537.4M | 431.7M | 467.5M | 297.3M | 357.34M | 160.74M | 137.03M | 137.03M | -16.17M | 167.25M |
| Operating CF Margin % | - | -2.47% | -1.1% | -4.47% | -16.07% | -24.29% | -90.91% | 10.58% | 9.58% | 10.58% | 13.34% | 15.86% | 11.03% | 13% | 6.02% | 5.27% | 5.66% | -0.67% | 7.38% |
| Operating CF Growth % | 1383.54% | -135.83% | 76.39% | 65.76% | -2.34% | 45.63% | -295.08% | 10.67% | -2.64% | 24.48% | -7.66% | 57.25% | -16.8% | 122.31% | 17.3% | 0% | 947.53% | -109.67% | - |
| Net Income | -146.6M | -632.4M | -352.6M | -396.6M | -973.6M | -1.27B | -4.59B | -149.1M | 110.1M | -487.2M | 111.7M | 103.9M | 64.08M | 364.4M | 54.73M | -94.1M | -94.1M | -174.3M | -158.77M |
| Depreciation & Amortization | 307.7M | 313.4M | 319.5M | 365M | 396M | 425M | 498.3M | 450M | 537.8M | 538.6M | 268.24M | 233M | 216.32M | 197.54M | 205.45M | 214.03M | 214.03M | 212.41M | 222.48M |
| Stock-Based Compensation | 30.5M | 16.9M | 22M | 42.5M | 22.5M | 43.1M | 25.4M | 4.4M | 14.9M | 5.7M | 4.9M | 10.5M | 11.29M | 12M | 1.32M | 1.32M | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Deferred Taxes | 1.5M | 2M | 1.5M | 700K | 1.7M | -7.6M | 64M | -33.7M | -6.4M | 157.8M | 34.1M | 51.6M | 32.43M | -266.6M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 400K |
| Other Non-Cash Items | 110.6M | 185.4M | -114.2M | -147.1M | -1.8M | 55.6M | 2.71B | 171.6M | -115.5M | 350.6M | 95.46M | 40.1M | 43.45M | -16.75M | -72.48M | -9.36M | -9.36M | -24.96M | 98.09M |
| Working Capital Changes | 107.5M | -5.1M | 73M | -79.7M | -73.3M | 139.6M | 162.2M | 135.8M | -17.7M | -28.1M | -82.7M | 28.4M | -70.27M | 66.76M | -28.28M | 26.46M | 26.46M | -29.31M | 5.05M |
| Change in Receivables | 12.1M | 13.2M | 37.4M | -45.6M | 4M | -82.7M | 159.3M | 700K | -200K | -36.6M | -56.7M | -1.4M | 308K | -3.37M | -38.59M | -38.59M | -18.55M | 4.38M | 9.35M |
| Change in Inventory | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Change in Payables | 22.5M | -7.5M | 60.1M | -700K | -40.4M | 63.8M | -176.4M | 104.8M | -85.6M | 34.7M | 21.5M | 41.3M | -13.69M | 64.22M | 0 | 26.75M | 26.75M | -30.49M | 20.42M |
| Cash from Investing | -184.5M | -221.6M | -242.9M | -180.1M | -224M | -68.2M | -154.6M | -516.1M | -317.2M | -959.3M | -1.33B | -509.4M | -271.69M | -268.78M | -226.31M | -163.71M | -163.71M | -250.04M | 100.92M |
| Capital Expenditures | -242.2M | -246.1M | -245.5M | -4M | -17.8M | -8.2M | -173.8M | -11.8M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -149.56M | -139.36M | 0 | 0 | -121.46M |
| CapEx % of Revenue | 4.29% | 5.08% | 5.29% | 0.08% | 0.46% | 0.32% | 13.99% | 0.22% | 10.55% | 12.34% | 13.03% | 11.31% | 10.04% | 9.49% | 5.6% | 5.36% | 5.75% | 5.35% | 5.36% |
| Acquisitions | 0 | 0 | 0 | 30M | -27.9M | 24.9M | -3.1M | -9.7M | 196.9M | -490.5M | -923.2M | -174.8M | -1.52M | -4.39M | 0 | -26.88M | -26.88M | -280.38M | 226.76M |
| Investments | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Investing | 33.6M | 400K | 2.6M | -206.1M | -191.3M | -84.9M | 22.3M | -494.6M | -514.1M | -468.8M | -408.3M | -334.6M | -270.17M | -264.39M | -78.33M | 2.52M | -136.83M | -71.88M | -4.38M |
| Cash from Financing | 152.4M | 125.2M | 68.4M | 649.3M | -91.3M | 1.99B | 1.33B | -112.9M | -194.8M | 492.3M | 918.2M | 35.3M | -353.86M | 324.93M | -102.3M | -113.67M | -113.67M | 73.12M | 162.6M |
| Debt Issued (Net) | -136.3M | 500K | -133.7M | -167.2M | -131.4M | 234.3M | 1.06B | 300K | 525.9M | 54.2M | 1.06B | 135.2M | -287.04M | -1.53M | 0 | 0 | -120.36M | 88.59M | 174.41M |
| Equity Issued (Net) | 164M | 169.6M | 254.9M | 832.7M | 440.8M | 1.8B | 264.7M | 0 | -445.4M | 582.8M | 0 | 0 | -92K | 354.99M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -2.47M |
| Dividends Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -700K | 0 | -6.5M | -84.1M | -258.1M | -104.6M | -79.6M | -78.6M | -58.5M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Share Repurchases | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -445.4M | -34M | 0 | 0 | -92K | -588K | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -2.6M |
| Other Financing | 124.7M | -44.9M | -52.8M | -16.2M | -400M | -44.7M | 16.5M | -29.1M | -17.2M | -40.1M | -66.7M | -21.3M | -8.23M | -28.53M | -102.3M | -102.3M | 6.68M | -15.47M | -9.33M |
| Net Change in Cash | 375.6M | -203.5M | -230.6M | 257M | -965.9M | 1.3B | 45.9M | -48.5M | 5.7M | 88.1M | 19M | -7M | -328.25M | 413.38M | 277.61M | -139.8M | -139.8M | -194.19M | 0 |
| Free Cash Flow | 169M | -365.9M | -296.3M | -444.8M | -848.3M | -714.7M | -1.3B | 49.1M | -53.1M | -89.4M | 10M | 134.1M | 26.57M | 96.52M | 11.18M | -2.33M | -2.33M | -145.51M | 45.79M |
| FCF Margin % | 3% | -7.55% | -6.39% | -9.24% | -21.69% | -28.27% | -104.9% | 0.9% | -0.97% | -1.76% | 0.31% | 4.55% | 0.99% | 3.51% | 0.42% | -0.09% | -0.1% | -6.02% | 2.02% |
| FCF Growth % | 157.23% | -23.49% | 33.39% | 47.57% | -18.69% | 45.16% | -2754.38% | 192.47% | 40.6% | -994% | -92.54% | 404.74% | -72.47% | 763.51% | 579.72% | 0% | 98.4% | -417.77% | - |
| FCF per Share | 0.19 | -0.71 | -0.89 | -2.65 | -6.47 | -6.28 | -49.06 | 4.17 | -3.60 | -6.15 | 0.89 | 12.07 | 2.40 | 11.13 | 1.01 | -0.27 | -0.27 | -16.78 | 4.26 |
| FCF Conversion (FCF/Net Income) | -1.15x | 0.19x | 0.14x | 0.54x | 0.65x | 0.48x | 0.25x | -3.88x | 4.75x | -1.10x | 3.72x | 4.50x | 4.64x | 0.98x | 7.41x | -1.46x | -0.79x | -0.20x | -1.02x |
| Interest Paid | 80.6M | 406.9M | 401.6M | 421.2M | 379M | 274.7M | 237.5M | 284.5M | 278.3M | 226.7M | 105.4M | 103.9M | 113.58M | 152.22M | 0 | 0 | 219.49M | 185.45M | 0 |
| Taxes Paid | 1.7M | 2.8M | 700K | 4.3M | 800K | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19.5M | 10.9M | 4.7M | 5.3M | 1.08M | 1.65M | 0 | 0 | 807K | 729K | 0 |
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying AMC stock.
AMC Entertainment Holdings, Inc. (AMC) generated $-119.8M in net cash from operating activities in 2025. This reflects the cash generated directly from core business operations.
AMC Entertainment Holdings, Inc. (AMC) reported negative free cash flow of $365.9M in 2025, indicating capital requirements exceeded cash from operations.
AMC Entertainment Holdings, Inc. (AMC) spent $246.1M 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
Volatile operating cash flow and debt service
Metrics are mathematically derived from official filings.
Operating Cash Flow Diverges From Reported Earnings
As reported in financial statements, AMC's operating cash flow swung from negative $370.0M in 2025Q1 to positive $236.4M in 2026Q2, while net income stayed negative in most quarters, making OCF/NI ratios analytically unreliable.
The gap between net income and operating cash flow is the central signal, and it appears driven more by working capital timing and non-cash charges than by durable earnings quality. Quarterly OCF/NI ratios such as -29.45 and 1.83 reflect near-zero or sign-flipping denominators rather than meaningful conversion efficiency. Investors should monitor whether positive operating cash generation persists across several quarters without relying on working capital releases.
Free Cash Flow Turns Positive Only Episodically
Based on reported figures, AMC's free cash flow reached $109.3M in 2026Q3 at a 6.4% margin, but followed a $174.7M burn in 2026Q1, leaving the ten-quarter trajectory highly uneven.
The recent positive quarters suggest operating momentum has improved, yet a 6.4% margin remains thin relative to the capital intensity of the exhibition model. The sequence of large negative quarters, including the $417.0M deficit in 2025Q1, indicates free cash generation has not yet demonstrated durability. The data suggests the latest quarter should be weighed cautiously until confirmed by subsequent periods.
Persistent Capital Spending Absorbs Operating Gains
According to recent SEC filings, AMC's capital expenditures ran between 2.8% and 6.9% of revenue across the period, consuming $45M to $89M per quarter even as operating cash flow turned positive.
Capital spending appears to be a consistent claim on cash, consistent with ongoing theater modernization such as recliner seating and premium large format screens. The data does not separate maintenance from growth capex, so it is unclear how much spending is discretionary. Investors should monitor whether CapEx intensity declines as a share of revenue, which would indicate improving free cash flow conversion.
No Shareholder Returns Amid Cash Constraints
As reported in financial statements, AMC recorded zero dividends, buybacks, or acquisition outflows across all ten quarters, directing available cash toward operations and debt service rather than shareholder returns.
The absence of distributions is consistent with a liquidity-preservation posture rather than capital return, and no acquisition spend appears in the cash flow data provided. Given the company's history of equity issuance, the lack of buybacks suggests capital is being retained rather than allocated. Investors should monitor whether future free cash flow is directed toward debt reduction or other uses.
Cumulative Cash Burn Exceeds Reported Income Gap
Based on the ten-quarter window, AMC generated cumulative free cash flow of roughly negative $1.0B, with the largest deficits clustered in 2025Q1 and 2026Q1, highlighting a persistent disconnect between headline revenue growth and cash reality.
Record quarterly revenue of $1.7B in 2026Q3 has not translated into sustained cash generation, indicating fixed occupancy costs and working capital swings absorb incremental gains. The cumulative shortfall suggests the operating recovery remains incomplete on a cash basis. Investors should treat the latest positive quarters as provisional until the cumulative gap narrows.
Recent Cash Recovery May Not Persist
According to recent SEC filings, AMC's positive free cash flow in 2026Q2 and 2026Q3 follows several deeply negative quarters, and a $236.4M operating cash inflow in 2026Q2 may reflect a working capital release of $54.8M rather than recurring operating strength.
The data does not disclose the composition of the recent operating cash inflows, so it is unclear how much reflects timing benefits versus durable cash generation. Stock-based compensation and depreciation are relatively modest against the operating cash swings, suggesting the volatility is driven by working capital and operating items rather than non-cash charges alone. Investors should consider whether the recent positive quarters could reverse once working capital normalizes and whether any further equity issuance may be needed to cover debt maturities.