Free cash flow burn has intensified with revenue growth, reaching a margin of -56.9% in Q2 2026, as operating cash flow consistently trails net losses and volatile capital expenditures for manufacturing capacity amplify quarterly cash volatility.
Autolus Therapeutics plc (AUTL) cash flow statement — 11-year operating, investing & financing cash flows
| Metric | TTM | Dec'25 | Dec'24 | Dec'23 | Dec'22 | Dec'21 | Dec'20 | Dec'19 | Sep'18 | Sep'18 | Sep'17 | Sep'16 |
|---|
| Cash from Operations | -225.61M | -283.57M | -206.27M | -145.59M | -112.31M | -117.86M | -117.76M | -101.48M | -25.85M | -25.85M | -16.36M | -9.85M |
| Operating CF Margin % | - | -375.27% | -2038.25% | -8574.03% | -1813.17% | -7820.9% | -6866.36% | -3489.82% | -2472.62% | -2472.62% | -966.33% | -812.62% |
| Operating CF Growth % | 13.16% | -37.47% | -41.68% | -29.63% | 4.71% | -0.09% | -16.04% | -292.63% | -57.99% | -57.99% | -66.11% | - |
| Net Income | -280.03M | -287.53M | -220.66M | -208.38M | -148.84M | -142.1M | -142.09M | -123.85M | -31.11M | -31.11M | -19.73M | -12.55M |
| Depreciation & Amortization | 11.36M | 9.81M | 7.72M | 6.57M | 7.42M | 8.46M | 5.66M | 4.61M | 1.1M | 1.71M | 1.01M | 478K |
| Stock-Based Compensation | 15.44M | 14.44M | 15.47M | 11.2M | 12.01M | 9.94M | 20.11M | 30.21M | 5.03M | 5.03M | 3.15M | 2.26M |
| Deferred Taxes | -385K | -286K | -185K | -986K | -268K | -72K | -1.34M | -399K | -5.21M | -5.21M | 0 | 0 |
| Other Non-Cash Items | -3.97M | 32.1M | 15.04M | 45.72M | 13.39M | 1.77M | -1.5M | 4.14M | -1.07M | -1.68M | 5.17M | 1.2M |
| Working Capital Changes | 32.1M | -52.11M | -23.66M | 292K | 3.97M | 4.14M | 1.41M | -16.2M | 5.42M | 5.42M | -795K | -1.23M |
| Change in Receivables | -17.81M | -24.21M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Change in Inventory | 25.39M | -40.34M | -4.23M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Change in Payables | -3.94M | 1.3M | 1.59M | -509K | 22K | -1.82M | 1.44M | -1.45M | 8.65M | 8.65M | 434K | 507K |
| Cash from Investing | 286.14M | 158.46M | -394.55M | -10.99M | -10.84M | -8.86M | -14.68M | -18.67M | -7.65M | -7.65M | -2.88M | -1.85M |
| Capital Expenditures | -9.16M | -19.04M | -22.07M | -10.99M | -10.84M | -8.86M | -14.68M | -18.34M | -8.77M | -8.77M | -2.88M | -1.85M |
| CapEx % of Revenue | 7.8% | 25.2% | 218.13% | 647% | 175.02% | 587.72% | 856.03% | 630.71% | 839.09% | 839.09% | 169.88% | 153.05% |
| Acquisitions | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Investments | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Investing | -6.06M | -8.09M | -12.74M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -327K | 1.13M | 1.13M | 0 | 0 |
| Cash from Financing | -7.77M | -4.34M | 589.55M | -883K | 223.61M | 284.06M | 74.42M | 108.86M | 117.49M | 117.49M | 127.69M | 32.22M |
| Debt Issued (Net) | -2.06M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Equity Issued (Net) | 3K | 0 | 549.98M | 0 | 163.85M | 245.9M | 154.16M | 224.78M | 156.92M | 156.92M | 127.69M | 32.22M |
| Dividends Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Share Repurchases | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -3.18M | -3.18M | 0 | 0 |
| Other Financing | -5.72M | -4.34M | 39.58M | -883K | 59.76M | 38.16M | -79.75M | -115.92M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Net Change in Cash | 47.58M | -123.17M | -11.53M | -142.43M | 72.08M | 156.59M | -57.34M | -6.13M | 86.98M | 86.98M | 109.01M | 17.86M |
| Free Cash Flow | -237.45M | -310.7M | -241.09M | -156.57M | -123.15M | -126.72M | -132.44M | -120.15M | -34.62M | -34.62M | -19.24M | -11.7M |
| FCF Margin % | -202.33% | -411.17% | -2382.31% | -9221.02% | -1988.2% | -8408.63% | -7722.39% | -4131.77% | -3311.71% | -3311.71% | -1136.21% | -965.68% |
| FCF Growth % | 23.89% | -28.87% | -53.98% | -27.14% | 2.82% | 4.32% | -10.23% | -247.07% | -79.97% | -79.97% | -64.35% | - |
| FCF per Share | -0.89 | -1.17 | -0.94 | -0.90 | -1.30 | -1.76 | -2.57 | -2.79 | -1.10 | -1.10 | -1.40 | -0.85 |
| FCF Conversion (FCF/Net Income) | 0.85x | 0.98x | 0.93x | 0.70x | 0.75x | 0.83x | 0.83x | 0.82x | 0.83x | 0.83x | 0.83x | 0.78x |
| Interest Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Taxes Paid | 0 | 0 | 2.39M | 551K | 471K | 364K | 1.84M | 1.53M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying AUTL stock.
Autolus Therapeutics plc (AUTL) generated $-283.6M in net cash from operating activities in 2025. This reflects the cash generated directly from core business operations.
Autolus Therapeutics plc (AUTL) reported negative free cash flow of $310.7M in 2025, indicating capital requirements exceeded cash from operations.
Autolus Therapeutics plc (AUTL) spent $19.0M 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
Sustained cash burn amid scaling
Metrics are mathematically derived from official filings.
Persistent Negative Conversion Reflects Scaling Losses
Operating cash flow has consistently trailed net losses, with the OCF/NI ratio averaging 0.94 over the last ten quarters, indicating that cash burn is largely driven by core operational losses rather than non-cash adjustments, as reported in the company's financial statements.
The persistent negative operating cash flow, which has exceeded net losses in several quarters (e.g., Q2 2025 OCF of -$72.8M vs. NI of -$47.9M), suggests that the company's cash consumption is fundamentally tied to its operational ramp-up costs. This pattern implies that the reported net losses are a reasonable proxy for the underlying cash burn, with minimal non-cash items masking the true cash intensity of the business during this commercial launch phase.
FCF Burn Intensifies with Revenue Growth
Free cash flow has deteriorated significantly, with the FCF margin worsening from -4.1% in Q1 2024 to -56.9% in Q2 2026, indicating that cash consumption is accelerating faster than the company's nascent revenue growth, based on the reported quarterly figures.
The trajectory shows a concerning divergence: while revenue is growing rapidly, the free cash flow deficit is expanding at a much steeper rate. This suggests that the costs associated with scaling commercial operations and manufacturing are overwhelming the initial revenue gains, placing the company on a path that requires substantial external financing to sustain.
Volatile CapEx Reflects Lumpy Manufacturing Investment
Capital expenditures have been highly erratic, spiking to $23.8M in Q4 2025 and $15.5M in Q3 2025, which appears to represent discrete investments in manufacturing capacity rather than a steady maintenance profile, according to the company's cash flow data.
The lumpy nature of CapEx, with some quarters showing minimal spend and others showing significant outlays, suggests the company is making periodic, large-scale investments to build out its cell therapy manufacturing capabilities. This pattern indicates that capital intensity is not yet normalized and will likely remain volatile as the company scales production to meet commercial demand.
Working Capital Swings Amplify Quarterly Cash Volatility
Working capital changes have been a major source of cash flow volatility, with swings from a $40.6M source in Q3 2025 to a $22.9M use in Q2 2025, suggesting that inventory and receivables management are still being calibrated to the commercial launch, as per the reported financials.
The large and inconsistent working capital movements indicate that the company is still establishing its operational rhythms for managing inventory build-up for new product launches and the collection cycle from payers. These swings can temporarily mask or exaggerate the underlying operational cash burn, making quarter-to-quarter comparisons less reliable for assessing core cash generation.
No Capital Returned Amidst Persistent Cash Burn
Autolus has deployed zero capital for dividends or share repurchases over the last ten quarters, a logical necessity given the sustained negative free cash flow, which has totaled over $600 million in cumulative deficits since Q1 2024, based on the company's reported figures.
The complete absence of shareholder returns is a direct consequence of the company's cash burn profile. All available liquidity is being consumed by operations and capital investments, meaning the company's survival and growth are entirely dependent on its ability to raise additional capital from external sources, as internal cash generation is non-existent.
Cash Burn Obscures True Cost of Commercialization
The cash flow statement may understate the true economic cost of the commercial launch, as stock-based compensation of $4.6M in Q2 2026 is added back to operating cash flow, potentially masking the full dilutive cost of scaling the organization, according to the company's filings.
While SBC is a non-cash expense, its consistent add-back inflates the operating cash flow figure relative to the net loss. For a pre-profit biotech, this is standard, but investors should monitor the magnitude of SBC relative to revenue growth to assess whether the company is creating value or simply diluting shareholders to fund operations. The cash flow statement does not capture the potential future liability of these equity awards.