Cash flow generation is highly erratic, with operating cash flow of negative $431M in Q2 2026 against net income of $981M, indicating a significant disconnect driven by derivative settlements and investment portfolio activity that obscures the true liquidity profile.
Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (BHF) cash flow statement — 12-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 |
|---|
| Cash from Operations | -899M | -102M | -290M | -137M | -1.23B | 746M | 888M | 1.83B | 3.06B | 3.4B | 3.74B | 4.63B | 5.36B |
| Operating CF Growth % | -43072.34% | 64.83% | -111.68% | 88.84% | -264.61% | -15.99% | -51.42% | -40.3% | -9.84% | -9.1% | -19.33% | -13.62% | - |
| Operating CF / Revenue % | -14.31% | -1.64% | -6.64% | -3.47% | -18.52% | 20.81% | 10.74% | 28.89% | 35.33% | 49.63% | 122.13% | 52.09% | 56.74% |
| Net Income | 831M | 433M | 388M | -1.11B | 10M | -103M | -1.06B | -735M | 870M | -378M | -2.94B | 1.12B | 1.16B |
| Depreciation & Amortization | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -233M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18M | 17M | 17M | 26M | 32M |
| Stock-Based Compensation | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22M | 23M | 21M | 21M | 40M | 0 | 0 | 8M | 7M |
| Deferred Taxes | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -22M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Non-Cash Items | -1.28B | -535M | -577M | 2.23B | -1.54B | -1.3B | -2.48B | -241M | -2.81B | 48M | 4.61B | -1.63B | -1.69B |
| Working Capital Changes | 0 | 0 | -101M | -1.25B | 537M | 2.13B | 4.41B | 2.78B | 4.99B | 3.71B | 2.05B | 5.12B | 5.86B |
| Cash from Investing | -1.09B | 164M | -2.19B | -3.2B | -8.28B | -12.24B | -5.84B | -7.34B | -4.54B | -3.92B | 4.67B | -7.04B | -467M |
| Capital Expenditures | 0 | 0 | 0 | 248M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1.5B | 1.34B | 0 | 3.68B |
| Acquisitions | 123M | 0 | 38M | 0 | -562M | -566M | -404M | -161M | -83M | 1M | 214M | 193M | 361M |
| Purchase of Investments | -22.21B | -183M | -16.42B | -10.35B | -20.49B | -25.79B | -20.21B | -21.52B | -19.42B | -22.63B | -42.51B | -45.54B | -31.14B |
| Sale/Maturity of Investments | 23.23B | 0 | 13.63B | 7.5B | 16.03B | 18.11B | 14.91B | 16.28B | 17.96B | 20.21B | 47.69B | 39.42B | 27.83B |
| Other Investing | -2.24B | 347M | 561M | -597M | -3.26B | -3.99B | -140M | -1.94B | -2.99B | 2M | -2.06B | -1.11B | -1.2B |
| Cash from Financing | 3.17B | -108M | 3.68B | 3.07B | 9.14B | 11.86B | 6.19B | 4.25B | 3.76B | -2.85B | -4.75B | 2.38B | -4.67B |
| Dividends Paid | -102M | -102M | -102M | -102M | -104M | -89M | -44M | -21M | 0 | -1.8B | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Share Repurchases | -59M | -102M | -250M | -250M | -488M | -499M | -473M | -442M | -105M | -668M | -634M | -771M | -1.73B |
| Stock Issued | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.83B | 0 | 476M |
| Debt Issuance (Net) | -1000K | 0 | -1000K | -1000K | -1000K | -1000K | -1000K | 1000K | 1000K | 1000K | -1000K | -1000K | -1000K |
| Other Financing | 3.33B | 96M | 4.03B | 3.42B | 9.74B | 12.39B | 6.69B | 3.9B | 3.5B | -1.16B | -4.09B | 3.21B | -1.56B |
| Net Change in Cash | 1.18B | -46M | 1.19B | -264M | -359M | 366M | 1.23B | -1.27B | 2.29B | -3.37B | 3.66B | -33M | 181M |
| Exchange Rate Effect | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -2M | -45M |
| Cash at Beginning | 4.91B | 245M | 3.85B | 4.12B | 4.47B | 4.11B | 2.88B | 4.14B | 1.86B | 5.23B | 1.57B | 1.6B | 1.42B |
| Cash at End | 7.11B | 199M | 5.04B | 3.85B | 4.12B | 4.47B | 4.11B | 2.88B | 4.14B | 1.86B | 5.23B | 1.57B | 1.6B |
| Free Cash Flow | -899M | -102M | -290M | -137M | -1.23B | 746M | 888M | 1.83B | 3.06B | 1.9B | 5.08B | 4.63B | 9.04B |
| FCF Growth % | -1862.75% | 64.83% | -111.68% | 88.84% | -264.61% | -15.99% | -51.42% | -40.3% | 61.16% | -62.56% | 9.59% | -48.8% | - |
| FCF Margin % | -14.31% | -1.64% | -6.64% | -3.47% | -18.52% | 20.81% | 10.74% | 28.89% | 35.33% | 27.77% | 165.9% | 52.09% | 95.73% |
| FCF per Share | -15.57 | -1.78 | -4.71 | -2.08 | -16.69 | 8.83 | 9.31 | 16.25 | 26.05 | 15.86 | 41.35 | 37.74 | 73.7 |
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying BHF stock.
Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (BHF) generated $-102.0M in net cash from operating activities in 2025. This reflects the cash generated directly from core business operations.
Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (BHF) reported negative free cash flow of $102.0M in 2025, indicating capital requirements exceeded cash from operations.
Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (BHF) spent $0.0M on capital expenditures in 2025. CapEx represents the cash invested in physical assets like property, plant, and equipment to maintain or grow the business.
In 2025, Brighthouse Financial, Inc. (BHF) returned $102.0M to shareholders via cash dividends and spent $102.0M on share repurchases. This shows the company's commitment to returning capital to its equity investors.
Key Metrics
Top Statement Risk
Cash flow volatility from derivative activity
Metrics are mathematically derived from official filings.
Float Generation Volatile Amid Derivative Swings
Brighthouse's underwriting cash generation is highly erratic, with operating cash flow swinging from positive $334 million in Q2 2024 to negative $530 million in Q1 2026, suggesting that premium collection and claims payment timing are heavily influenced by market-linked derivative settlements rather than stable policyholder flows.
The OCF/NI ratio has been consistently below 1.0 in recent quarters, indicating that reported net income is not translating into operating cash generation, a pattern likely driven by non-cash derivative gains inflating earnings. The claims/loss line shows extreme variability, from a negative $108 million in Q4 2024 to a positive $2.3 billion in Q1 2025, which appears to reflect the timing of large derivative settlements or reinsurance recoveries rather than typical claims payment patterns. This volatility makes it difficult to assess the core cash-generating ability of the insurance operations.
Investment Portfolio Drives Cash Flow Swings
The investment portfolio is the primary driver of cash flow volatility, with quarterly purchases and sales of securities ranging from negative $9.3 billion to positive $13.8 billion, indicating active management of the asset-liability matching portfolio rather than steady investment income generation.
The massive swings in investment purchases and sales, such as the $13.8 billion purchase in Q3 2024 followed by a $12.0 billion sale, suggest the company is actively rebalancing its portfolio in response to liability changes or market conditions. This activity appears to be the main source of operating cash flow volatility, overwhelming any stable premium collection or claims payment patterns. The lack of consistent positive investment cash flow suggests the portfolio is being managed for capital adequacy rather than generating predictable income for shareholders.
Buybacks Paused Despite Cash Generation
Brighthouse has maintained a consistent quarterly dividend of $25-26 million but has paused share repurchases in recent quarters, with buybacks falling to zero in Q1 and Q2 2026 despite generating $981 million in net income during Q2 2026.
The suspension of buybacks suggests management is conserving capital, possibly due to the negative operating cash flow in recent quarters or uncertainty about statutory capital levels. The dividend appears well-covered by reported earnings but less so by actual cash generation, as the OCF/NI ratio has been negative in most recent quarters. This pattern indicates that capital return decisions are being driven more by balance sheet considerations than by current cash flow generation.
Earnings-Cash Flow Disconnect Widens
The gap between net income and operating cash flow has become pronounced, with Q2 2026 showing $981 million in net income against negative $431 million in OCF, suggesting that non-cash accounting adjustments are significantly inflating reported profitability.
This disconnect appears driven by the LDTI accounting standard, which creates volatility in liability valuations that flow through earnings but not cash flow. The pattern of alternating large profits and losses, such as the $766 million loss in Q1 2026 followed by a $981 million profit in Q2 2026, further confirms that actuarial assumption updates and derivative accounting are dominating reported results. Investors should focus on statutory earnings and statutory capital generation rather than GAAP metrics to assess true cash generation capacity.
Cash Flow Statement Obscures Liability Risks
The cash flow statement provides limited visibility into the true risk profile of Brighthouse's legacy liabilities, as the Run-off segment's structured settlements and universal life guarantees may require future cash outflows not reflected in current claims payments.
The negative claims/loss figure in Q4 2024 suggests potential reinsurance recoveries or accounting adjustments that mask the underlying liability experience. Furthermore, the massive investment portfolio turnover may be obscuring the true duration mismatch between assets and liabilities, particularly for the legacy book. The absence of detailed disclosure on statutory capital adequacy and risk-based capital ratios makes it difficult to assess whether current cash flows are sustainable through a market downturn or interest rate shock.