Free cash flow generation remains highly inconsistent, swinging from a $61.0M outflow in 2024Q1 to a $41.4M inflow by 2025Q3, while capital expenditure intensity remains elevated at 4.6% of revenue in 2026Q1.
| 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 | Dec'11 | Dec'10 | Dec'09 | Dec'08 | Dec'07 | Dec'06 | Dec'05 | Dec'04 | Dec'03 |
|---|
| Cash from Operations | 103.16M | 114.86M | 79.75M | 31.25M | 139.99M | -133.5M | -137.81M | 214.53M | 187.28M | 160.12M | 308.51M | 298.93M | 348.42M | 414.64M | 355.14M | 517.22M | 525.22M | 441.26M | 603.62M | 694.43M | 538.54M | 510.09M | 492.5M | 433.46M |
| Operating CF Margin % | - | 7.16% | 5.3% | 2.18% | 10.13% | -7.55% | -7.43% | 7.99% | 6.88% | 6.19% | 11.51% | 10.65% | 11.77% | 14.07% | 12.05% | 17.22% | 18.77% | 16.36% | 18.35% | 21.16% | 18.58% | 19.13% | 20.13% | 19.93% |
| Operating CF Growth % | -123.55% | 44.03% | 155.15% | -77.67% | 204.87% | 3.13% | -164.24% | 14.55% | 16.96% | -48.1% | 3.2% | -14.2% | -15.97% | 16.75% | -31.34% | -1.52% | 19.03% | -26.9% | -13.08% | 28.95% | 5.58% | 3.57% | 13.62% | - |
| Net Income | -205.44M | 24.74M | -175.88M | -308.82M | -94.39M | -433.12M | -600.23M | -361.78M | -202.84M | -626.21M | 164.43M | -71.31M | 17.12M | -24.33M | -159.21M | 63.22M | -76.42M | -872.53M | -2.85B | 245.99M | 153.07M | 61.57M | -155.38M | -34.99M |
| Depreciation & Amortization | 173.47M | 174.95M | 239.57M | 258.34M | 293.36M | 372.11M | 269.42M | 309.32M | 318.95M | 325.99M | 344.12M | 375.96M | 406.24M | 403.17M | 399.26M | 432.04M | 413.59M | 439.65M | 472.35M | 399.48M | 407.73M | 400.64M | 388.22M | 379.64M |
| Stock-Based Compensation | 20.21M | 25.64M | 26.21M | 20.49M | 21.15M | 19.4M | 13.23M | 15.77M | 8.52M | 9.59M | 10.24M | 8.36M | 7.74M | 7.72M | 10.59M | 10.91M | 12.34M | 12.1M | 9.37M | 9.37M | 5.3M | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Deferred Taxes | -13.62M | 710K | -11.5M | -12.24M | -81.84M | -31.58M | -80.34M | 24.07M | 14.39M | -311.08M | 31.33M | 3.54M | -33.57M | -31.22M | -157.31M | -1.39M | -14.36M | -132.34M | -247.44M | 34.91M | 39.53M | -5.69M | 39.13M | 23.94M |
| Other Non-Cash Items | 234.11M | 111.07M | 326.45M | 405.71M | 377.5M | 476.89M | 465.58M | 124.54M | 53.65M | 815.49M | -266.14M | 25.17M | -6.71M | 6.06M | 228.43M | 12.15M | 76.11M | 964.96M | 3.23B | 15.87M | -12.36M | 11.54M | 156.24M | -3.1M |
| Working Capital Changes | -222.48M | -222.25M | -325.12M | -332.23M | -375.79M | -537.18M | -205.48M | 102.6M | -5.39M | -53.66M | 24.52M | -42.78M | -42.4M | 53.22M | 33.38M | 293K | 113.96M | 29.43M | -6.36M | -11.2M | -54.73M | 42.02M | 64.29M | 67.97M |
| Change in Receivables | -56.32M | 4.38M | -23.89M | -35.76M | -20.53M | -177.07M | 109.01M | -12.55M | -74.6M | -39.79M | 30.31M | -56.58M | -38.62M | 43.43M | -46.29M | 15.83M | -47.11M | 68M | -137.34M | -137.34M | -101.34M | -10.63M | -21.15M | 0 |
| Change in Inventory | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -331.44M | 78.07M | 0 | 2.72M | 10.13M | -1.24M | 19.12M | 0 | 25.29M | -35.3M | 50.53M | -919.78M | -725.19M | -653.06M | -367.17M | -40.52M | 0 | 0 |
| Change in Payables | 31.66M | -20.44M | -31.42M | 6.82M | 638K | 94.69M | 9.97M | -13.52M | 29.25M | -4.13M | -3.8M | 30.64M | -4.46M | -10.41M | 24.54M | 48.91M | -6.86M | 11.76M | 93.38M | 93.38M | 65.38M | -13.3M | 51.53M | 0 |
| Cash from Investing | -85.9M | 523.26M | -155.94M | -119.57M | -221.7M | -152.7M | 94.52M | -220.04M | -203.59M | -154.52M | 574.08M | -257.73M | -206.43M | -177.68M | -233.75M | -298.93M | -198.71M | -162.86M | -425.84M | -356.37M | -489.01M | -361.37M | -310.66M | -230.16M |
| Capital Expenditures | -74.56M | -82.88M | -142.4M | -166.59M | -184.68M | -148.01M | -124.16M | -232.46M | -211.08M | -224.24M | -229.77M | -218.33M | -231.17M | -206.19M | -275.58M | -291.05M | -195.27M | -180.89M | -358.33M | -275.69M | -233.88M | -208.16M | -271.02M | -249.28M |
| CapEx % of Revenue | 4.54% | 5.17% | 9.46% | 11.62% | 13.37% | 8.37% | 6.69% | 8.66% | 7.76% | 8.66% | 8.57% | 7.78% | 7.81% | 7% | 9.35% | 9.69% | 6.98% | 6.7% | 10.89% | 8.4% | 8.07% | 7.81% | 11.08% | 11.46% |
| Acquisitions | -563K | -563K | -12.93M | 47.71M | -34.9M | 0 | 218.43M | 4.4M | 9.77M | 72.05M | 808.19M | -24.7M | 339K | 0 | -4.72M | -13.18M | -1.84M | -3.81M | -96.5M | -69.06M | -242.42M | -99.61M | 0 | 0 |
| Investments | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Investing | -10.78M | 606.7M | -618K | -687K | -2.12M | -4.7M | 253K | 8.02M | -2.28M | -2.33M | -5.12M | -14.69M | 8.9M | 28.51M | 46.55M | 5.29M | -1.59M | 24.83M | 27.08M | -11.92M | -35.45M | -54.88M | -44.18M | 19.94M |
| Cash from Financing | -221.92M | -598.29M | -8.18M | 45.64M | -32.72M | -85.24M | 418.28M | 220.01M | 40.69M | -379.51M | -726.5M | 199.05M | -261.31M | -484.39M | -105.55M | -298.74M | -314.46M | 231.66M | -232.84M | -305.75M | -53.16M | -77.55M | -182.01M | -222.49M |
| Debt Issued (Net) | 375.06M | -588.86M | 21.44M | 66.46M | -21.38M | -55.47M | 430.03M | -241.04M | -632K | 154.34M | 2.42M | 218.87M | -720K | -9.03M | 2.22B | -19.24M | -48.79M | 317.25M | -67.59M | -13.65M | -59.67M | -608.35M | -105.21M | -190.08M |
| Equity Issued (Net) | 984K | 0 | -4.88M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 377.22M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4.26M | 10.78M | 2.18M | 600.81M | 0 | 0 |
| Dividends Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -405K | -740K | -30.68M | -332.82M | -755.54M | -30.87M | -175.02M | -200.01M | -2.17B | -704K | -17.03M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Share Repurchases | 984K | 0 | -4.88M | 0 | 0 | 0 | -464K | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Financing | -597.97M | -9.43M | -24.74M | -20.82M | -11.34M | -29.77M | -11.35M | 84.57M | 72M | -201.03M | 26.62M | 11.05M | -85.57M | -275.35M | -150.71M | -278.8M | -248.64M | -85.59M | -169.51M | -302.88M | 4.33M | -70.01M | -76.8M | -32.41M |
| Net Change in Cash | -195.05M | 80.87M | -88.47M | -38.14M | -121.29M | -375.09M | 377.99M | 214.21M | 14.56M | -364.38M | 150.76M | 226.54M | -128.34M | -247.43M | 19.32M | -81.36M | 14.58M | 514.62M | -40.09M | 29.5M | -3.25M | 70.7M | 3.84M | -11.64M |
| Free Cash Flow | 28.6M | 31.98M | -62.65M | -135.34M | -44.69M | -281.5M | -261.97M | -17.94M | -23.8M | -64.12M | 80.52M | 80.6M | 117.25M | 208.45M | 79.56M | 226.17M | 329.94M | 260.38M | 245.29M | 418.74M | 304.66M | 301.93M | 221.48M | 184.18M |
| FCF Margin % | 1.74% | 1.99% | -4.16% | -9.44% | -3.23% | -15.92% | -14.13% | -0.67% | -0.87% | -2.48% | 3% | 2.87% | 3.96% | 7.08% | 2.7% | 7.53% | 11.79% | 9.65% | 7.46% | 12.76% | 10.51% | 11.32% | 9.05% | 8.47% |
| FCF Growth % | 333.9% | 151.05% | 53.71% | -202.86% | 84.13% | -7.46% | -1360.42% | 24.64% | 62.88% | -179.63% | -0.1% | -31.26% | -43.75% | 162% | -64.82% | -31.45% | 26.72% | 6.15% | -41.42% | 37.45% | 0.9% | 36.33% | 20.25% | - |
| FCF per Share | 0.06 | 0.06 | -0.13 | -0.28 | -0.09 | -0.60 | -0.56 | -0.04 | -0.07 | -0.18 | 0.22 | 0.22 | 0.33 | 0.58 | 0.22 | 0.63 | 0.93 | 0.73 | 0.69 | 1.18 | 0.86 | 0.94 | 0.70 | 0.51 |
| FCF Conversion (FCF/Net Income) | -0.14x | -1.10x | -0.44x | -0.10x | -1.45x | 0.31x | 0.24x | -0.59x | -0.86x | -0.25x | 2.28x | -3.11x | -36.33x | -8.56x | -1.94x | 12.04x | -6.00x | -0.51x | -0.21x | 2.82x | 3.52x | 8.28x | -3.17x | -12.39x |
| Interest Paid | 305.44M | 394.43M | 434.52M | 404.4M | 341.44M | 387.58M | 323.8M | 323.89M | 375.49M | 374.31M | 368.05M | 356.02M | 347.79M | 346.83M | 381.35M | 233.98M | 0 | 154.03M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Taxes Paid | 3M | 7.39M | 16.15M | 10.35M | 4.96M | 4.77M | 35.23M | 25.2M | 29M | 33.75M | 40.19M | 43.78M | 43.27M | 46.26M | 48.42M | 37.78M | 0 | 26.54M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
High Interest Expense Burden
Based on reported financial data, the relationship between net income and operating cash flow is frequently decoupled, as evidenced by the 2025Q4 period where the company reported a $105.8M net loss while simultaneously generating $56.3M in operating cash flow, highlighting significant non-cash accounting distortions.
The persistent divergence between net income and operating cash flow suggests that headline earnings are heavily impacted by non-cash charges, likely related to asset impairments and depreciation. Investors should monitor this gap closely, as it indicates that the company's reported profitability is not currently reflective of its underlying cash-generating capacity.
As reported in recent quarterly filings, CCO's free cash flow trajectory remains highly inconsistent, swinging from a $61.0M outflow in 2024Q1 to a $41.4M inflow by 2025Q3, reflecting the company's struggle to maintain positive cash margins amidst cyclical advertising demand and heavy capital requirements.
The erratic nature of free cash flow suggests that the business model is highly sensitive to operational fluctuations, making consistent deleveraging difficult. The inability to sustain positive free cash flow margins warrants further investigation into whether the company can self-fund its digital conversion strategy without further external financing.
According to the cash flow statements, CCO has experienced consistent working capital drains, with a notable $127.5M outflow in 2024Q4, indicating that the company's cash conversion cycle is currently under significant pressure from either inventory build-up or inefficient collection of receivables from advertising clients.
These recurring working capital outflows appear to be a structural drag on cash flow, potentially signaling difficulties in managing the timing of payments to municipal partners versus collections from advertisers. This trend suggests that operational liquidity is tighter than the headline operating cash flow figures might otherwise imply.
Based on reported figures, CCO's capital expenditure intensity remains elevated, with CapEx as a percentage of revenue peaking at 13.4% in 2024Q4, which underscores the heavy investment required to maintain and digitize its urban billboard infrastructure in a competitive and regulatory-constrained environment.
The high level of capital expenditure relative to revenue suggests that a significant portion of cash flow is being consumed by maintenance and digital conversion requirements. This capital intensity limits the company's ability to allocate cash toward debt reduction, leaving the balance sheet vulnerable to interest rate volatility.
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying CCO stock.
Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. (CCO) generated $114.9M in net cash from operating activities in 2025. This reflects the cash generated directly from core business operations.
Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. (CCO) generated $32.0M 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.
Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. (CCO) spent $82.9M on capital expenditures in 2025. CapEx represents the cash invested in physical assets like property, plant, and equipment to maintain or grow the business.