Liquidity remains under severe pressure, evidenced by negative free cash flow of $30.0 million in 2026Q1 and recurring capital expenditures that frequently exceed $5 million per quarter.
| 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 | Dec'02 | Dec'01 | Dec'00 | Dec'99 | Dec'98 | Dec'97 | Dec'96 |
|---|
| Cash from Operations | -21.41M | 5.79M | 17.03M | 12M | 32.41M | 46.28M | 12.83M | 40.98M | 60.15M | -1.15M | 51.87M | 77.03M | 66.81M | 1.43M | -1.77M | -4.06M | -20.1M | 5.86M | 5.97M | 11.73M | 13.83M | 16.03M | 12.95M | 8.71M | 11.21M | 9.2M | 11.32M | 12.1M | -81.11M | 6.99M | 12.06M |
| Operating CF Growth % | -2289.12% | -66% | 41.92% | -62.98% | -29.97% | 260.81% | -68.7% | -31.86% | 5353.19% | -102.21% | -32.66% | 15.31% | 4581.57% | 180.39% | 56.3% | 79.8% | -443.07% | -1.83% | -49.13% | -15.17% | -13.71% | 23.75% | 48.71% | -22.32% | 21.91% | -18.72% | -6.45% | 114.91% | -1259.78% | -42.01% | 215.36% |
| Operating CF / Revenue % | -18.82% | 4.96% | 13.67% | 10.06% | 31.8% | 50.9% | 16.61% | 29.28% | 30.42% | -0.48% | 19.51% | 28.7% | 26.08% | 9.8% | -13.12% | -25.27% | -130.01% | 36.02% | 25.82% | 42.99% | 45.09% | 62.65% | 51.08% | 59.71% | 69.92% | 53.56% | 57.22% | 54.98% | -420.11% | 50.63% | 118.85% |
| Net Income | -41.2M | -39.58M | -25.75M | -51.46M | 5.95M | -851K | -15.02M | 345.52M | 1.14M | 379.76M | 34.56M | 24.4M | 24.6M | 2.07M | -2.18M | 3.65M | 4.3M | 6.76M | 9.81M | 13.13M | 15.12M | 11.3M | 24.78M | 8.17M | 8.71M | 8.65M | 7.94M | 10.26M | 11.37M | 10.39M | 7.18M |
| Depreciation & Amortization | 28.28M | 27.2M | 27.73M | 52.67M | 20.5M | 20.19M | 21.09M | 27.37M | 53.23M | 58.36M | 71.97M | 72.36M | 69.05M | -360K | -153K | -135K | 231K | -377K | -308K | 80K | 231K | 1M | 3.79M | 1.88M | 1.9M | 2.1M | 2.25M | 2.21M | 976K | 100K | 100K |
| Stock-Based Compensation | 220K | 220K | 220K | 183K | 202K | 220K | 222K | 194K | 162K | 154K | 164K | 971K | 1.08M | 49K | 138K | 178K | 134K | 151K | 129K | 0 | 0 | 106K | 7K | 2K | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Non-Cash Items | 6.96M | 9.06M | 5.85M | 5.7M | 2.94M | 14.47M | 5.23M | -321.75M | 3.35M | -390.67M | -37.53M | -12.81M | -16.74M | 3.18M | -3.44M | -6.85M | -25.12M | 631K | -4.39M | -217K | 366K | 2.7M | -10.97M | -1.41M | 891K | -175K | 784K | -529K | -86.11M | -192K | 1.04M |
| Working Capital Changes | -15.04M | 9.02M | 9.01M | 4.86M | 2.83M | 12.18M | 2.3M | -10.27M | 2.27M | -49.02M | -17.46M | -8.02M | -11.12M | -3.66M | 4.08M | -534K | 1M | -1.05M | 682K | -1.52M | -2.13M | 941K | -4.62M | 1.49M | -292K | -1.38M | 338K | 148K | -7.36M | -3.3M | 3.74M |
| Cash from Investing | 30.19M | -16.4M | -22.29M | -88.69M | -22.27M | -12.7M | -38.32M | 917.19M | -131.73M | 968.66M | 29.53M | 64.27M | -60.3M | -3.08M | 2.81M | 13.1M | 10.26M | 9.68M | 12.44M | 15.66M | 16.38M | -12.96M | 19.95M | 17.53M | 7.1M | -32.96M | -2.65M | 4.19M | -81.11M | -20.29M | -36.01M |
| Acquisitions (Net) | 14K | 0 | -978K | -14.28M | -12.38M | 0 | 38.37M | 455K | 0 | 0 | 0 | 110K | 3.19M | 0 | -107K | 415K | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.06M | 3.13M | 8.04M | -2.3M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Purchase of Investments | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -46.26M | -268.19M | -142.68M | -59.81M | -60.56M | -37.76M | 0 | 0 | -28.04M | -12M | -11.86M | -6.61M | -2.82M | -253K | -134K | -1.84M | -2.03M | -2.54M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -7.52M | -28.81M | 0 |
| Sale of Investments | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7.88M | 951.3M | 10.77M | 1.02B | 128.04M | 49.43M | 0 | 0 | 28.64M | 1.5M | 20.57M | 15.98M | 0 | 40.64M | 49.81M | 16.21M | 24.96M | 0 | 0 | 5.93M | 0 | 22.19M | 0 | 25.8M | 7.2M |
| Other Investing | 48.64M | 4.38M | 1.95M | -61.09M | -1.08M | -8.65M | -23.59M | 258.23M | -119.68M | 989.76M | 64.94M | 90.89M | -38.73M | -3.07M | 2.34M | 23.21M | 1.55M | 308K | 15.26M | -25.74M | -36.32M | -35M | 5.74M | 20.36M | 7.49M | -38.41M | -2.65M | -13.8M | -10.84M | -17.29M | -43.21M |
| Cash from Financing | -20.13M | -4.57M | 13.9M | 63.45M | 13.69M | -43.58M | 33.2M | -1B | -6.54M | -982.65M | -77.52M | -28.29M | 4.25M | 8.41M | -6.31M | -5.18M | 4.65M | -18.3M | -19.28M | -19.65M | -30.44M | -8.16M | -24.92M | -25.21M | -18.82M | 23.84M | -8.4M | -16.34M | 67.08M | -12.65M | 49.72M |
| Dividends Paid | -21M | -21.96M | -31.39M | -37.23M | -31.98M | -22.02M | -20.97M | -35.3M | -25.64M | -43.45M | -77.32M | -85.39M | -144.33M | -5.25M | -6.75M | -6.79M | -6.78M | -9.68M | -10.23M | -13.99M | -12.9M | -14.04M | -12.87M | -10.19M | -10.31M | -9.56M | -12.03M | -11.76M | -11.09M | -9.74M | -6.29M |
| Common Dividends | 0 | 0 | -5.81M | -7.73M | -7.66M | -3.98M | -4.43M | -626.43M | -23.47M | -43.2M | -77.32M | -85.39M | -144.33M | -104.03M | -6.75M | -6.79M | -6.78M | -9.68M | -10.23M | -13.99M | -12.9M | -14.04M | -12.87M | -10.19M | -10.31M | -9.56M | -12.03M | -11.76M | -11.09M | -9.7M | -6.3M |
| Debt Issuance (Net) | -2M | 1000K | 1000K | 1000K | -1000K | -1000K | 1000K | -1000K | -1000K | -1000K | 1000K | 1000K | 1000K | 1000K | 593K | 1000K | 1000K | -1000K | 1000K | -1000K | 0 | -1000K | -1000K | -1000K | -1000K | 1000K | -1000K | -1000K | 1000K | -1000K | 1000K |
| Share Repurchases | -171K | -165K | 0 | 0 | -4.71M | 0 | -2.08M | 0 | -113K | -886.04M | -290.13M | 0 | -1.85M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -3.08M | -594K | 0 | -303K | -1.64M | 0 | 0 | 0 | -263K | -1.02M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Financing | -339K | -122K | -6.12M | -4.11M | -4.51M | -3.16M | -1.95M | -877.05M | -5.61M | -4.06M | -3.99M | -3.53M | -5.83M | 98.79M | -147K | -326K | 0 | -30K | -23.95M | -3.02M | -17.23M | 19.48M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29.53M | 49.17M | -60K | -624K | -49K | 23K |
| Net Change in Cash | -11.35M | -15.18M | 8.64M | -13.25M | 23.83M | -10M | 7.7M | -41.22M | -78.88M | -15.14M | 5.35M | 107.02M | 819K | 6.75M | -5.27M | 3.86M | -5.2M | -2.77M | -879K | 7.75M | -228K | -5.1M | 7.99M | 1.03M | -508K | 70K | 259K | -57K | 189K | -25.95M | 25.78M |
| Exchange Rate Effect | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 755K | -755K | 0 | 1.47M | -6M | -9.94M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 95.33M | 0 | 0 |
| Cash at Beginning | 37.69M | 52.87M | 44.23M | 57.48M | 33.65M | 43.65M | 35.95M | 77.17M | 156.32M | 144.45M | 139.1M | 17.61M | 16.8M | 1.23M | 6.5M | 2.64M | 7.84M | 10.61M | 11.48M | 3.74M | 3.97M | 9.06M | 1.08M | 49K | 557K | 487K | 228K | 225K | 36K | 25.98M | 208K |
| Cash at End | 37.78M | 37.69M | 52.87M | 44.23M | 57.48M | 33.65M | 43.65M | 35.95M | 77.44M | 129.31M | 144.45M | 124.64M | 17.61M | 7.98M | 1.23M | 6.5M | 2.64M | 7.84M | 10.61M | 11.48M | 3.74M | 3.97M | 9.06M | 1.08M | 49K | 557K | 487K | 168K | 225K | 36K | 25.98M |
| Free Cash Flow | -39.87M | -15M | -6.24M | -1.33M | 23.59M | 42.23M | -1.9M | 16.39M | 48.09M | -22.25M | 16.46M | 50.42M | 42.05M | 1.42M | -1.81M | -4.09M | -20.1M | 5.86M | 5.97M | 11.68M | 13.73M | 15.66M | 6.53M | 8.42M | 10.82M | 8.71M | 11.32M | 7.9M | -143.87M | 6.99M | 12.06M |
| FCF Growth % | -253.81% | -140.51% | -369.23% | -105.63% | -44.14% | 2318.17% | -111.62% | -65.93% | 316.19% | -235.16% | -67.36% | 19.92% | 2867.33% | 178.37% | 55.83% | 79.64% | -443.36% | -1.91% | -48.91% | -14.9% | -12.35% | 139.79% | -22.42% | -22.22% | 24.31% | -23.05% | 43.24% | 105.49% | -2156.98% | -42.01% | 215.36% |
| FCF / Revenue % | -35.04% | -12.86% | -5.01% | -1.11% | 23.15% | 46.45% | -2.47% | 11.7% | 24.32% | -9.41% | 6.19% | 18.78% | 16.41% | 9.74% | -13.37% | -25.46% | -130.01% | 35.99% | 25.82% | 42.8% | 44.75% | 61.22% | 25.76% | 57.73% | 67.5% | 50.7% | 57.22% | 35.91% | -745.11% | 50.63% | 118.85% |
Persistent negative cash flow
According to the company's quarterly financial disclosures, AFFO has remained consistently negative, reaching a low of -$12.9 million in 2024Q3, which indicates that the REIT is currently unable to fund its dividend distributions from recurring property-level cash flows without relying on external capital sources.
The consistent failure to generate positive AFFO suggests that the current dividend policy may be unsustainable without significant asset divestitures or capital injections. Investors should monitor the widening gap between cash outflows and dividend payments, as this trend implies a structural reliance on debt or equity issuance to maintain payouts.
As reported in recent SEC filings, CMCT's recurring capital expenditures, including tenant improvements and leasing commissions, have frequently exceeded $5 million per quarter, further straining the company's already negative free cash flow and limiting the capital available for debt service or portfolio reinvestment.
The high level of maintenance capex relative to the company's negative FFO suggests that the portfolio requires significant ongoing investment just to retain existing tenants. This dynamic appears to create a cycle where the REIT must continuously deploy capital into aging assets that are not yet yielding sufficient incremental returns to cover the cost of the improvements.
Based on the provided financial data, the wide variance between GAAP Net Income and FFO metrics highlights that non-cash depreciation charges are significant, yet even after adjusting for these items, the company's core cash-based earnings remain deeply negative, suggesting fundamental operational challenges beyond accounting distortions.
While REIT analysts typically look to FFO to normalize for depreciation, the persistent negative FFO figures indicate that the underlying assets are not generating sufficient cash to cover their own operating costs. This suggests that the distortion is not merely accounting-based but reflects a deeper issue with the portfolio's ability to generate positive cash flow in the current interest rate environment.
As evidenced by the company's reported cash flow statements, the consistent negative free cash flow suggests that CMCT is likely dependent on external financing or asset sales to cover its operational deficits and dividend obligations, a trend that warrants further investigation into the company's long-term solvency.
The reliance on external funding to bridge the gap between operating cash flow and dividend payments appears to be a primary risk factor for shareholders. If the company cannot improve its property-level cash generation, it may face increasing pressure to dilute equity or take on higher-cost debt to sustain its current operational structure.
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying CMCT stock.
Creative Media & Community Trust Corporation (CMCT) generated $5.8M in net cash from operating activities in 2025. This reflects the cash generated directly from core business operations.
Creative Media & Community Trust Corporation (CMCT) reported negative free cash flow of $15.0M in 2025, indicating capital requirements exceeded cash from operations.
Creative Media & Community Trust Corporation (CMCT) spent $20.8M 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, Creative Media & Community Trust Corporation (CMCT) returned $22.0M to shareholders via cash dividends and spent $0.2M on share repurchases. This shows the company's commitment to returning capital to its equity investors.