Free cash flow was -$3.3B in Q2 2026, with a -136.1% FCF margin, as fleet capex of $3.6B outpaced operating cash flow of $381M.
Hertz Global Holdings, Inc. (HTZ) cash flow statement — 21-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 | Dec'11 | Dec'10 | Dec'09 | Dec'08 | Dec'07 | Dec'06 | Dec'05 |
|---|
| Cash from Operations | 1.19B | 1.63B | 2.22B | 2.47B | 2.54B | 1.81B | 953M | 2.9B | 2.56B | 2.39B | 2.53B | 3.33B | 3.45B | 3.59B | 2.72B | 2.23B | 2.21B | 1.77B | 2.1B | 3.09B | 2.61B | 1.45B |
| Operating CF Margin % | - | 19.11% | 24.58% | 26.4% | 29.22% | 24.62% | 18.12% | 29.66% | 26.89% | 27.2% | 28.73% | 36.95% | 31.25% | 33.31% | 30.13% | 26.91% | 29.21% | 24.99% | 24.58% | 35.57% | 32.45% | 940.52% |
| Operating CF Growth % | -163.56% | -26.93% | -10.11% | -2.52% | 40.53% | 89.51% | -67.14% | 13.46% | 6.77% | -5.34% | -24.1% | -3.48% | -3.83% | 32.07% | 21.7% | 1.12% | 24.43% | -15.29% | -32.17% | 18.16% | 79.97% | - |
| Net Income | -347M | -747M | -2.86B | 616M | 2.06B | 365M | -1.72B | -50M | -227M | 327M | -474M | 273M | -82M | 346.2M | 243.08M | 195.73M | -30.66M | -111.34M | -1.21B | 264.56M | 115.94M | 349.98M |
| Depreciation & Amortization | 1.75B | 2.27B | 4.12B | 2.57B | 951M | 796M | 2.48B | 2.99B | 2.76B | 2.96B | 2.8B | 3.04B | 3.32B | 2.77B | 2.33B | 2.04B | 2.01B | 2.16B | 2.43B | 2.24B | 2.02B | 190.7M |
| Stock-Based Compensation | 56M | 0 | -5M | 87M | 130M | 10M | -2M | 18M | 14M | 19M | 13M | 17M | 11M | 34.8M | 30.25M | 31.09M | 36.56M | 35.46M | 28.02M | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Deferred Taxes | -5M | -132M | -459M | -380M | 0 | 270M | -353M | 27M | -66M | -922M | -78M | 3M | 6M | 241.3M | 128.76M | 68.14M | -26.12M | 111.23M | -234.81M | 59.74M | 30.35M | -423.7M |
| Other Non-Cash Items | -228M | 166M | 948M | -49M | -282M | 783M | 360M | 70M | 93M | 198M | 418M | -9M | 137M | 189M | 153.56M | 103.51M | 227.82M | 186.79M | 1.42B | 107.47M | 298.81M | 1.63B |
| Working Capital Changes | -34M | 73M | 480M | -371M | -320M | -418M | 187M | -159M | -22M | -190M | -146M | 6M | 60M | 6.5M | -162.73M | -202.79M | -7.57M | -604.26M | -340.59M | 378.59M | 290.35M | -304.05M |
| Change in Receivables | -62M | -11M | 23M | -216M | -264M | -210M | 195M | -88M | -136M | -75M | -174M | -58M | -90M | -34.7M | -157.73M | -208.72M | -60.63M | 0 | 0 | 84.54M | 229.66M | 0 |
| Change in Inventory | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -21M | -108M | 0 | -131M | -33M | -22M | -64M | -28M | -30.8M | 478K | -61.89M | 5.57M | 17.96M | 709K | -17.13M | 0 |
| Change in Payables | 42M | 12M | -14M | -48M | 0 | -70M | 98M | 65M | 70M | 20M | 31M | -16M | 23M | 23.2M | 49.9M | -1.14M | 118.01M | -227.48M | 36.62M | 304.17M | -4.71M | 0 |
| Cash from Investing | -2.3B | -2B | -2.93B | -4.02B | -4.23B | -3.54B | 4.59B | -4.42B | -4.2B | -3.15B | -2B | -2.77B | -3.18B | -3.84B | -4.75B | -2.19B | -943.57M | -1.29B | -1.46B | -2.34B | -2.29B | -6.49B |
| Capital Expenditures | -9.69B | -10.28B | -10.63B | -9.7B | -4.25B | -7.22B | -5.64B | -13.94B | -12.67B | -10.77B | -11.09B | -12.98B | -11.66B | -10.61B | -9.93B | -9.74B | -8.62B | -7.63B | -10.2B | -11.73B | -11.87B | -13.11B |
| CapEx % of Revenue | 107.08% | 120.88% | 117.46% | 103.53% | 48.91% | 98.49% | 107.27% | 142.53% | 133.31% | 122.33% | 125.99% | 144.01% | 105.59% | 98.49% | 110.03% | 117.32% | 113.98% | 107.41% | 119.68% | 135.1% | 147.28% | 8485.23% |
| Acquisitions | 4.67B | 8.29B | 0 | 5.68B | 0 | 871M | 10.08B | -1M | -2M | 95M | 220M | 267M | -105M | -254M | -1.82B | -227.08M | -47.57M | -76.42M | -70.92M | 0 | -2.03B | 0 |
| Investments | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Investing | 42M | 0 | 7.7B | -1M | 15M | 2.81B | 10.16B | 9.51B | 8.5B | 26M | 186M | 9.95B | 8.59B | 7.03B | 7B | 7.77B | 7.72B | 7.9B | 8.81B | 9.39B | 11.87B | 6.61B |
| Cash from Financing | 686M | 372M | 658M | 1.31B | 487M | 2.85B | -5.37B | 1.47B | 1.56B | 988M | -183M | -540M | -159M | 126.9M | 1.62B | -1.49B | 133.75M | -129.07M | -695.32M | -734.09M | -583.87M | 5.27B |
| Debt Issued (Net) | 1.57B | 421M | 726M | 1.68B | 3.01B | 8M | -5.32B | 767M | 1.57B | 1.05B | -2.19B | 175M | -90M | 716M | 1.72B | -1.38B | 227.09M | -603.3M | -616.84M | -691.07M | -598.02M | 2.54B |
| Equity Issued (Net) | 3M | 0 | 0 | -315M | -2.46B | 535M | 28M | 748M | 0 | 0 | -100M | -605M | 0 | -555M | 15.49M | 0 | -4.62M | 528.96M | 138K | 5.6M | 1.28B | 2.1B |
| Dividends Paid | 0 | 0 | -7M | 0 | 0 | -239M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -15.05M | -24.15M | -13.47M | -1.27B | -1.19B |
| Share Repurchases | 0 | 0 | 0 | -315M | -2.46B | -654M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -100M | -605M | 0 | -555M | 0 | -11.46M | -7.84M | -2.22M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Financing | -885M | -49M | -61M | -50M | -65M | 2.54B | -77M | -41M | -8M | -64M | 2.11B | 62M | -69M | -34M | -108.5M | -109.37M | -88.72M | -39.67M | -54.47M | -35.14M | 0 | 1.19B |
| Net Change in Cash | -426M | 34M | -73M | -212M | -1.23B | 1.07B | 218M | -50M | -94M | 256M | 342M | -4M | 79M | -122.3M | -398.52M | -1.44B | 1.39B | 391.38M | -135.94M | 55.65M | -169.36M | 165.94M |
| Free Cash Flow | -1.22B | -8.65B | -8.4B | -7.23B | -1.71B | -5.42B | -4.69B | -11.04B | -10.11B | -8.38B | -8.56B | -9.65B | -8.21B | -7.02B | -7.21B | -7.5B | -6.41B | -5.85B | -8.11B | -8.64B | -9.25B | -11.65B |
| FCF Margin % | -13.47% | -101.78% | -92.88% | -77.13% | -19.69% | -73.87% | -89.14% | -112.87% | -106.42% | -95.14% | -97.26% | -107.05% | -74.33% | -65.17% | -79.9% | -90.41% | -84.78% | -82.42% | -95.1% | -99.53% | -114.84% | -7544.71% |
| FCF Growth % | 69.33% | -2.97% | -16.28% | -322.69% | 68.44% | -15.62% | 57.54% | -9.14% | -20.76% | 2.18% | 11.3% | -17.56% | -16.92% | 2.57% | 3.93% | -17.02% | -9.54% | 27.81% | 6.21% | 6.59% | 20.59% | - |
| FCF per Share | -2.56 | -26.88 | -27.47 | -22.17 | -4.24 | -17.20 | -31.25 | -94.34 | -105.37 | -88.30 | -89.20 | -92.83 | -79.13 | -66.22 | -70.37 | -73.81 | -68.10 | -68.94 | -109.93 | -116.21 | -166.39 | -159.05 |
| FCF Conversion (FCF/Net Income) | 3.51x | -2.18x | -0.78x | 4.02x | 1.23x | 4.93x | -0.56x | -50.00x | -11.36x | 7.32x | -5.15x | 12.21x | -42.10x | 11.89x | 11.18x | 12.68x | -45.97x | -14.08x | -1.74x | 11.68x | 22.55x | -68.06x |
| Interest Paid | 528M | 1B | 798M | 721M | 372M | 455M | 0 | 703M | 665M | 582M | 527M | 561M | 550M | -651M | -560M | 640.6M | 533.04M | 635.15M | 763.95M | 814.06M | 0 | 0 |
| Taxes Paid | 10M | 0 | 53M | 33M | 0 | 40M | 0 | 21M | 26M | 54M | 57M | 24M | 42M | -71M | -72M | 49.6M | 50.69M | 31.32M | 33.41M | 28.29M | 0 | 0 |
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying HTZ stock.
Hertz Global Holdings, Inc. (HTZ) generated $1.63B in net cash from operating activities in 2025. This reflects the cash generated directly from core business operations.
Hertz Global Holdings, Inc. (HTZ) reported negative free cash flow of $8.65B in 2025, indicating capital requirements exceeded cash from operations.
Hertz Global Holdings, Inc. (HTZ) spent $10.28B 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
Fleet residual value risk
Metrics are mathematically derived from official filings.
Earnings Quality Masked by Fleet Dynamics
In Q2 2026, operating cash flow of $381M against a $64M net profit implies a 5.95x OCF/NI ratio, per recent filings, suggesting earnings quality is heavily influenced by non-cash depreciation and working capital swings.
The OCF/NI ratio of 5.95 in Q2 2026 is a stark outlier, driven by $568M in D&A and a $136M working capital outflow, indicating that reported profitability is not yet translating into sustainable cash generation. Historically, OCF/NI has been negative or below 1, reflecting persistent losses and the capital-intensive nature of fleet operations. Investors should monitor whether this ratio normalizes as fleet depreciation stabilizes.
Free Cash Flow Deeply Negative
Free cash flow was -$3.3B in Q2 2026, with a -136.1% FCF margin, as reported in financial statements, reflecting massive fleet capex that continues to outpace operating cash flow, a trend consistent with prior quarters.
Excluding Q3 2025 and Q4 2024, where FCF turned positive due to unusually low capex, the company has consistently burned cash, with cumulative FCF over the last five quarters exceeding -$14B. This suggests that the business model requires continuous heavy reinvestment in fleet, and the recent positive net income does not yet signal a shift to positive FCF. The trajectory appears dependent on fleet rationalization and improved residual values.
Fleet Capex Dominates Capital Spending
Capex averaged $2.7B per quarter over the past year, representing over 140% of revenue in most quarters, per SEC filings, indicating that capital intensity is extreme and largely tied to fleet replacement rather than growth.
The spike in capex during Q1 and Q2 of each year aligns with seasonal fleet refreshes, but the magnitude suggests that maintenance capex is substantial, given the high depreciation charges. The company's ability to reduce capex without impairing fleet quality is critical; the positive FCF quarters in Q3 2025 and Q4 2024 were due to capex cuts, but these may not be sustainable. Investors should assess whether the fleet is being under-invested to preserve cash.
Working Capital Swings Reflect Fleet Financing
Working capital changes were negative in Q2 2026 at -$136M, per recent filings, but have been volatile, ranging from -$269M to +$471M, indicating that fleet financing and payables management are key drivers of short-term cash flow.
The negative working capital changes in recent quarters suggest that the company is using more cash to fund receivables or inventory, possibly due to higher fleet levels or slower collections from TNC partners. The positive swings in Q3 2024 and Q4 2024 may indicate better payables management or reduced fleet purchases. This volatility complicates forecasting and underscores the need to monitor fleet procurement and disposal cycles.
No Distributions, Heavy Acquisition Outflows
HTZ paid no dividends or buybacks over the past ten quarters, but acquisition-related outflows totaled $6.3B in Q1 2026, Q4 2025, and Q2 2024, as per cash flow statements, indicating capital is being deployed into fleet acquisitions rather than shareholder returns.
The absence of dividends and buybacks is consistent with a company preserving liquidity, but the large acquisition outflows, likely for fleet purchases, are a major use of cash. These outflows are not typical M&A but rather vehicle acquisitions, which are essential to operations. The scale of these outflows relative to operating cash flow suggests that external financing is required, increasing balance sheet strain.
Cumulative Losses Outpace Cash Generation
Over the last ten quarters, cumulative net income was -$3.9B while operating cash flow was +$4.25B, per reported data, indicating a significant divergence where cash flow has been positive despite losses, driven by heavy depreciation and working capital adjustments.
This divergence highlights that the company's cash generation is not tied to profitability but to the timing of fleet depreciation and disposal. The positive cumulative OCF suggests that the business can generate cash from operations even when reporting losses, but this is offset by massive capex, leading to negative FCF. The sustainability of this pattern depends on residual values and the ability to manage fleet costs.
What Could Invalidate the Base Case
The cash flow statement obscures the impact of capitalized fleet costs and residual value assumptions, as per accounting nuances, which could lead to sudden depreciation catch-up charges if used-vehicle values decline further.
The reported capex figures include substantial vehicle acquisitions that are capitalized, but the eventual cash recovery depends on residual values at disposal. If the Manheim index continues to soften, the company may face lower proceeds from fleet sales, turning previously positive OCF into cash outflows. Additionally, the large acquisition outflows in certain quarters may mask the true cost of fleet replacement, and investors should adjust for gains or losses on vehicle sales to assess underlying cash generation.