Free cash flow remains constrained as capital expenditures reached $502.3 million in 2026Q4, effectively absorbing the entirety of operating cash flow.
| Cash from Operations | 1.81B | 1.97B | 972.78M | 1.23B | 952.64M | 842.91M | 951.52M | 490.11M |
| Operating CF Margin % | 32.97% | 43.16% | 23.13% | 34.97% | 34.69% | 36.8% | 49% | 28.95% |
| Operating CF Growth % | -8.37% | 102.66% | -20.68% | 28.74% | 13.02% | -11.41% | 94.14% | - |
| Net Income | 912.76M | 939.18M | 751.9M | 650.01M | 460.06M | 285.97M | 306.06M | 193.13M |
| Depreciation & Amortization | 799.6M | 777.82M | 744.88M | 663.6M | 574.55M | 400.62M | 345.27M | 271.4M |
| Stock-Based Compensation | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Deferred Taxes | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Non-Cash Items | 217.2M | 34.38M | 25.35M | 38.14M | 44.41M | 170.89M | 196.46M | 149.5M |
| Working Capital Changes | -123.12M | 220.02M | -549.36M | -125.36M | -126.38M | -14.58M | 103.72M | -123.91M |
| Change in Receivables | 0 | 392.26M | -561.47M | -68.4M | -53.22M | -70.67M | -38.83M | -64.67M |
| Change in Inventory | 0 | 2.81M | 74.09M | -58.55M | -25.94M | 0 | 58.47M | -35.31M |
| Change in Payables | 0 | 7.84M | 56.53M | 73.95M | -11.94M | 103.52M | 16.55M | 43.72M |
| Cash from Investing | -1.11B | -1.1B | -949.5M | -677.29M | -740.88M | -475.67M | -451.29M | -445.44M |
| Capital Expenditures | 0 | -1.1B | -944.8M | -681.75M | -609.85M | -470.65M | -446.57M | -452.17M |
| CapEx % of Revenue | 32.97% | 24.14% | 22.47% | 19.44% | 22.21% | 20.55% | 23% | 26.71% |
| Acquisitions | 0 | 4.56M | -2.26M | 11.43M | -131.03M | 2.52M | 6.9M | 4.59M |
| Investments | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Investing | -1.11B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -7.54M | -11.61M | 2.14M |
| Cash from Financing | -649.35M | -452M | -603.97M | -457.21M | -442.92M | -426.42M | -388.78M | 86.56M |
| Debt Issued (Net) | 0 | 270.73M | -11.95M | -35M | -855.51M | 761.8M | -229.97M | 248.34M |
| Equity Issued (Net) | 0 | -19.07M | -24.26M | 0 | 460.85M | 0 | 10.56K | 0 |
| Dividends Paid | 0 | -624.49M | -508.8M | -360.57M | 0 | -244.68M | -55.43M | -154.13M |
| Share Repurchases | 0 | -3.53M | -24.26M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Financing | -649.35M | -79.16M | -58.97M | -61.63M | -48.26M | -943.55M | -103.39M | -7.65M |
| Net Change in Cash | 262.4M | 600.13M | -545.62M | 95.7M | 613.99M | -35.48M | 86.68M | 51.91M |
| Free Cash Flow | 0 | 928.88M | 80.15M | 595.43M | 387.59M | 413.27M | 541.1M | 52.09M |
| FCF Margin % | - | 20.34% | 1.91% | 16.98% | 14.11% | 18.04% | 27.86% | 3.08% |
| FCF Growth % | -100% | 1058.96% | -86.54% | 53.62% | -6.21% | -23.62% | 938.69% | - |
| FCF per Share | - | 30.07 | 2.59 | 19.24 | 12.52 | 19.19 | 25.12 | 2.56 |
| FCF Conversion (FCF/Net Income) | 1.82x | 2.14x | 1.32x | 2.05x | 2.12x | 2.65x | 3.28x | 2.07x |
| Interest Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Taxes Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Capital intensity and FX
According to recent financial statements, Karooooo consistently reports operating cash flow significantly higher than net income, with an OCF/NI ratio peaking at 3.78 in 2025Q1, which suggests that non-cash depreciation charges and accounting adjustments play a substantial role in the company's reported cash generation profile.
The persistent gap between net income and operating cash flow indicates that the company's earnings quality is heavily influenced by the depreciation of capitalized telematics hardware. Investors should monitor whether this divergence reflects genuine operational efficiency or merely the accounting treatment of long-lived assets.
As reported in quarterly filings, Karooooo’s capital expenditure is exceptionally high, frequently mirroring operating cash flow and reaching a peak intensity of 49.0% of revenue in 2026Q1, which suggests that the company must continuously reinvest heavily to maintain its physical infrastructure and subscriber base.
The high ratio of CapEx to revenue implies that the business model is far more capital-intensive than traditional pure-play SaaS peers. This structural requirement for constant hardware investment may limit the company's ability to generate meaningful free cash flow during periods of rapid subscriber acquisition.
Based on the provided data, Karooooo’s free cash flow trajectory appears constrained, with the company reporting zero or near-zero free cash flow in most recent quarters, as aggressive capital reinvestment effectively absorbs the entirety of the cash generated from its core operating activities.
The lack of consistent free cash flow suggests that the company is currently in a phase of heavy asset deployment rather than cash harvesting. This trend warrants further investigation into whether the current level of capital spending is sustainable or if it will eventually moderate as the installed base matures.
Data from recent quarterly reports reveals significant volatility in working capital, highlighted by a $158.7 million outflow in 2026Q2 followed by a $75.8 million inflow in 2026Q1, which suggests that the company's cash position is sensitive to the timing of inventory procurement and customer payment cycles.
These fluctuations in working capital may indicate challenges in managing the inventory requirements of the Carzuka segment alongside the core telematics business. Investors should monitor these swings as they can create temporary liquidity pressures that are not immediately apparent from headline net income figures.
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying KARO stock.
Karooooo Ltd. (KARO) generated $1.81B in net cash from operating activities in 2026. This reflects the cash generated directly from core business operations.
Karooooo Ltd. (KARO) reported negative free cash flow of $0.0M in 2026, indicating capital requirements exceeded cash from operations.
Karooooo Ltd. (KARO) spent $0.0M on capital expenditures in 2026. CapEx represents the cash invested in physical assets like property, plant, and equipment to maintain or grow the business.