Free cash flow remains structurally negative with quarterly outflows frequently exceeding $20 million, highlighting a persistent inability to generate self-sustaining capital through existing operations.
Prelude Therapeutics Incorporated (PRLD) cash flow statement — 8-year operating, investing & financing cash flows
| Metric | TTM | Dec'25 | Dec'24 | Dec'23 | Dec'22 | Dec'21 | Dec'20 | Dec'19 | Dec'18 |
|---|
| Cash from Operations | -33.26M | -56.3M | -102.89M | -107.06M | -83.73M | -83.53M | -46.18M | -25.66M | -12.95M |
| Operating CF Margin % | - | -463.77% | -1469.83% | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Operating CF Growth % | 318.34% | 45.28% | 3.9% | -27.87% | -0.24% | -80.89% | -79.92% | -98.12% | - |
| Net Income | -60.49M | -99.5M | -127.17M | -121.83M | -115.44M | -111.69M | -56.93M | -27.57M | -14.68M |
| Depreciation & Amortization | 1.45M | 1.34M | 1.77M | 1.17M | 1.32M | 915K | 542K | 382K | 149K |
| Stock-Based Compensation | 8.29M | 11.91M | 21.34M | 25.62M | 25.14M | 20.93M | 5.58M | 846K | 180K |
| Deferred Taxes | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Non-Cash Items | 739K | 1.53M | -3.05M | -1.54M | 4.31M | 2.69M | 11K | 10K | 15K |
| Working Capital Changes | 16.75M | 28.41M | 4.22M | -10.48M | 932K | 3.63M | 4.62M | 667K | 1.38M |
| Change in Receivables | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Change in Inventory | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Change in Payables | -3.19M | -3.92M | 3.31M | -2.27M | -347K | 3.9M | 1.16M | 546K | 721K |
| Cash from Investing | -77.25M | 53.46M | 90.19M | -34.65M | 81.69M | -263.8M | -621K | -780K | -529K |
| Capital Expenditures | 0 | -67K | -764K | -3.51M | -3.02M | -2.32M | -621K | -780K | -529K |
| CapEx % of Revenue | 0% | 0.55% | 10.91% | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Acquisitions | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Investments | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Investing | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cash from Financing | 110.44M | 24.82M | -120K | 136.4M | 815K | 164.9M | 246.23M | 29.73M | 17.94M |
| Debt Issued (Net) | 0 | -208K | -395K | 0 | 0 | 0 | -258K | -124K | 0 |
| Equity Issued (Net) | 90.31M | 25.04M | 439K | 136.41M | 815K | 161.42M | 246.4M | 29.85M | 17.94M |
| Dividends Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Share Repurchases | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Financing | 20.14M | -17K | -164K | -17K | 0 | 3.47M | 88K | 5K | 0 |
| Net Change in Cash | -62K | 21.97M | -12.82M | -5.31M | -1.22M | -182.44M | 199.43M | 3.28M | 4.45M |
| Free Cash Flow | -33.26M | -56.37M | -103.65M | -110.58M | -86.75M | -85.85M | -46.8M | -26.45M | -13.48M |
| FCF Margin % | -148.3% | -464.32% | -1480.74% | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| FCF Growth % | 69.36% | 45.62% | 6.26% | -27.47% | -1.04% | -83.46% | -76.96% | -96.14% | - |
| FCF per Share | -0.34 | -0.73 | -1.37 | -1.83 | -1.83 | -1.80 | -1.07 | -0.82 | -8.55 |
| FCF Conversion (FCF/Net Income) | 0.55x | 0.57x | 0.81x | 0.88x | 0.73x | 0.75x | 0.81x | 0.93x | 0.88x |
| Interest Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Taxes Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying PRLD stock.
Prelude Therapeutics Incorporated (PRLD) generated $-56.3M in net cash from operating activities in 2025. This reflects the cash generated directly from core business operations.
Prelude Therapeutics Incorporated (PRLD) reported negative free cash flow of $56.4M in 2025, indicating capital requirements exceeded cash from operations.
Prelude Therapeutics Incorporated (PRLD) spent $0.1M 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
Critical cash runway deficiency
Metrics are mathematically derived from official filings.
Earnings Disconnect Masks Cash Burn
As reported in financial statements, the relationship between net income and operating cash flow is highly volatile, with the OCF/NI ratio swinging from 2.09 in 2026Q1 to -1.40 in 2025Q4, indicating that GAAP earnings provide little insight into the company's actual liquidity requirements.
The significant variance between net losses and operating cash flow suggests that non-cash items and working capital fluctuations are the primary drivers of cash movement rather than core operational performance. Investors should monitor this divergence closely, as it obscures the true underlying cash burn rate required to sustain clinical development.
Persistent Negative Free Cash Flow
Based on the provided financial data, Prelude's free cash flow trajectory remains consistently negative, with quarterly outflows frequently exceeding $20 million, highlighting the structural inability of the current business model to generate self-sustaining capital through its existing collaboration-based revenue streams.
The lack of positive FCF margins, outside of anomalous quarterly spikes, confirms that the company is entirely dependent on external financing to fund its R&D pipeline. This trend suggests that until a candidate reaches a commercial milestone, the firm will continue to face significant pressure on its cash reserves.
Working Capital Volatility Impacts Liquidity
According to recent SEC filings, working capital changes have been a major source of cash flow instability, with a massive $37.1 million inflow in 2025Q4 followed by a $13.7 million outflow in 2026Q1, reflecting the lumpy nature of milestone-driven accounts receivable and deferred revenue.
These swings in working capital appear to be tied to the timing of collaboration payments rather than operational efficiency in managing payables or inventory. Such volatility makes it difficult to forecast the exact timing of cash exhaustion, necessitating a conservative approach to the company's liquidity runway.
Hidden Costs of Clinical Operations
As indicated by the provided financial data, the cash flow statement obscures the true cost of clinical trials by failing to fully capture future contractual obligations to CROs, which remain off-balance sheet until services are rendered, potentially understating the firm's true financial commitments.
While stock-based compensation provides a non-cash add-back to operating cash flow, it does not alleviate the immediate need for cash to fund clinical research. The reliance on these adjustments may mask the severity of the cash burn, warranting further investigation into the company's long-term service agreements.