Free cash flow remains deeply negative at -$22.2 million for 2026Q1, underscoring the company's dependence on capital markets to support its high-burn clinical development activities.
| Cash from Operations | -72.97M | -73.94M | -23.67M | -51.16M | -31.63M | -60.38M | 34.88M | -51.44M | -59.16M | -52.04M | -19.68M | -22.46M | -12.69M |
| Operating CF Margin % | - | -2643.58% | -60.84% | -196.74% | -28.55% | -70.97% | 210.16% | -770.33% | -6551.61% | -25138.65% | -243.51% | -373.7% | -417.3% |
| Operating CF Growth % | -383.98% | -212.33% | 53.73% | -61.74% | 47.62% | -273.11% | 167.82% | 13.06% | -13.69% | -164.38% | 12.38% | -77.07% | - |
| Net Income | -151.77M | -130.3M | -77.42M | -219.71M | 35.38M | -25.69M | -68.88M | -55.35M | -65.34M | -65.32M | -36.21M | -25.17M | -12.88M |
| Depreciation & Amortization | 2.42M | 2.96M | 1.15M | 843K | 1.29M | 1.25M | 734K | 2.03M | 975K | 750K | 802K | 1.04M | 864K |
| Stock-Based Compensation | 10.44M | 10.52M | 6.58M | 22.52M | 11.19M | 7.72M | 5.42M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.22M |
| Deferred Taxes | -9.19M | -9.19M | 287K | -19M | -21.4M | 2.4M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Non-Cash Items | 76.06M | 60.14M | 51.52M | 159.21M | 2.29M | 2.13M | 12.6M | 6.37M | 8.45M | 9.09M | 830K | 2.81M | 193K |
| Working Capital Changes | -913K | -8.06M | -5.79M | 4.97M | -60.38M | -48.19M | 85M | -4.48M | -781K | 7.12M | 13.2M | 427K | -2.09M |
| Change in Receivables | 1.5M | -243K | 7.98M | 907K | 3.32M | -2.69M | -2.22M | -5M | 0 | 152K | 610K | -153K | -514K |
| Change in Inventory | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 920K | 211K | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Change in Payables | -443K | 1.07M | -2.93M | 2.83M | 92K | -219K | -57K | -600K | -516K | -2.33M | 2.69M | 667K | -90K |
| Cash from Investing | -4.41M | -5.45M | -8.74M | 34.61M | -15M | -17.14M | -741K | 229K | 25.27M | -2.1M | -22.1M | -4.68M | -227K |
| Capital Expenditures | -4.41M | -5.45M | -9.09M | -206K | -1.2M | -1.08M | -815K | -47K | -884K | -733K | -586K | -1.16M | -227K |
| CapEx % of Revenue | 248.23% | 194.99% | 23.37% | 0.79% | 1.08% | 1.28% | 4.91% | 0.7% | 97.9% | 354.11% | 7.25% | 19.35% | 7.47% |
| Acquisitions | 0 | 0 | 351K | 6.56M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 122K | 99K | 4K | 2K | 0 | 0 |
| Investments | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Investing | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 74K | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6.9M | -3.52M | 0 |
| Cash from Financing | 15.64M | -8.05M | 168.43M | -13.14M | 39.22M | 52.9M | 14.43M | 105.04M | 697K | 66.02M | 67.66M | 43.91M | 24.77M |
| Debt Issued (Net) | 0 | 0 | 0 | -27.46M | 0 | 0 | 5.42M | -2.8M | 0 | 8.02M | 0 | 11.43M | 4.49M |
| Equity Issued (Net) | 15.68M | -301K | 164.44M | 14.08M | 38.98M | 51.96M | 12.38M | 37.66M | 0 | 57.11M | 71.61M | 32.78M | 20.14M |
| Dividends Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Share Repurchases | 0 | 0 | 0 | -6.17M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Financing | -38K | -7.75M | 3.99M | 231K | 235K | 939K | -3.37M | 70.18M | 697K | 886K | -3.95M | -302K | 137K |
| Net Change in Cash | -61.73M | -87.41M | 135.99M | -29.75M | -7.4M | -24.63M | 48.51M | 52.77M | -33.3M | 11.96M | 25.88M | 16.76M | 8.54M |
| Free Cash Flow | -77.37M | -79.39M | -32.77M | -51.37M | -32.83M | -61.47M | 34.07M | -51.48M | -60.05M | -52.77M | -20.27M | -23.63M | -12.91M |
| FCF Margin % | -4359.1% | -2838.58% | -84.21% | -197.53% | -29.64% | -72.25% | 205.25% | -771.03% | -6649.5% | -25492.75% | -250.76% | -393.05% | -424.77% |
| FCF Growth % | -91.37% | -142.3% | 36.21% | -56.45% | 46.59% | -280.44% | 166.17% | 14.26% | -13.79% | -160.35% | 14.21% | -82.96% | - |
| FCF per Share | -2.88 | -3.06 | -1.38 | -9.93 | -8.10 | -19.35 | 12.12 | -40.69 | -96.55 | -93.01 | -69.53 | -66.09 | -36.12 |
| FCF Conversion (FCF/Net Income) | 0.51x | 0.57x | 0.31x | 0.23x | -0.89x | 2.35x | -0.51x | 0.93x | 0.91x | 0.80x | 0.54x | 0.89x | 0.98x |
| Interest Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.85M | 0 | 0 | 1.02M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 366K |
| Taxes Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Clinical trial execution failure
According to quarterly financial data, the persistent gap between net income and operating cash flow, highlighted by an OCF/NI ratio of 0.56 in 2026Q1, suggests that accounting-based earnings figures fail to capture the underlying reality of the company's ongoing cash-intensive clinical development and operational requirements.
The divergence between net income and operating cash flow indicates that non-cash items and accounting adjustments are significantly distorting the firm's true financial health. Investors should monitor this disconnect, as it implies that reported earnings are not a reliable proxy for the actual cash resources available to fund the Descartes-08 program.
As reported in recent financial statements, RNAC's free cash flow remains consistently negative, with a 2026Q1 outflow of $22.2 million, reflecting the company's reliance on external capital to sustain its high-burn clinical research activities in the absence of any meaningful, recurring product-based revenue streams.
The trajectory of free cash flow confirms that the company is in a deep-burn phase, with no evidence of a path toward self-sustaining operations in the near term. This trend warrants further investigation into the company's runway, as the current rate of cash consumption appears to necessitate frequent and potentially dilutive capital raises.
Based on reported figures, working capital changes have been highly erratic, swinging from a $25.8 million inflow in 2024Q3 to a $7.1 million outflow in 2025Q1, which suggests that the company's cash position is subject to significant, unpredictable fluctuations tied to milestone-based licensing and clinical trial timing.
The lack of stability in working capital movements indicates that the company's cash flow is heavily influenced by non-operational timing differences rather than core business efficiency. This volatility complicates cash flow forecasting and suggests that the firm's liquidity is highly sensitive to the timing of partner payments and vendor obligations.
Analysis of recent filings reveals that stock-based compensation, such as the $2.4 million recorded in 2026Q1, consistently masks the true cash cost of retaining specialized scientific talent, thereby artificially inflating the company's reported operating cash flow and obscuring the actual magnitude of the ongoing cash burn.
By treating stock-based compensation as a non-cash add-back, the company's cash flow statement may present a more favorable liquidity picture than is operationally accurate. Investors should adjust for these equity-based expenses to better understand the true economic cost of the firm's human capital and the sustainability of its current burn rate.
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying RNAC stock.
Cartesian Therapeutics, Inc. (RNAC) generated $-73.9M in net cash from operating activities in 2025. This reflects the cash generated directly from core business operations.
Cartesian Therapeutics, Inc. (RNAC) reported negative free cash flow of $79.4M in 2025, indicating capital requirements exceeded cash from operations.
Cartesian Therapeutics, Inc. (RNAC) spent $5.5M on capital expenditures in 2025. CapEx represents the cash invested in physical assets like property, plant, and equipment to maintain or grow the business.