Operating cash flow of $29.1M and free cash flow of $76.4M in 2026Q3 appear encouraging, but FCF has swung from $62.1M in 2024Q2 to negative $67.6M in 2025Q2, suggesting cash generation remains erratic and dependent on working capital movements.
Rayonier Advanced Materials Inc. (RYAM) cash flow statement — 14-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 |
|---|
| Cash from Operations | 98.35M | 24M | 203.61M | 136.27M | 68.81M | 233.22M | 124.47M | 41.9M | 247M | 130M | 232M | 202M | 187.8M | 258.04M | 305.21M |
| Operating CF Margin % | - | 1.64% | 12.49% | 8.29% | 4.01% | 16.57% | 9.26% | 2.93% | 11.57% | 13.53% | 26.7% | 21.47% | 19.61% | 24.65% | 27.86% |
| Operating CF Growth % | 319.47% | -88.21% | 49.41% | 98.04% | -70.49% | 87.37% | 197.04% | -83.03% | 90% | -43.97% | 14.85% | 7.56% | -27.22% | -15.46% | - |
| Net Income | -365.88M | -420M | -41.92M | -102.15M | -27.38M | -49.77M | -38.07M | -22.45M | 128M | 325M | 73M | 55M | 31.7M | 219.77M | 242.1M |
| Depreciation & Amortization | 137.37M | 133.96M | 137.17M | 139.98M | 134.58M | 138.3M | 138.37M | 142.15M | 145.96M | 96.65M | 88.27M | 89M | 85.6M | 74.39M | 60.91M |
| Stock-Based Compensation | 0 | 0 | 7.1M | 6.51M | 9.65M | 5.1M | 6.43M | 6.45M | 13.01M | 8.99M | 7.22M | 9.99M | 8.74M | 6.23M | 8.23M |
| Deferred Taxes | -15M | 322M | -9.61M | -27.71M | -3.95M | -37.09M | -12.24M | -16.26M | 20.64M | 30.28M | 45.2M | -9.76M | -33.67M | -31.16M | -827K |
| Other Non-Cash Items | 317M | 45.09M | 48.85M | 62.04M | 3.17M | 173.46M | 91.27M | -62.84M | -8.6M | -301.91M | 9.31M | 54.77M | 106.93M | 10.15M | 7.73M |
| Working Capital Changes | 1.97M | -57.05M | 62.02M | 57.6M | -47.26M | 3.23M | -61.29M | -5.15M | -52M | -29M | 9M | 3M | -11.5M | -21.34M | -12.92M |
| Change in Receivables | -10.01M | 25.88M | -4.53M | 12.84M | -14.03M | 21.4M | -48.03M | 8.27M | -40.74M | -4.7M | 31.27M | 696K | 1.71M | 6.38M | 5.98M |
| Change in Inventory | 15.64M | -23.28M | -2.13M | 58.95M | -35.11M | -58.31M | 15.17M | 47.77M | -22.86M | 3.03M | 7.04M | 14.8M | -11.5M | -11.71M | -12.12M |
| Change in Payables | 12.35M | 2.9M | 8.07M | 13.76M | -8.27M | 7.38M | -5.71M | -25.26M | 34.61M | 16.21M | -2.05M | -19.79M | -4.37M | -2.76M | -9.02M |
| Cash from Investing | -80.83M | -114M | -107.94M | -127.28M | -94.17M | 85.39M | -77.82M | 52.5M | -116M | -277M | -87M | -78M | -90.5M | -250.67M | -305.25M |
| Capital Expenditures | -17.33M | 0 | -107.94M | -127.67M | -138.22M | -93.22M | -61.87M | -90.5M | -132M | -75M | -89M | -78M | -74.8M | -96.01M | -105.41M |
| CapEx % of Revenue | 1.16% | 7.91% | 6.62% | 7.77% | 8.05% | 6.62% | 4.6% | 6.32% | 6.19% | 7.8% | 10.24% | 8.29% | 7.81% | 9.17% | 9.62% |
| Acquisitions | 2M | 0 | 0 | -780K | -379K | -4.14M | -4.43M | 0 | 16.23M | -210M | 0 | 0 | 0 | -141.14M | -201.36M |
| Investments | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Investing | -63.5M | -114M | 0 | 1.17M | 44.43M | 182.75M | -7.1M | 143M | 16M | -74.78M | 2M | 0 | -15.7M | -13.52M | 1.51M |
| Cash from Financing | -31.44M | 30M | -42.48M | -86.95M | -73.11M | -156.66M | -19.39M | -138.48M | -116M | -84M | 80M | -89M | -31.3M | -7.37M | 39K |
| Debt Issued (Net) | -45.49M | 33M | -32.42M | -71.45M | -72.68M | -154.6M | 4.88M | -109.17M | -45.27M | -49.96M | -71.03M | -77.1M | 945.8M | 0 | 0 |
| Equity Issued (Net) | -2.19M | -3.02M | -914K | -5.42M | -433K | -1.42M | -457K | -6.88M | -42.78M | -143K | 167M | 8K | 557K | 0 | 0 |
| Dividends Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -18.92M | -29M | -26M | -16M | -12M | -5.9M | 0 | 0 |
| Share Repurchases | -2.19M | -3.02M | -914K | -5.42M | -433K | -1.42M | -457K | -6.88M | -42.78M | -157K | 0 | 0 | -92K | 0 | 0 |
| Other Financing | 16.25M | 25K | -9.14M | -10.08M | 0 | -636K | -23.82M | -3.51M | 451K | -7.03M | -798K | 0 | -971.75M | -7.37M | 39K |
| Net Change in Cash | -14.96M | -50.22M | 49.45M | -76.03M | -101.5M | 159.65M | 29.63M | -44.94M | 13M | -230M | 225M | 35M | -31.31M | 0 | 0 |
| Free Cash Flow | 81.02M | -92M | 95.67M | 8.6M | -69.41M | 140.01M | 62.6M | -48.59M | 115M | 55M | 143M | 124M | 113M | 162.03M | 199.81M |
| FCF Margin % | 5.42% | -6.27% | 5.87% | 0.52% | -4.04% | 9.95% | 4.66% | -3.4% | 5.39% | 5.72% | 16.46% | 13.18% | 11.8% | 15.48% | 18.24% |
| FCF Growth % | 200.8% | -196.17% | 1011.88% | 112.4% | -149.58% | 123.65% | 228.83% | -142.25% | 109.09% | -61.54% | 15.32% | 9.73% | -30.26% | -18.91% | - |
| FCF per Share | 1.20 | -1.38 | 1.46 | 0.13 | -1.09 | 2.20 | 0.99 | -0.89 | 1.76 | 0.98 | 3.03 | 2.94 | 2.68 | 3.84 | 4.73 |
| FCF Conversion (FCF/Net Income) | -0.22x | -0.06x | -5.22x | -1.34x | -4.61x | 3.51x | 224.27x | -1.87x | 1.93x | 0.40x | 3.18x | 3.67x | 5.92x | 1.17x | 1.26x |
| Interest Paid | 21.86M | 0 | 95.05M | 51.02M | 58.05M | 46.77M | 49.29M | 59.43M | 55.29M | 35.45M | 0 | 38.19M | 19.57M | 0 | 0 |
| Taxes Paid | -155K | 0 | 0 | 7.24M | 0 | 0 | 1.17M | 3.27M | 12.56M | 5.99M | 4.73M | 31.67M | -34.59M | 0 | 0 |
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying RYAM stock.
Rayonier Advanced Materials Inc. (RYAM) generated $24.0M in net cash from operating activities in 2025. This reflects the cash generated directly from core business operations.
Rayonier Advanced Materials Inc. (RYAM) reported negative free cash flow of $92.0M in 2025, indicating capital requirements exceeded cash from operations.
Rayonier Advanced Materials Inc. (RYAM) spent $0.0M 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, Rayonier Advanced Materials Inc. (RYAM) spent $3.0M on share repurchases. This shows the company's commitment to returning capital to its equity investors.
Key Metrics
Top Statement Risk
Persistent cash burn at operating level
Metrics are mathematically derived from official filings.
Operating Cash Flow Diverges From Losses
Based on reported quarterly figures, RYAM generated $29.1M of operating cash flow in 2026Q3 against a net loss of $229.8M, a gap that suggests the reported loss is driven largely by non-cash charges rather than cash erosion from operations.
The ratio of operating cash flow to net income is not meaningful in loss quarters, but the direction of the gap matters more than its sign. Operating cash flow remained positive in most recent quarters despite persistent net losses, which points to heavy non-cash items such as impairments and depreciation of $34.5M to $100.0M per quarter. This pattern warrants further investigation into the quality of the impairment charges before treating the cash generation as sustainable.
Free Cash Flow Turns Erratic and Negative
According to the quarterly cash flow data, free cash flow swung from $62.1M in 2024Q2 to negative $67.6M in 2025Q2 and then to $76.4M in 2026Q3, a volatility that reflects shifting capex and working capital rather than a stable earnings engine.
Free cash flow margins moved from 14.8% in 2024Q2 to negative 19.9% in 2025Q2 and back to 20.0% in 2026Q3, which indicates the trajectory is driven heavily by timing effects. The single 2026Q3 positive print is buoyed by a $33.2M working capital release and should not be extrapolated without confirmation in subsequent quarters. Investors should monitor whether free cash flow stabilizes above zero across several consecutive periods.
Capital Spending Absorbs Operating Cash
Based on reported figures, capex ran between $17.3M and $47.0M per quarter, consuming roughly 4% to 18% of revenue, which is a heavy reinvestment load for a business generating modest operating cash flow.
The capex intensity reflects the capital-intensive mill base and planned maintenance outages, which are difficult to separate from growth spending in the reported data. Capex has frequently exceeded operating cash flow in recent quarters, meaning the business has not been self-funding its reinvestment on a consistent basis. Continued spending at these levels may limit the capacity to reduce leverage.
Working Capital Swings Mask Underlying Cash
As reported in the quarterly statements, working capital changes ranged from a $45.3M inflow in 2026Q1 to a $42.1M outflow in 2025Q3, large enough to flip the sign of free cash flow in several periods.
The volatility in working capital suggests that receivables, inventory, and payables timing is a material driver of reported cash flow rather than a secondary effect. The $33.2M release in 2026Q3 appears to have flattered that quarter's free cash flow, and its reversal risk should be considered. Investors should treat single-quarter cash flow improvements with caution until working capital normalizes.
Capital Returns Halted, Cash Preserved
Based on the reported data, RYAM paid no dividends and conducted negligible buybacks across the ten quarters, with the only meaningful deployment being small acquisition outflows, indicating cash is being retained rather than returned.
The absence of shareholder distributions is consistent with a company prioritizing liquidity over returns given negative earnings and elevated leverage. Retained cash has not been meaningfully deployed into debt reduction within the provided data, which limits the ability to assess deleveraging progress. This posture suggests management is focused on preserving the balance sheet, though the reasoning behind it is not explicitly disclosed in the supplied data.
Positive Quarters May Not Persist
Based on the quarterly data, the most recent positive free cash flow of $76.4M in 2026Q3 is heavily supported by non-recurring working capital and depreciation add-backs, which may not repeat and could leave underlying cash generation weaker than the headline figure implies.
Stripping out the $33.2M working capital release and the $100.0M depreciation-related add-back in 2026Q2 shows that core operating cash generation has been modest or negative in several periods. The historical cumulative pattern across the ten quarters shows more periods of weak free cash flow than strong, which weighs against treating the recent improvement as a trend. Investors should monitor whether operating cash flow holds without reliance on working capital reversals.