Cash conversion efficiency has collapsed, as evidenced by a 2026Q4 free cash flow of -$124.7B and dividend distributions of $14.4B that appear disconnected from operational reality.
| Metric | Feb'26 | Feb'25 | Feb'24 | Feb'23 | Feb'22 | Feb'21 | Feb'20 | Feb'19 | Feb'18 | Feb'17 | Feb'16 | Feb'15 | Feb'14 | Feb'13 | Feb'12 | Feb'11 | Feb'10 | Feb'09 | Feb'08 | Feb'07 |
|---|
| Cash from Operations | -88.03B | 197.54M | -157.21M | -130.37M | -203.13M | -62.35M | -15.14M | -39.98M | -30.78M | 6.74M | -18.64M | -36.6M | -29.53M | -36.81M | -22.71M | 28.28M | 21.18M | 36.51M | -167.08M | 0 |
| Operating CF Margin % | -70.02% | 209.78% | -226.05% | -186.64% | -262.23% | -156.21% | -19.34% | -105.45% | -92.19% | 24.93% | -76.85% | -166.33% | -161.78% | -185.24% | -124.69% | 126.41% | -746.13% | 156.12% | -781.28% | - |
| Operating CF Growth % | -44663.33% | 225.66% | -20.58% | 35.82% | -225.81% | -311.67% | 62.12% | -29.9% | -556.65% | 136.15% | 49.07% | -23.95% | 19.78% | -62.09% | -180.31% | 33.53% | -42.01% | 121.85% | - | - |
| Net Income | 0 | 28.09M | 8.93M | 24.68M | 45.74M | 14.78M | 55.74M | 18.51M | 17.68M | 11.39M | 11.65M | 11.01M | 8.74M | 14.6M | 13.28M | 16.96M | -10.46M | -21.32M | -5.45M | -130K |
| Depreciation & Amortization | 4.8B | 5.03M | 0 | 3.59M | 4.42B | 1.37M | 1.34M | 1.19M | 990.03M | 829.48M | 913.77M | 929.77M | 903.29M | 482.31M | 674.72M | 397.16M | 10.16M | 193.46K | 502.47K | 0 |
| Stock-Based Compensation | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Deferred Taxes | -196.31M | 0 | 0 | 0 | -673.65K | 0 | 0 | -1.03M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Non-Cash Items | -92.64B | 162.61M | -159.99M | -151.87M | -4.68B | -67.98M | -81.42M | -57.56M | -1.04B | -835.65M | -956.32M | -978.42M | -953.15M | -541.54M | -689.37M | -390.03M | 20.01M | 53.96M | -157.16M | 0 |
| Working Capital Changes | 0 | 1.81M | -6.15M | -6.76M | 10.46M | -10.52M | 9.2M | -1.09M | 587.24K | 1.53M | 12.26M | 1.04M | 11.59M | 7.83M | -21.34M | 4.18M | 1.47M | 3.67M | -4.97M | 130K |
| Change in Receivables | 0 | 2.95M | -1.78M | -3.5M | -7.25B | 8.52B | -2.56B | -2.68M | 253.04M | 1.19B | -300M | 80.65K | 1.82B | -1.76B | -59.51M | 1.81M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Change in Inventory | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Change in Payables | 95.58M | -1.68M | -3.66M | -419.74K | -751.04M | 727.94M | -1.14B | 0 | 215.46M | 0 | 73.14M | 493.51K | 389.53M | -269.91M | -14.53K | -199.37K | 0 | -12.88M | 608.42M | 0 |
| Cash from Investing | -124.87B | 0 | 0 | 2.25B | -55.08B | -78.08B | -19.89B | -198.66B | -41.39B | 7.03B | -41.02B | -31.61B | -49.47B | -50.11B | -5.11B | 22.96B | 0 | 20.93B | -172.23B | 0 |
| Capital Expenditures | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| CapEx % of Revenue | - | - | - | 0% | - | 0% | 0% | - | - | - | 132.84% | 98.69% | 209.96% | - | 0% | 0% | - | 0% | 0% | - |
| Acquisitions | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Investments | 354.12B | 978.08M | 1.14B | 972.59M | 817.57M | 554.31M | 485.63M | 402.02M | 342.69M | 250.53M | 271.17M | 223.51M | 186.28M | 0 | 95.36M | 80.04M | 89.37M | 118.91M | 188.49M | 0 |
| Other Investing | 0 | -110.64B | 215.83B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -15.19B | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cash from Financing | -94.91B | -33.32M | 101.64M | 173.58M | 226.09M | 52.81M | -7.5M | 88.3M | 22.47M | 8.31M | 19.19M | 35.19M | 32.67M | 35.63M | 13.3M | -20.89M | -24.18M | -31.23M | 168.16M | 0 |
| Debt Issued (Net) | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Equity Issued (Net) | 0 | 32.75M | 46.86M | -10.82M | 24.29M | -3.61M | 85.9M | 30.85M | 7.76M | -3.33M | -356.79K | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15M | 0 | 0 | 108.75M | 0 |
| Dividends Paid | -52.36B | -40.75M | -32.05M | -22.67M | -18.16M | -11.27M | -17M | -12.01M | -9.01M | -6.79M | -7.91M | -1.43M | -2.51M | -3.3M | -1.97M | -1.18M | -2.07M | -11.77M | -9.62M | 0 |
| Share Repurchases | -54.31M | 0 | -2.16M | -10.82M | -2.55M | -3.61M | 0 | 0 | 0 | -3.33M | -356.79K | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Financing | -42.55B | 2.35M | -5.17M | -10.68M | -10.79M | -3.75K | -1.95M | -2.88M | -1.28M | -3.23M | -1.1M | -1.97M | -2.82M | -1.37M | -235.45K | -185.14K | -103.58K | 0 | -8.2M | 0 |
| Net Change in Cash | -182.94B | 164.22M | -55.57M | 43.21M | 22.96M | -9.54M | -22.64M | 48.32M | -8.31M | 15.05M | 552.12K | -1.41M | 3.14M | -1.18M | -9.41M | 7.38M | -3M | 5.28M | 1.07M | 0 |
| Free Cash Flow | -88.03B | 197.54M | -157.21M | -130.37M | -203.13M | -62.35M | -15.14M | -39.98M | -30.78M | 6.74M | -18.64M | -36.6M | -29.53M | -36.81M | -22.71M | 28.28M | 21.18M | 36.51M | -167.08M | 0 |
| FCF Margin % | -70.02% | 209.78% | -226.05% | -186.64% | -262.23% | -156.21% | -19.34% | -105.45% | -92.19% | 24.93% | -76.85% | -166.33% | -161.78% | -185.24% | -124.69% | 126.41% | -746.13% | 156.12% | -781.28% | - |
| FCF Growth % | -44663.33% | 225.66% | -20.58% | 35.82% | -225.81% | -311.67% | 62.12% | -29.9% | -556.65% | 136.15% | 49.07% | -23.95% | 19.78% | -62.09% | -180.31% | 33.53% | -42.01% | 121.85% | - | - |
| FCF per Share | -5553.83 | 14.20 | -12.41 | -10.90 | -17.73 | -5.57 | -1.63 | -5.67 | -5.11 | 1.17 | -3.34 | -6.80 | -6.00 | -8.95 | -6.61 | 11.60 | 19.95 | 44.04 | -215.26 | - |
| FCF Conversion (FCF/Net Income) | - | 7.03x | -17.60x | -5.28x | -4.44x | -4.22x | -0.27x | -2.16x | -1.74x | 0.59x | -1.60x | -3.32x | -3.47x | -2.62x | -1.71x | 1.67x | -2.02x | -1.71x | 30.65x | - |
| Interest Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.27M | 2.63M | 0 | 0 |
| Taxes Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 140.32K | 88.95K | 0 | 0 |
Extreme Data Integrity Discrepancies
As reported in recent financial statements, the relationship between net income and operating cash flow for Saratoga Investment Corp shows extreme instability, with OCF/NI ratios fluctuating wildly from 0.23 to over 29.0, suggesting that reported earnings are currently decoupled from actual cash generation capabilities.
The massive variance between net income and operating cash flow suggests that non-cash adjustments and accounting anomalies are heavily distorting the firm's reported profitability. Investors should monitor whether these discrepancies stem from unrealized valuation marks on Level 3 assets or potential issues with revenue recognition timing.
Based on the provided quarterly data, the free cash flow trajectory has turned sharply negative, culminating in a reported -$124.7B outflow in 2026Q4, which indicates a significant departure from the positive cash flow trends observed in earlier periods like 2025Q3.
The erratic nature of FCF margins, which swung from 27.5% in 2026Q3 to -198.8% in 2026Q4, implies that the firm's ability to sustain its dividend payout is currently under severe pressure. This volatility warrants further investigation into whether the firm is funding distributions through capital recycling or potentially unsustainable financing activities.
According to recent SEC filings, Saratoga Investment Corp's dividend payments have frequently exceeded operating cash flow, such as in 2026Q4 where dividends of $14.4B were distributed despite a massive negative operating cash flow, signaling a potential reliance on external financing to maintain shareholder returns.
The disconnect between cash outflows for dividends and the firm's underlying cash generation suggests that capital deployment is not currently supported by organic investment income. This pattern may indicate that the firm is eroding its capital base to sustain yield, which poses a long-term risk to NAV stability.
As highlighted by the extreme discrepancies in reported figures, the cash flow statement appears to be heavily impacted by non-cash items, with depreciation and amortization figures reaching as high as $3.4B, which obscures the true operational cash health of the business development company.
The presence of large, unexplained non-cash charges suggests that the cash flow statement may be masking underlying operational weaknesses or significant accounting adjustments. Analysts should treat these figures with extreme skepticism, as they do not align with the typical cash flow profile of a BDC.
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying SAY stock.
Saratoga Investment Corp 8.125% (SAY) generated $-88029.7M in net cash from operating activities in 2026. This reflects the cash generated directly from core business operations.
Saratoga Investment Corp 8.125% (SAY) reported negative free cash flow of $88.03B in 2026, indicating capital requirements exceeded cash from operations.
Saratoga Investment Corp 8.125% (SAY) 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.
In 2026, Saratoga Investment Corp 8.125% (SAY) returned $52.36B to shareholders via cash dividends and spent $54.3M on share repurchases. This shows the company's commitment to returning capital to its equity investors.