Free cash flow margins have improved to 19.8% in 2026Q1, though this remains volatile due to seasonal working capital swings.
| Cash from Operations | 50.54M | 43.43M | 26.32M | 6.46M | 10.67M | 14.82M | -11.35M | -14.41M | -17.24M | -14.35M |
| Operating CF Margin % | - | 9.49% | 6.48% | 1.93% | 4.2% | 7.89% | -8.54% | -14.03% | -21.87% | -32.01% |
| Operating CF Growth % | 353.88% | 64.99% | 307.7% | -39.48% | -28% | 230.52% | 21.24% | 16.38% | -20.17% | - |
| Net Income | -38.44M | -43.33M | -61.97M | -66.43M | -50.24M | -28.7M | -31.66M | -46.81M | -20.93M | -21.91M |
| Depreciation & Amortization | 13.22M | 12.33M | 11.87M | 8.23M | 4.93M | 4.71M | 5.29M | 5.32M | 3.99M | 1.35M |
| Stock-Based Compensation | 58.92M | 78.72M | 84.3M | 67.7M | 47.74M | 21.73M | 11.08M | 25.33M | 53K | 473K |
| Deferred Taxes | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Non-Cash Items | 47.44M | 28.95M | 16.29M | 25.88M | 19.24M | 13.71M | 10.35M | 7.21M | 3.72M | 1.46M |
| Working Capital Changes | -30.6M | -33.25M | -24.16M | -28.93M | -11.01M | 3.37M | -6.41M | -5.48M | -4.06M | 4.28M |
| Change in Receivables | -5.09M | -18.27M | -22.25M | -26.98M | -11.55M | -8.92M | -8.08M | -2.76M | -4.15M | -2.51M |
| Change in Inventory | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Change in Payables | -6.27M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cash from Investing | -54.64M | -52.15M | 40.73M | -86.64M | -37.67M | -22.12M | -53.8M | -760K | -2.1M | -12.52M |
| Capital Expenditures | -3.85M | -4.11M | -2.95M | -2.07M | -1.82M | -926K | -4.01M | -760K | -2.1M | -673K |
| CapEx % of Revenue | 0.82% | 0.9% | 0.73% | 0.62% | 0.72% | 0.49% | 3.02% | 0.74% | 2.66% | 1.5% |
| Acquisitions | -51.79M | -51.79M | -1.41M | -145.64M | 0 | 0 | 49.79M | 0 | 0 | -11.84M |
| Investments | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Investing | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -49.79M | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cash from Financing | 12.74M | 15.5M | -30.32M | 53.96M | -170K | -100K | 44.36M | 124.29M | 37.25M | 3.03M |
| Debt Issued (Net) | 12.5M | 15M | -30M | 55M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -3M | 3M |
| Equity Issued (Net) | 392K | 1.34M | 1.99M | 2.37M | 1.74M | 37K | 52.08M | 139.5M | 40.3M | 0 |
| Dividends Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Share Repurchases | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Financing | -151K | -832K | -2.31M | -3.41M | -1.91M | -137K | -7.72M | -15.21M | -57K | 27K |
| Net Change in Cash | 8.64M | 6.79M | 36.72M | -26.22M | -27.2M | -7.4M | -20.8M | 109.12M | 17.91M | -23.83M |
| Free Cash Flow | 46.69M | 39.32M | 23.37M | 4.38M | 8.82M | 13.89M | -15.37M | -15.17M | -19.34M | -15.02M |
| FCF Margin % | 9.94% | 8.59% | 5.76% | 1.31% | 3.48% | 7.39% | -11.56% | -14.77% | -24.53% | -33.51% |
| FCF Growth % | 55.4% | 68.25% | 433.22% | -50.31% | -36.5% | 190.4% | -1.27% | 21.52% | -28.75% | - |
| FCF per Share | 0.78 | 0.67 | 0.41 | 0.08 | 0.16 | 0.26 | -0.30 | -0.82 | -1.17 | -0.92 |
| FCF Conversion (FCF/Net Income) | -1.21x | -1.00x | -0.42x | -0.10x | -0.21x | -0.52x | 0.36x | 0.31x | 0.82x | 0.65x |
| Interest Paid | 0 | 1.89M | 3.63M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 138K | 76K | 0 | 0 |
| Taxes Paid | 0 | 0 | 759K | 0 | 0 | 0 | 66K | 22K | 0 | 0 |
SBC-driven cash burn
According to quarterly financial disclosures, Sprout Social consistently reports negative net income while generating positive operating cash flow, a divergence primarily driven by substantial stock-based compensation expenses that reached $22.5 million in 2024Q4, effectively decoupling the company's accounting losses from its actual cash generation capabilities.
The persistent gap between net income and operating cash flow suggests that the company's reported profitability metrics are heavily influenced by non-cash accounting adjustments. Investors should monitor whether this reliance on equity-based incentives remains sustainable as the company attempts to transition toward GAAP profitability.
As reported in recent financial statements, Sprout Social's free cash flow margins have shown significant volatility, ranging from a low of -3.5% in 2023Q4 to a peak of 19.8% in 2026Q1, indicating that cash generation is highly sensitive to seasonal billing cycles and working capital fluctuations.
While the recent improvement in FCF margin appears positive, the lack of consistent, linear growth suggests that the company's cash flow profile is not yet fully stabilized. This trend warrants further investigation into whether the recent margin expansion is a result of operational efficiency or merely timing-related shifts in customer payments.
Based on the provided cash flow data, working capital changes have been a major source of quarterly variance, with a notable swing from a $13.1 million outflow in 2023Q4 to a $2.9 million inflow in 2026Q1, reflecting the company's reliance on timing-sensitive enterprise contract renewals.
The significant fluctuations in working capital suggest that Sprout Social's cash flow is heavily dependent on the timing of collections and deferred revenue recognition. This volatility may obscure the underlying health of the business, making it difficult to assess the true cash-generating potential of the core subscription model.
Data from recent filings indicates that Sprout Social maintains a low capital intensity, with CapEx as a percentage of revenue consistently remaining below 1.5% over the last ten quarters, which underscores the highly scalable nature of its cloud-native, organic software architecture compared to acquisition-heavy competitors.
The minimal capital expenditure requirements suggest that the company does not need to reinvest heavily in physical infrastructure to support its growth. This structural advantage allows for a higher potential conversion of revenue into free cash flow, provided that operating expenses can be brought under tighter control.
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying SPT stock.
Sprout Social, Inc. (SPT) generated $43.4M in net cash from operating activities in 2025. This reflects the cash generated directly from core business operations.
Sprout Social, Inc. (SPT) generated $39.3M in free cash flow in 2025. Free cash flow is the cash left over after capital expenditures, which can be used to pay dividends, repurchase shares, or pay down debt.
Sprout Social, Inc. (SPT) spent $4.1M on capital expenditures in 2025. CapEx represents the cash invested in physical assets like property, plant, and equipment to maintain or grow the business.