Cash flow generation remains erratic and insufficient, highlighted by a -4.2% free cash flow margin in 2026Q1 and a cash position that has dwindled to $31.2M from $47.0M in 2023Q4.
| Metric | TTM | Jan'26 | Jan'25 | Jan'24 | Jan'23 | Jan'22 | Jan'21 | Jan'20 | Jan'19 | Jan'18 | Jan'17 | Jan'16 | Jan'15 | Jan'14 | Jan'13 | Jan'12 | Jan'11 | Jan'10 |
|---|
| Cash from Operations | 12.21M | 4.1M | -42.02M | -6.73M | -1.42M | 63.4M | 38.9M | 36.43M | 46.74M | 32.71M | 48.51M | 36.85M | 48.29M | 43.79M | 41.73M | 52.58M | 41.7M | 35.26M |
| Operating CF Margin % | - | 0.74% | -7.38% | -1.08% | -0.21% | 8.17% | 7.32% | 5.88% | 7.81% | 5.67% | 8.53% | 6.69% | 9.32% | 8.83% | 8.93% | 13.13% | 12.54% | 12.47% |
| Operating CF Growth % | 502.87% | 109.75% | -524.06% | -375.83% | -102.23% | 63% | 6.76% | -22.05% | 42.91% | -32.57% | 31.64% | -23.69% | 10.26% | 4.95% | -20.64% | 26.09% | 18.28% | - |
| Net Income | -3.25M | -17.45M | -46.23M | -34.49M | 10.09M | 64.25M | -1.15M | 22.62M | 24.94M | 14.7M | 11.41M | 7.54M | 14.07M | 18.14M | 23.89M | 34.34M | 24.42M | 20.86M |
| Depreciation & Amortization | 7.87M | 10.58M | 12.77M | 12.83M | 14.13M | 16.84M | 19.05M | 20.95M | 22.48M | 23.39M | 23.27M | 22.81M | 21.24M | 19.37M | 16.68M | 15.13M | 14.29M | 13.91M |
| Stock-Based Compensation | 503K | 0 | 2.06M | 2.22M | 2.27M | 1.92M | 2.04M | 2.14M | 2.21M | 2.41M | 2.57M | 3.93M | 3.5M | 3.11M | 9.57M | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Deferred Taxes | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8.5M | 3.2M | 503K | -4.95M | -5.72M | 953K | 2.93M | -1.17M | 1.55M | -1.16M | 304K | 6.69M | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Non-Cash Items | 7.52M | 2.78M | 2.51M | 1.5M | -334K | 195K | 328K | -470K | -736K | 258K | 2.12M | 2.7M | 987K | 1.65M | 44K | 786K | 2.21M | 784K |
| Working Capital Changes | -428K | 8.19M | -13.13M | 2.71M | -30.77M | -20.3M | 23.57M | -3.08M | -3.11M | -10.98M | 10.32M | -1.68M | 9.65M | 1.23M | -15.14M | 2.33M | 785K | -306K |
| Change in Receivables | 52K | -1.58M | 2.86M | 5.56M | 1.71M | 4.02M | 12.91M | 2.59M | -1.73M | -363K | 1.4M | -715K | 3.86M | -2.61M | 21K | -5.02M | 2.78M | -1.72M |
| Change in Inventory | 4.87M | 7.49M | -6.02M | -1.04M | 3.5M | -10.06M | 1.2M | -1.09M | -2.78M | -5.45M | 3.59M | 150K | -5.24M | 329K | -9.93M | -3.03M | -9.62M | -3.94M |
| Change in Payables | -3.44M | 10.57M | -3.4M | -1.47M | -12.19M | 3.17M | 5.02M | -4.23M | 3.19M | 3.56M | 1.62M | -6.99M | 3.72M | 1.55M | 1.43M | 2.11M | 4.06M | 2.17M |
| Cash from Investing | -4.38M | 21.16M | 15.75M | -19.99M | 42.8M | -45.33M | -3.2M | -6.51M | -6.26M | -40.88M | -21.66M | -37.97M | -23.48M | -37.53M | -72.33M | -20.2M | -15.26M | -17.51M |
| Capital Expenditures | -4.55M | -4.69M | -8.22M | -13.96M | -15.12M | -13.43M | -8.47M | -14.3M | -14.92M | -13.75M | -17.05M | -23.1M | -23.64M | -42.7M | -33.3M | -20.22M | -15.67M | -17.51M |
| CapEx % of Revenue | 0.8% | 0.85% | 1.44% | 2.24% | 2.25% | 1.73% | 1.59% | 2.31% | 2.49% | 2.38% | 3% | 4.19% | 4.56% | 8.61% | 7.13% | 5.05% | 4.71% | 6.19% |
| Acquisitions | 30K | 30K | 0 | 0 | 6K | 37K | -714K | -1.66M | 3K | -126.05M | 43K | 7K | 0 | 0 | 17K | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Investments | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Investing | 0 | 0 | 24K | 10K | 57.93M | 29K | 714K | 1.66M | 3K | 126.05M | 43K | 7K | 41K | 79K | 822K | 28K | 416K | 3K |
| Cash from Financing | -3.81M | 0 | 294K | 227K | -10.06M | -52.06M | -29.65M | -27.95M | -25.53M | -17.62M | 1.12M | 2.35M | -432K | 1.83M | 22.82M | -36.64M | -22.81M | -16.57M |
| Debt Issued (Net) | -3.87M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -835K | -858K | -807K | -758K | -712K | -668K | -628K | -591K | -555K |
| Equity Issued (Net) | 58K | 0 | 294K | 0 | -10.9M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 106.79M | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dividends Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -61.63M | -29.68M | -29.45M | -29.07M | -20.08M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -84.29M | -36.01M | -22.22M | -16.02M |
| Share Repurchases | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -10.9M | 0 | -24K | -85K | -111K | -101K | -99K | -35K | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Financing | 0 | 0 | 0 | 227K | 837K | 9.57M | 24K | 1.5M | 3.54M | 3.29M | 1.98M | 3.15M | 326K | 2.55M | 985K | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Net Change in Cash | 4.01M | 25.26M | -25.97M | -26.5M | 31.32M | -33.98M | 6.05M | 1.98M | 14.96M | -25.79M | 27.97M | 1.23M | 24.38M | 8.1M | -7.78M | -4.25M | 3.63M | 1.17M |
| Free Cash Flow | 7.65M | -589K | -50.24M | -20.69M | -16.54M | 49.98M | 30.43M | 22.14M | 31.82M | 18.95M | 31.46M | 13.75M | 24.65M | 1.09M | 8.43M | 32.36M | 26.03M | 17.74M |
| FCF Margin % | 1.34% | -0.11% | -8.82% | -3.32% | -2.46% | 6.44% | 5.73% | 3.57% | 5.32% | 3.29% | 5.53% | 2.5% | 4.76% | 0.22% | 1.8% | 8.08% | 7.83% | 6.27% |
| FCF Growth % | 123.87% | 98.83% | -142.82% | -25.11% | -133.09% | 64.26% | 37.46% | -30.44% | 67.87% | -39.75% | 128.81% | -44.22% | 2155.44% | -87.04% | -73.94% | 24.33% | 46.7% | - |
| FCF per Share | 0.25 | -0.02 | -1.67 | -0.69 | -0.55 | 1.61 | 1.02 | 0.74 | 1.07 | 0.65 | 1.10 | 0.48 | 0.88 | 0.04 | 0.32 | 1.17 | 1.27 | 0.86 |
| FCF Conversion (FCF/Net Income) | -2.35x | -0.23x | 0.91x | 0.20x | -0.15x | 0.99x | -33.97x | 1.61x | 1.87x | 2.23x | 4.25x | 4.89x | 3.43x | 2.41x | 1.75x | 1.53x | 1.71x | 1.69x |
| Interest Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1K | 140K | 13K | 11K | 26K | 82K | 133K | 182K | 253K | 299K | 327K | 363K | 397K |
| Taxes Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.47M | 38.5M | 1.03M | 12.13M | 6.77M | 11.53M | 8.81M | 7.47M | 4.51M | 14.97M | 13.73M | 493K | 516K | 206K |
High fixed-cost operating leverage
Based on reported financial statements, the relationship between net income and operating cash flow is highly erratic, with OCF/NI ratios swinging from -151.99 in 2024Q2 to 7.36 in 2025Q3, suggesting that accruals and working capital shifts are currently masking the underlying cash-generating capacity of the business.
The extreme volatility in the conversion ratio indicates that net income is a poor proxy for the company's actual cash health. Investors should monitor whether these swings represent genuine operational timing differences or a structural inability to convert sales into liquid assets.
As reported in recent filings, TLYS has struggled to maintain positive free cash flow, with margins oscillating between a high of 11.4% in 2025Q2 and a low of -24.0% in 2024Q1, reflecting a business model that remains highly sensitive to seasonal revenue fluctuations.
The inability to sustain positive FCF margins suggests that the company's current cost structure is not optimized for its current revenue scale. This trajectory warrants further investigation into whether the firm can achieve a sustainable break-even point without further eroding its cash reserves.
According to quarterly data, working capital changes have been a primary driver of cash flow volatility, with a significant $12.0M outflow in 2025Q3 contrasting with a $9.9M inflow in 2025Q1, indicating that inventory management and payables timing are creating unpredictable liquidity pressures for the firm.
The erratic nature of these working capital swings suggests that the company may be struggling to align its inventory procurement with actual consumer demand. This lack of predictability in cash cycles increases the risk of liquidity tightening during periods of weak retail traffic.
Based on reported figures, capital expenditures as a percentage of revenue have remained relatively stable, peaking at 2.0% in 2023Q4, which suggests that the company continues to invest in its physical footprint despite the ongoing challenges in achieving consistent top-line growth.
While the capital intensity appears low, the continued investment in store-related assets may be questionable given the negative operating margins. Analysts should consider whether these expenditures are truly maintenance-focused or if they represent a defensive attempt to keep aging store formats relevant.
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying TLYS stock.
Tilly's, Inc. (TLYS) generated $4.1M in net cash from operating activities in 2025. This reflects the cash generated directly from core business operations.
Tilly's, Inc. (TLYS) reported negative free cash flow of $0.6M in 2025, indicating capital requirements exceeded cash from operations.
Tilly's, Inc. (TLYS) spent $4.7M on capital expenditures in 2025. CapEx represents the cash invested in physical assets like property, plant, and equipment to maintain or grow the business.