Free cash flow remains deeply negative, evidenced by a $38.1 million outflow in 2025Q3, highlighting the firm's inability to fund operations through core business activities.
| Metric | TTM | 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 | Dec'11 | Dec'10 | Dec'09 |
|---|
| Cash from Operations | -39.9M | -22.8M | 125.3M | 43.5M | 452.7M | 255.4M | 322.5M | 366.5M | 391.3M | 403.66M | 353.25M | 117.22M | 211.34M | 186.12M | 151.09M | -349.98M | 157.6M |
| Operating CF Margin % | - | -0.65% | 3.41% | 0.88% | 9.38% | 9.31% | 9.56% | 7.93% | 8.8% | 10.86% | 8.89% | 2.29% | 3.98% | 3.41% | 2.44% | -7.05% | 4.57% |
| Operating CF Growth % | 90.49% | -118.2% | 188.05% | -90.39% | 77.25% | -20.81% | -12.01% | -6.34% | -3.06% | 14.27% | 201.35% | -44.53% | 13.55% | 23.18% | 143.17% | -322.07% | - |
| Net Income | -412.1M | -348.5M | -701.3M | -430.9M | 440M | 7.9M | 92M | 292.5M | 328.3M | 318.31M | 133.65M | -67.33M | -22.22M | 30.28M | -75.91M | 56.76M | 63.77M |
| Depreciation & Amortization | 228M | 210.2M | 221.2M | 236.9M | 167.5M | 92.6M | 136M | 130.2M | 110.6M | 96.46M | 96.75M | 103.71M | 95.2M | 85.6M | 101.61M | 109.49M | 99.12M |
| Stock-Based Compensation | 11.8M | 0 | 0 | 18.6M | 15.2M | 11.1M | 13M | 15.8M | 13.8M | 17.06M | 9M | 10.5M | 9.95M | 7.33M | 22.29M | 9.17M | 0 |
| Deferred Taxes | -10.35M | -2.7M | 41.4M | -93.3M | -2.1M | 7.9M | -37.4M | 5.3M | 14.8M | 16.09M | -77K | 4.83M | 4.21M | 4.73M | 7.04M | -47.39M | -9.8M |
| Other Non-Cash Items | 19.15M | 31.8M | 348.3M | 336.7M | -144.9M | 52.3M | -10.9M | -25.2M | 50.5M | 25.66M | 10.07M | 4.42M | 31.69M | 2.88M | 41.7M | 34.78M | 13.7M |
| Working Capital Changes | 123.6M | 86.4M | 215.7M | -24.5M | -23M | 83.6M | 129.3M | -52.1M | -126.7M | -69.92M | 103.85M | 61.1M | 92.5M | 55.29M | 54.34M | -512.78M | -9.19M |
| Change in Receivables | 85.1M | 99.5M | 106.3M | 129.1M | -214.6M | 57.4M | 66.6M | 21.2M | -51.8M | -96.4M | 65.12M | 68.48M | -5.64M | 84.68M | 66.97M | -375.59M | 10.73M |
| Change in Inventory | 91.8M | 46.4M | 150.1M | 31.8M | -214.1M | 47.7M | 70.7M | -16M | -80.2M | -50.97M | 97.15M | 22.61M | 55.37M | -87.24M | 53.93M | -162.31M | -15.92M |
| Change in Payables | -35.35M | -22.2M | 1.4M | -192M | 313.1M | -3.1M | -1.7M | -43.8M | 9.3M | 57.12M | -71.91M | -5.7M | 15M | 67.89M | -37.68M | 30.09M | -10M |
| Cash from Investing | -56.2M | -55.1M | -31.7M | -164M | -1.54B | -24.2M | -109.3M | -118.7M | -182.6M | -117.3M | -106.67M | -92.6M | -33.36M | -117.3M | -99.13M | -1.43B | -25.03M |
| Capital Expenditures | -56.2M | -63.3M | -69.7M | -148.2M | -117.7M | -66.6M | -110.1M | -121.4M | -147.4M | -123.9M | -109.27M | -98.61M | -73.54M | -118.5M | -99.81M | -9.15M | -25.03M |
| CapEx % of Revenue | 1.79% | 1.8% | 1.9% | 2.98% | 2.44% | 2.43% | 3.26% | 2.63% | 3.31% | 3.33% | 2.75% | 1.92% | 1.39% | 2.17% | 1.61% | 0.18% | 0.73% |
| Acquisitions | 0 | 8.2M | 38M | -16.9M | 200K | 11.9M | 700K | 2.7M | -36.1M | 0 | 3.01M | 5.56M | 33.99M | 6.08M | 0 | -1.43B | 0 |
| Investments | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Investing | 0 | 0 | 0 | -800K | -1.53B | -15.6M | 100K | 1M | 900K | 6.6M | -413K | 445K | 6.2M | -4.87M | 946K | 11.68M | 0 |
| Cash from Financing | 41.7M | 35M | -42.6M | -233.7M | 1.08B | -104.3M | -206.7M | -222.2M | -253M | -247.54M | -94.8M | 8.12M | -220.2M | -77.22M | 44.87M | 1.98B | -132.56M |
| Debt Issued (Net) | 38.3M | 37.4M | -21.5M | -34.1M | 1.17B | -19.5M | -17.6M | -7.3M | -93.6M | -5.3M | -66.6M | -189.97M | -171.94M | -231.29M | 586.64M | 894M | 0 |
| Equity Issued (Net) | -500K | 0 | 100K | -1000K | -1000K | -1000K | -1000K | -1000K | -1000K | -1000K | 0 | 1000K | 0 | 1000K | 0 | 1000K | 0 |
| Dividends Paid | -1.6M | -1.7M | -17.9M | -47.5M | -21.9M | -61.8M | -65.7M | -66M | -58M | -27.3M | 0 | -12.75B | 0 | 0 | -521.47M | 0 | 0 |
| Share Repurchases | -500K | 0 | 0 | -151.9M | -48.1M | -25M | -119.7M | -142.9M | -88.9M | -215.1M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Financing | 5.5M | -700K | -3.3M | -3.2M | -36.3M | 2M | -3.7M | -6M | -12.5M | 100K | -28.2M | 12.75B | -48.26M | -8.08M | -20.3M | 1.09B | -132.56M |
| Net Change in Cash | -53.1M | -51.3M | 49.4M | -361.3M | -15.7M | 131.3M | 5.1M | 19.5M | -32.3M | 33.85M | 210.47M | 24.28M | -39.85M | -8.96M | 97.17M | 211.6M | 0 |
| Free Cash Flow | -96.1M | -86.1M | 55.6M | -104.7M | 335M | 188.8M | 212.4M | 245.1M | 243.9M | 279.79M | 243.98M | 18.61M | 137.79M | 67.61M | 51.27M | -359.12M | 132.56M |
| FCF Margin % | -3.07% | -2.45% | 1.51% | -2.11% | 6.94% | 6.88% | 6.3% | 5.3% | 5.48% | 7.53% | 6.14% | 0.36% | 2.6% | 1.24% | 0.83% | -7.23% | 3.84% |
| FCF Growth % | 33.56% | -254.86% | 153.1% | -131.25% | 77.44% | -11.11% | -13.34% | 0.49% | -12.83% | 14.67% | 1210.67% | -86.49% | 103.8% | 31.86% | 114.28% | -370.9% | - |
| FCF per Share | -2.67 | -2.44 | 1.58 | -2.92 | 8.46 | 4.89 | 5.22 | 5.61 | 5.42 | 5.89 | 4.98 | 0.43 | 2.91 | 1.43 | 1.08 | -7.60 | 2.80 |
| FCF Conversion (FCF/Net Income) | 0.23x | 0.07x | -0.18x | -0.10x | 1.03x | 32.33x | 3.51x | 1.25x | 1.19x | 1.27x | 2.64x | -1.74x | -9.51x | 6.15x | -1.99x | -6.17x | 2.47x |
| Interest Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 103.4M | 62.4M | 39.5M | 39.7M | 50.7M | 63.3M | 69.4M | 121.2M | 119.82M | 83.51M | -98.05M | 107.31M | 32.04M | 0 |
| Taxes Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 98.2M | 37.2M | 10.3M | 66.3M | 85.2M | 75M | 66.6M | 58.2M | 5.1M | 24.78M | -20.44M | 41.47M | 12.39M | 0 |
Liquidity and solvency pressure
As reported in recent financial filings, Trinseo's operating cash flow frequently diverges from net income, with the 2025Q1 period showing an OCF/NI ratio of 1.39, indicating that non-cash charges and working capital volatility are masking the underlying severity of the company's core operational losses.
The recurring gap between net income and operating cash flow suggests that reported earnings are heavily impacted by non-cash items like depreciation and amortization, which do not reflect the actual cash burn required to sustain operations. Investors should monitor this divergence as it implies that the company's ability to generate internal cash is significantly weaker than headline accounting figures might suggest.
Based on Trinseo's reported figures, free cash flow has remained consistently negative over the last ten quarters, hitting a low of -$118.9 million in 2025Q1, which underscores the company's inability to fund its capital requirements through core business activities during this period of industrial contraction.
The persistent negative FCF trajectory indicates that the company is currently reliant on external financing or asset divestitures to maintain its operational footprint. This trend suggests that the business model is not yet self-sustaining, and any further deterioration in demand could rapidly accelerate the depletion of existing cash reserves.
According to recent SEC filings, Trinseo's working capital changes have been highly erratic, swinging from a $106.6 million inflow in 2024Q4 to a $100.6 million outflow in 2025Q1, which complicates the assessment of true operational efficiency and suggests significant instability in inventory and receivables management.
These sharp fluctuations in working capital appear to be a primary driver of the company's volatile cash flow profile rather than consistent operational improvements. Such instability warrants further investigation into whether the company is aggressively managing payables or liquidating inventory to artificially bolster short-term liquidity at the expense of long-term operational health.
As indicated by the company's financial statements, capital expenditures have remained relatively stable, with a CapEx/Revenue ratio of 2.2% in 2025Q3, suggesting that management is maintaining essential maintenance spending despite the significant headwinds facing the firm's profitability and overall cash generation capabilities.
While the current level of capital intensity appears modest, it remains a fixed burden that the company must meet regardless of its negative operating margins. This commitment to capital spending may indicate a necessity to maintain aging European assets, which could become an increasing liability if the company cannot return to positive free cash flow.
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying TSE stock.
Trinseo PLC (TSE) generated $-22.8M in net cash from operating activities in 2024. This reflects the cash generated directly from core business operations.
Trinseo PLC (TSE) reported negative free cash flow of $86.1M in 2024, indicating capital requirements exceeded cash from operations.
Trinseo PLC (TSE) spent $63.3M on capital expenditures in 2024. CapEx represents the cash invested in physical assets like property, plant, and equipment to maintain or grow the business.
In 2024, Trinseo PLC (TSE) returned $1.7M to shareholders via cash dividends. This shows the company's commitment to returning capital to its equity investors.