Cash flow volatility is evident as the company reported a negative free cash flow margin of -1.9% in 2026Q2, despite continuing to allocate $221 million toward dividends and buybacks.
| Metric | TTM | Sep'25 | Sep'24 | Sep'23 | Oct'22 | Sep'21 | Oct'20 | Sep'19 | Sep'18 | Sep'17 | Sep'16 | Sep'15 | Sep'14 | Sep'13 | Sep'12 | Sep'11 | Sep'10 | Sep'09 | Sep'08 | Sep'07 | Sep'06 | Sep'05 | Sep'04 | Sep'03 | Sep'02 | Sep'01 | Sep'00 | Sep'99 | Sep'98 | Sep'97 | Sep'96 |
|---|
| Cash from Operations | 2.14B | 2.15B | 2.59B | 1.75B | 2.69B | 3.84B | 3.87B | 2.51B | 2.96B | 2.6B | 2.72B | 2.57B | 1.18B | 1.31B | 1.19B | 1.05B | 1.43B | 1.02B | 288M | 678M | 287M | 999M | 932M | 820M | 1.17B | 510.4M | 587M | 546.7M | 496.4M | 541M | 173.3M |
| Operating CF Margin % | - | 3.96% | 4.86% | 3.31% | 5.04% | 8.16% | 8.97% | 5.93% | 7.4% | 6.79% | 7.36% | 6.21% | 3.13% | 3.82% | 3.59% | 3.27% | 5.04% | 3.84% | 1.07% | 2.52% | 1.12% | 3.84% | 3.52% | 3.34% | 5.02% | 4.83% | 8.08% | 7.43% | 6.7% | 8.51% | 2.69% |
| Operating CF Growth % | 14.23% | -16.8% | 47.83% | -34.8% | -30.03% | -0.88% | 54.16% | -15.19% | 14.01% | -4.31% | 5.68% | 118.17% | -10.35% | 10.7% | 13.48% | -26.96% | 39.71% | 255.9% | -57.52% | 136.24% | -71.27% | 7.19% | 13.66% | -30.15% | 130.02% | -13.05% | 7.37% | 10.13% | -8.24% | 212.18% | -40.51% |
| Net Income | 453M | 507M | 822M | -649M | 3.25B | 3.06B | 2.15B | 2.04B | 3.03B | 1.78B | 1.77B | 1.22B | 864M | 778M | 583M | 750M | 780M | -455M | 86M | 268M | -191M | 353M | 403M | 337M | 383M | 87.8M | 151M | 230.1M | 25.1M | 185.8M | 86.9M |
| Depreciation & Amortization | 1.05B | 1.36B | 1.4B | 1.34B | 1.2B | 1.21B | 1.19B | 1.1B | 943M | 761M | 705M | 711M | 530M | 519M | 460M | 506M | 497M | 513M | 493M | 514M | 517M | 501M | 490M | 458M | 467M | 329.3M | 294M | 291.1M | 276.4M | 230.4M | 239.3M |
| Stock-Based Compensation | 0 | 100M | 101M | 61M | 93M | 91M | 89M | 77M | 69M | 92M | 81M | 69M | 51M | 36M | 36.3M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Deferred Taxes | -23M | -76M | -45M | -183M | 264M | -125M | 45M | 92M | -865M | -39M | 84M | 38M | -105M | -12M | 140M | 86M | 18M | -26M | 35M | 5M | -130M | -74M | 8M | 113M | 22M | -47M | 47M | -13.5M | -144.5M | 10.5M | 15.9M |
| Other Non-Cash Items | 403M | 369M | 88M | 997M | -17M | -781M | -76M | 57M | 75M | 157M | 11M | 179M | -13M | 64M | 214.7M | 50M | 126M | 561M | 83M | -1M | 52M | 33M | 79M | 58M | 21M | 24.6M | 29M | 85.2M | 212.3M | 19.9M | 7.9M |
| Working Capital Changes | 233M | -106M | 224M | 187M | -2.1B | 381M | 474M | -846M | -286M | -150M | 63M | 349M | -149M | -71M | -247M | -346M | 11M | 432M | -409M | -108M | 39M | 186M | -48M | -146M | 281M | 115.7M | 66M | -46.2M | 127.1M | 94.4M | -176.7M |
| Change in Receivables | 0 | -121M | 59M | 136M | -176M | -508M | 191M | -226M | -2M | -55M | 73M | 66M | -93M | -126M | -69M | -114M | -79M | 137M | -59M | 43M | 43M | 24M | 0 | 44M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Change in Inventory | 0 | -449M | 153M | 175M | -1.2B | -567M | -20M | -214M | -207M | -246M | 148M | 220M | -148M | 15M | -259M | -299M | -239M | 493M | -376M | -166M | 8M | 13M | -65M | -78M | -4M | 0 | 84M | -98.8M | 79.8M | 143.6M | -126.7M |
| Change in Payables | 0 | 184M | -205M | 47M | 302M | 351M | -64M | -55M | -44M | 61M | -130M | -162M | 202M | -12M | 106M | 152M | 101M | -148M | 98M | 38M | -43M | 11M | 0 | -30M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cash from Investing | -550M | -665M | -888M | -2.3B | -1.94B | 58M | -1.42B | -3.46B | -1.91B | -4.16B | -684M | -270M | -8.8B | -643M | -660M | -644M | -500M | -427M | -399M | 579M | -1.22B | -561M | -600M | -361M | -328M | -2.02B | -206M | -165.9M | -446.2M | -135.9M | -222.4M |
| Capital Expenditures | -911M | -978M | -1.13B | -1.94B | -1.89B | -1.21B | -1.2B | -1.26B | -1.2B | -1.07B | -695M | -854M | -632M | -558M | -690M | -643M | -550M | -368M | -425M | -285M | -531M | -571M | -486M | -402M | -433M | -260.7M | -196M | -363.3M | -568.9M | -291.2M | -214M |
| CapEx % of Revenue | 1.64% | 1.8% | 2.12% | 3.67% | 3.54% | 2.57% | 2.78% | 2.97% | 3% | 2.79% | 1.88% | 2.06% | 1.68% | 1.62% | 2.09% | 2.01% | 1.93% | 1.38% | 1.58% | 1.06% | 2.08% | 2.2% | 1.84% | 1.64% | 1.85% | 2.47% | 2.7% | 4.93% | 7.67% | 4.58% | 3.32% |
| Acquisitions | 2M | 0 | 145M | -377M | -177M | 1.14B | -154M | -2.29B | -677M | -3.08B | 0 | 539M | -8.19B | -106M | 0 | 0 | -93M | -93M | 26M | 76M | 21M | 47M | 0 | 0 | -73M | -1.67B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Investments | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Investing | 367M | 317M | 102M | 19M | 130M | 125M | -52M | 88M | -24M | 4M | 20M | 31M | 10M | 39M | 41M | 79M | 104M | 0 | -19M | 2M | 13M | 2M | -15M | 37M | -61M | -86.7M | -10M | 197.4M | 122.7M | 155.3M | -8.4M |
| Cash from Financing | -2.11B | -1.98B | -581M | 88M | -2.32B | -2.73B | -1.47B | 1.17B | -1.1B | 1.53B | -2.38B | -2.04B | 6.92B | -600M | -171M | -658M | -959M | 150M | 321M | -1.25B | 929M | -443M | -326M | -482M | -866M | 1.54B | -366M | -394.8M | -27.2M | -418.4M | 52.1M |
| Debt Issued (Net) | -788M | -1.09B | 183M | 1.12B | -1.09B | -2.05B | -672M | 1.89B | -332M | 2.76B | -413M | -1.49B | 5.14B | -23M | 123M | -385M | -1.03B | 428M | 89M | -1.21B | 984M | -367M | -242M | -387M | -789M | 1.58B | -263M | -325.1M | -2M | -291.6M | 68.4M |
| Equity Issued (Net) | -271M | -175M | -49M | -354M | -702M | -67M | -207M | -252M | -325M | -706M | -1.94B | -495M | 1.83B | -614M | -264M | -207M | -48M | -19M | 253M | 13M | -42M | -21M | -29M | -41M | -19M | -14M | -70M | -52.1M | -22M | -109.6M | -1.3M |
| Dividends Paid | -701M | -697M | -684M | -670M | -653M | -636M | -601M | -537M | -431M | -319M | -216M | -147M | -104M | -104M | -57M | -59M | -59M | -60M | -56M | -56M | -55M | -55M | -55M | -54M | -58M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Share Repurchases | -272M | -196M | -49M | -354M | -702M | -67M | -207M | -252M | -427M | -860M | -1.94B | -495M | -295M | -614M | -264M | -207M | -48M | -19M | -30M | -61M | -42M | -45M | -72M | -41M | -19M | -48M | -70M | -52.1M | -22M | -109.6M | -1.3M |
| Other Financing | -352M | -18M | -31M | -5M | 120M | 19M | 12M | 69M | -14M | -208M | 196M | 101M | 44M | 141M | 27M | -7M | 182M | -199M | 35M | 1M | 42M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -34.7M | -33M | -17.6M | -3.2M | -17.2M | -15M |
| Net Change in Cash | -492M | -488M | 1.14B | -458M | -1.61B | 1.17B | 982M | 214M | -48M | -31M | -339M | 250M | -707M | 74M | 355M | -262M | -26M | 754M | 208M | 14M | -12M | 7M | 8M | -26M | -19M | 27.1M | 13M | -16.2M | 22.9M | -13M | 3.5M |
| Free Cash Flow | 1.23B | 1.18B | 1.46B | -187M | 800M | 2.63B | 2.67B | 1.25B | 1.76B | 1.53B | 2.02B | 1.72B | 546M | 756M | 497M | 403M | 882M | 657M | -137M | 393M | -244M | 428M | 446M | 418M | 741M | 249.7M | 391M | 183.4M | -72.5M | 249.8M | -40.7M |
| FCF Margin % | 2.2% | 2.16% | 2.73% | -0.35% | 1.5% | 5.59% | 6.19% | 2.96% | 4.4% | 4% | 5.48% | 4.15% | 1.45% | 2.2% | 1.5% | 1.26% | 3.1% | 2.46% | -0.51% | 1.46% | -0.95% | 1.65% | 1.69% | 1.7% | 3.17% | 2.36% | 5.38% | 2.49% | -0.98% | 3.93% | -0.63% |
| FCF Growth % | -4.44% | -19.27% | 879.68% | -123.37% | -69.59% | -1.64% | 113.32% | -28.87% | 15.23% | -24.29% | 17.77% | 214.29% | -27.78% | 52.11% | 23.33% | -54.31% | 34.25% | 579.56% | -134.86% | 261.07% | -157.01% | -4.04% | 6.7% | -43.59% | 196.76% | -36.14% | 113.2% | 352.97% | -129.02% | 713.76% | 27.19% |
| FCF per Share | 3.47 | 3.38 | 4.10 | -0.53 | 2.20 | 7.21 | 7.33 | 3.43 | 4.78 | 4.14 | 5.18 | 4.15 | 1.50 | 2.06 | 1.34 | 1.06 | 2.36 | 1.77 | -0.38 | 1.11 | -0.71 | 1.20 | 1.25 | 1.19 | 2.09 | 1.12 | 1.73 | 0.80 | -0.32 | 1.14 | -0.19 |
| FCF Conversion (FCF/Net Income) | 2.71x | 4.55x | 3.24x | -2.70x | 0.83x | 1.26x | 1.88x | 1.27x | 1.00x | 1.47x | 1.54x | 2.11x | 1.36x | 1.69x | 2.04x | 1.39x | 1.84x | -1.87x | 3.35x | 2.53x | -1.46x | 2.69x | 2.31x | 2.43x | 3.07x | 5.80x | 3.89x | 2.38x | 19.86x | 2.91x | 1.99x |
| Interest Paid | 0 | 402M | 460M | 340M | 363M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Taxes Paid | 0 | 331M | 227M | 46M | 1.22B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Commodity spread volatility
As reported in recent financial filings, Tyson's operating cash flow frequently decouples from net income, evidenced by a volatile OCF/NI ratio that swung from -0.43 in 2026Q2 to 12.15 in 2024Q1, suggesting that accounting accruals and commodity hedging significantly distort the company's reported bottom-line profitability.
The extreme variance between net income and operating cash flow indicates that reported earnings are a poor proxy for actual cash generation. Investors should monitor these discrepancies as they likely reflect the impact of non-cash inventory adjustments and derivative mark-to-market swings inherent in the protein processing business.
Based on the provided quarterly data, Tyson's free cash flow trajectory remains highly erratic, with negative FCF margins reaching -3.0% in 2024Q2 and -1.9% in 2026Q2, highlighting the company's struggle to maintain consistent cash generation amidst the cyclical pressures of the US meat processing industry.
The inability to sustain positive free cash flow suggests that the company's capital requirements often outpace its operational inflows during cyclical troughs. This pattern warrants further investigation into whether current dividend and buyback commitments are sustainable without relying on external financing during periods of margin compression.
According to the company's cash flow statements, working capital changes are a primary driver of cash flow volatility, with a massive $626 million outflow in 2024Q2 contrasting sharply with a $698 million inflow in 2024Q1, illustrating the significant impact of inventory and receivable timing on liquidity.
These sharp swings in working capital suggest that Tyson's cash position is highly sensitive to the timing of livestock procurement and the subsequent sale of processed goods. The lack of stability in these flows may indicate challenges in managing inventory levels effectively against fluctuating commodity prices.
As reported in financial statements, Tyson has continued to prioritize shareholder returns through dividends and buybacks despite periods of negative free cash flow, such as the $221 million combined outflow for these purposes in 2026Q2, which appears to strain the company's internal liquidity position.
The decision to maintain dividend payments during quarters of negative cash flow suggests a management commitment to shareholder returns that may be at odds with the company's current operational reality. Investors should monitor whether this capital allocation strategy remains viable if commodity spreads do not improve.
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying TSN stock.
Tyson Foods, Inc. (TSN) generated $2.15B in net cash from operating activities in 2025. This reflects the cash generated directly from core business operations.
Tyson Foods, Inc. (TSN) generated $1.18B 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.
Tyson Foods, Inc. (TSN) spent $978.0M 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, Tyson Foods, Inc. (TSN) returned $697.0M to shareholders via cash dividends and spent $196.0M on share repurchases. This shows the company's commitment to returning capital to its equity investors.