Free cash flow generation remains volatile with margins ranging from 14.6% to 49.4%, while aggressive capital deployment via $1.6 billion in 2027Q1 buybacks has outpaced quarterly free cash flow.
| 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 |
|---|
| Cash from Operations | 3.18B | 2.94B | 2.46B | 2.15B | 1.66B | 1.65B | 1.27B | 864.6M | 606.66M | 465.73M | 348.65M | 258.64M | 102M | 46.26M | 11.21M | -13.77M | -15.34M |
| Operating CF Margin % | - | 30.77% | 29.14% | 29.6% | 26.66% | 32.12% | 29.38% | 23.84% | 21.5% | 21.73% | 22.14% | 22.36% | 12.95% | 9.87% | 4.1% | -10.25% | -22.53% |
| Operating CF Growth % | 119.93% | 19.42% | 14.52% | 29.68% | 0.39% | 30.14% | 46.71% | 42.52% | 30.26% | 33.58% | 34.8% | 153.56% | 120.49% | 312.55% | 181.41% | 10.18% | - |
| Net Income | 847M | 693M | 526M | 1.38B | -366.75M | 29M | -282.43M | -480.67M | -418.26M | -321.22M | -408.28M | -289.92M | -247.98M | -172.51M | -119.19M | -79.63M | -56.22M |
| Depreciation & Amortization | 355M | 347M | 326M | 282M | 364.36M | 343.72M | 293.66M | 276.28M | 198.11M | 136.97M | 115.89M | 85.94M | 59.2M | 34.7M | 17.72M | 9.32M | 5.31M |
| Stock-Based Compensation | 1.58B | 1.63B | 1.52B | 1.42B | 1.29B | 1.11B | 1B | 859.57M | 652.47M | 478.43M | 372.27M | 249.97M | 156.05M | 61.85M | 15.33M | 4.18M | 1.7M |
| Deferred Taxes | 293M | 218M | 33M | -1.06B | 4M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -28K | 14.94M | -3.22M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Non-Cash Items | -172M | 384M | 275M | 162M | 312.36M | 57.92M | 238.41M | 176.94M | 78.02M | 91.88M | 91.92M | 50.04M | 46.38M | 27.29M | 22.67M | 7.16M | 5.54M |
| Working Capital Changes | -269M | -329M | -218M | -34M | 48.22M | 108.06M | 13.96M | 32.49M | 96.32M | 79.7M | 161.92M | 165.82M | 88.35M | 94.93M | 74.68M | 45.2M | 28.32M |
| Change in Receivables | -214M | -360M | -313M | -87M | -318.6M | -207.93M | -159.24M | -176.14M | -160.53M | -114.61M | -91.75M | -105.26M | -96.88M | -25.04M | -12.97M | -39.02M | -14.52M |
| Change in Inventory | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 318.6M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 31.36M | 0 | 9.19M | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Change in Payables | 9M | 6M | 25M | -72M | 85.77M | 9M | -3.48M | 20.29M | 5.88M | -7.25M | 6.34M | 6.82M | 1.12M | 3.55M | -65K | 2.19M | 274K |
| Cash from Investing | 953M | 333M | -1.78B | -1.75B | -2.51B | -1.61B | -1.24B | -896.92M | -842.78M | -978.98M | -168.88M | -300.15M | -404.17M | -682.63M | -670.12M | -56.2M | 12.17M |
| Capital Expenditures | -206M | -162M | -272M | -238M | -360.25M | -272.27M | -256.33M | -244.54M | -212.96M | -152.54M | -120.81M | -133.67M | -103.65M | -75.72M | -15.9M | -5M | -3.66M |
| CapEx % of Revenue | 2.09% | 1.7% | 3.22% | 3.28% | 5.8% | 5.3% | 5.94% | 6.74% | 7.55% | 7.12% | 7.67% | 11.56% | 13.16% | 16.15% | 5.81% | 3.72% | 5.38% |
| Acquisitions | -2.08B | -2.08B | -825M | -8M | 0 | -1.19B | 256.33M | -473.6M | -1.47B | -5.74M | -147.88M | -31.44M | -26.32M | -15M | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Investments | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Investing | 30M | 21M | 0 | -4M | -4.24M | -171.5M | -262.45M | -99.32M | -181.18M | -124.81M | -107.29M | -760K | 1M | 14.09M | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cash from Financing | -4.55B | -3.32B | -1.15B | -268M | 1.2B | 110.25M | 625.05M | 125.12M | -256.71M | 1.11B | 59.68M | 44.11M | 19.45M | 1.13B | 685.54M | 96.98M | -326K |
| Debt Issued (Net) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.13B | -37.61M | 479.03M | -30K | -350.03M | 1.13B | 0 | 0 | -9.76M | 572.16M | -9.45M | -4.3M | -952K |
| Equity Issued (Net) | -4B | -2.7B | -700M | -423M | -75M | 148.33M | 148.67M | 125.67M | 93.57M | 69.06M | 58.08M | 45.66M | -8.29M | 588.43M | 684.62M | 95.01M | 626K |
| Dividends Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Share Repurchases | -4.19B | -2.9B | -700M | -423M | -74.67M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -8.29M | -3.81M | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Financing | -552M | -616M | -450M | 155M | 144.82M | -463K | -2.66M | -519K | -248K | -94.89M | 1.6M | 44.11M | 37.51M | -26.99M | 10.37M | 6.26M | 626K |
| Net Change in Cash | -420M | -53M | -470M | 129M | 354.5M | 152.82M | 653.2M | 92.52M | -493.45M | 593.76M | 239.84M | 1.9M | -283.13M | 497.17M | 26.63M | 27.02M | -3.48M |
| Free Cash Flow | 2.97B | 2.78B | 2.19B | 1.91B | 1.3B | 1.38B | 1.01B | 620.05M | 393.7M | 313.19M | 227.84M | 124.97M | -1.64M | -29.46M | -4.68M | -18.77M | -19M |
| FCF Margin % | 30.16% | 29.07% | 25.92% | 26.33% | 20.86% | 26.82% | 23.44% | 17.09% | 13.95% | 14.61% | 14.47% | 10.8% | -0.21% | -6.28% | -1.71% | -13.97% | -27.91% |
| FCF Growth % | 28.1% | 26.86% | 14.55% | 47.35% | -5.91% | 36.19% | 63.23% | 57.49% | 25.71% | 37.46% | 82.32% | 7706.21% | 94.42% | -528.99% | 75.05% | 1.18% | - |
| FCF per Share | 11.69 | 10.54 | 8.13 | 7.20 | 5.09 | 5.43 | 4.27 | 2.73 | 1.82 | 1.51 | 1.15 | 0.66 | -0.01 | -0.17 | -0.06 | -0.08 | -0.08 |
| FCF Conversion (FCF/Net Income) | 3.51x | 4.24x | 4.68x | 1.56x | -4.52x | 56.92x | -4.49x | -1.80x | -1.45x | -1.45x | -0.91x | -0.94x | -0.41x | -0.27x | -0.09x | 0.17x | 0.27x |
| Interest Paid | 55M | 0 | 110M | 110M | 60M | 13M | 14.37M | 3.31M | 38K | 76K | 3.16M | 6.41M | 6.87M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Taxes Paid | 62M | 0 | 65M | 39M | 89M | 13M | 9.94M | 9.01M | 6.01M | 3.42M | 5.32M | 2.12M | 943K | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
SBC dilution and competition
As reported in recent financial statements, Workday consistently generates operating cash flow significantly higher than net income, with the OCF/NI ratio reaching as high as 11.83 in 2025Q4, primarily driven by substantial non-cash stock-based compensation expenses that obscure the company's true GAAP profitability profile.
The persistent gap between net income and operating cash flow suggests that the company's reported earnings are heavily influenced by non-cash accounting adjustments. Investors should monitor whether this reliance on equity-based compensation remains sustainable without further diluting shareholder value over the long term.
Based on the provided cash flow data, Workday's free cash flow margins exhibit significant quarterly variance, ranging from 14.6% to 49.4%, which suggests that the company's cash generation is highly sensitive to the timing of enterprise contract renewals and the associated billing cycles of its subscription model.
While the FCF trajectory remains generally positive, the wide fluctuations indicate that cash flow is not yet a smooth, predictable utility. This volatility warrants further investigation into whether the company's billing terms are becoming more aggressive to pull forward cash receipts in a tightening macro environment.
According to recent SEC filings, Workday experiences pronounced working capital swings, with quarterly changes oscillating between a $455 million inflow and a $295 million outflow, reflecting the inherent lumpiness of large-scale enterprise software implementations and the timing of annual subscription prepayments from its global customer base.
These swings suggest that the company's cash position is heavily dependent on the timing of customer payments rather than just operational efficiency. Analysts should be wary of interpreting these periodic inflows as permanent improvements in underlying cash conversion, as they appear largely driven by seasonal billing patterns.
As evidenced by the cash flow statements, Workday has prioritized share repurchases over other forms of capital deployment, with buybacks reaching $1.6 billion in 2027Q1, a figure that significantly exceeds the company's quarterly free cash flow generation during the same period, suggesting a reliance on existing cash reserves.
The aggressive pace of buybacks appears to be a strategic effort to offset the dilutive impact of persistent stock-based compensation. Investors should monitor whether this capital allocation strategy remains viable if free cash flow growth fails to keep pace with the company's ongoing equity issuance requirements.
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying WDAY stock.
Workday, Inc. (WDAY) generated $2.94B in net cash from operating activities in 2026. This reflects the cash generated directly from core business operations.
Workday, Inc. (WDAY) generated $2.78B in free cash flow in 2026. Free cash flow is the cash left over after capital expenditures, which can be used to pay dividends, repurchase shares, or pay down debt.
Workday, Inc. (WDAY) spent $162.0M 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, Workday, Inc. (WDAY) spent $2.90B on share repurchases. This shows the company's commitment to returning capital to its equity investors.