Liquidity is severely constrained as cash reserves declined from $8.0M in 2023Q4 to $1.7M in 2026Q1, further pressured by inconsistent free cash flow margins that hit a low of -51.5% in 2024Q1.
Zeo Energy Corp. (ZEO) cash flow statement — 5-year operating, investing & financing cash flows
| Metric | TTM | Dec'25 | Dec'24 | Dec'23 | Dec'22 | Dec'21 |
|---|
| Cash from Operations | -5.46M | -8.69M | -8.72M | 11.98M | 10.72M | 6.88M |
| Operating CF Margin % | - | -12.53% | -11.9% | 10.92% | 12.05% | 27.99% |
| Operating CF Growth % | -4045.74% | 0.29% | -172.78% | 11.73% | 55.77% | - |
| Net Income | -11.08M | -19.63M | -9.87M | 4.85M | 8.67M | 7.09M |
| Depreciation & Amortization | 4.9B | 8.58M | 4.84M | 1.84M | 1.71M | 379.82K |
| Stock-Based Compensation | 2.26B | 6.4M | 7.95M | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Deferred Taxes | 238.49K | 238.49K | -997.7K | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Non-Cash Items | 6.16B | 2.54M | 2.73M | 1.53M | 668.96K | 0 |
| Working Capital Changes | -914.62K | -6.81M | -13.36M | 3.76M | -321.03K | -588.85K |
| Change in Receivables | -4.44M | -4.3M | -3.73M | -8.77M | -916.99K | -283.86K |
| Change in Inventory | 97.19K | 20.29K | -131.9K | -63.21K | -287.15K | 0 |
| Change in Payables | 1.46M | 2.75M | -2.51M | 4.5M | -477.65K | -297.18K |
| Cash from Investing | 10.62M | 13.37M | -7.37M | -1.03M | -1.08M | 379.13K |
| Capital Expenditures | -822.69K | -1.22M | -369.14K | -1.03M | -1.08M | -707.87K |
| CapEx % of Revenue | 1.15% | 1.76% | 0.5% | 0.94% | 1.21% | 2.88% |
| Acquisitions | 14.6M | 14.6M | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.09M |
| Investments | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Other Investing | -3.15M | 0 | -7M | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cash from Financing | -2.78M | -4.17M | 13.7M | -5.19M | -7.82M | -6.93M |
| Debt Issued (Net) | -1.81M | -3.38M | 1.99M | -15.07K | 380.69K | 509.15K |
| Equity Issued (Net) | -146.9K | 0 | 11.94M | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dividends Paid | -781.22K | -621.06K | -229.07K | 0 | -8.21M | -7.44M |
| Share Repurchases | -160.35K | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other Financing | -36.68K | -166.93K | 0 | -5.17M | 0 | 0 |
| Net Change in Cash | 2.38M | 503.82K | -2.39M | 5.75M | 1.82M | 329.71K |
| Free Cash Flow | -6.28M | -9.91M | -9.09M | 10.94M | 9.64M | 6.17M |
| FCF Margin % | -8.74% | -14.3% | -12.4% | 9.98% | 10.84% | 25.11% |
| FCF Growth % | -256.68% | -9.12% | -183.03% | 13.48% | 56.17% | - |
| FCF per Share | -0.25 | -0.40 | -0.83 | 1.02 | 0.28 | 0.18 |
| FCF Conversion (FCF/Net Income) | 0.57x | 0.62x | 3.27x | 2.47x | 1.24x | 0.97x |
| Interest Paid | -123.83K | 99.38K | 124.49K | 103.42K | 54.74K | 5.08K |
| Taxes Paid | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Quick answers to the most common questions about buying ZEO stock.
Zeo Energy Corp. (ZEO) generated $-8.7M in net cash from operating activities in 2025. This reflects the cash generated directly from core business operations.
Zeo Energy Corp. (ZEO) reported negative free cash flow of $9.9M in 2025, indicating capital requirements exceeded cash from operations.
Zeo Energy Corp. (ZEO) spent $1.2M 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, Zeo Energy Corp. (ZEO) returned $0.6M to shareholders via cash dividends. This shows the company's commitment to returning capital to its equity investors.
Key Metrics
Top Statement Risk
Liquidity and capital runway
Metrics are mathematically derived from official filings.
Earnings Quality Obscured by Volatility
Based on reported financial data, ZEO exhibits a highly erratic relationship between net income and operating cash flow, with the OCF/NI ratio swinging from a high of 6.63 in 2024Q1 to a low of -7.98 in 2024Q4, indicating significant accrual-based distortions in reported profitability.
The extreme variance in the OCF/NI ratio suggests that net income is a poor proxy for the company's actual cash-generating capacity. Investors should monitor whether these fluctuations stem from aggressive revenue recognition timing or the inherent lumpiness of project-based solar installations.
Free Cash Flow Margin Instability
As reported in quarterly filings, ZEO's free cash flow trajectory remains deeply inconsistent, with margins fluctuating between a peak of 27.1% in 2023Q4 and a trough of -51.5% in 2024Q1, highlighting the company's inability to sustain positive cash generation through its current operating model.
The frequent swings into negative territory suggest that the business model is highly sensitive to operational bottlenecks. This lack of a stable FCF trajectory implies that the company may struggle to self-fund its growth initiatives without recurring external capital injections.
Working Capital Swings Drive Liquidity
According to recent SEC filings, ZEO's cash flow is heavily dictated by working capital movements, which saw a massive $10.1M outflow in 2024Q1 followed by a $6.9M inflow in 2023Q4, reflecting the high sensitivity of the company's cash position to project cycle timing.
These dramatic shifts in working capital indicate that the company's cash position is vulnerable to delays in utility interconnection or customer payment cycles. Such volatility suggests that management lacks sufficient control over the cash conversion cycle to ensure predictable liquidity.
Hidden Cash Flow Distortions Identified
Based on the provided cash flow statements, ZEO's reported cash figures are significantly impacted by non-cash adjustments, including stock-based compensation that reached $3.1M in 2024Q1, which masks the true extent of the company's cash burn and dilutive impact on existing shareholders.
The reliance on stock-based compensation to manage cash outflows warrants further investigation into the company's true cost of talent. Analysts should be wary of the discrepancy between headline cash flow metrics and the underlying operational reality of the business.