Free cash flow
Chipotle Mexican Grill Free cash flow decreased by 43.8% to $228.39M in Q4 2025 compared to the prior quarter. Year-over-year, this metric declined by 35.5%, from $353.89M to $228.39M. Over 4 years (FY 2021 to FY 2025), Free cash flow shows an upward trend with a 14.6% CAGR. This decline may warrant attention — for this metric, higher values are generally preferred.
Analysis
How to read this metric
An increase suggests strong operational efficiency and the ability to self-fund future innovation or return capital to shareholders, while a decrease may indicate heavy capital expenditure cycles or declining operational profitability.
Detailed definition
Free cash flow represents the cash generated by a company after accounting for cash outflows to support operations and m...
Peer comparison
High-growth semiconductor and AI infrastructure peers typically prioritize reinvestment, so free cash flow margins are often compared against R&D intensity and capital expenditure requirements of industry rivals.
free_cash_flowHistorical Data
| Q2 '21 | Q3 '21 | Q4 '21 | Q1 '22 | Q2 '22 | Q3 '22 | Q4 '22 | Q1 '23 | Q2 '23 | Q3 '23 | Q4 '23 | Q1 '24 | Q2 '24 | Q3 '24 | Q4 '24 | Q1 '25 | Q2 '25 | Q3 '25 | Q4 '25 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value | $131.38M | $172.36M | $316.51M | $186.74M | $186.45M | $212.90M | $257.93M | $334.67M | $445.28M | $349.27M | $93.53M | $436.53M | $422.09M | $298.97M | $353.89M | $412.27M | $400.74M | $406.19M | $228.39M |
| QoQ Change | — | +31.2% | +83.6% | -41.0% | -0.2% | +14.2% | +21.2% | +29.8% | +33.1% | -21.6% | -73.2% | +366.7% | -3.3% | -29.2% | +18.4% | +16.5% | -2.8% | +1.4% | -43.8% |
| YoY Change | — | — | — | — | +41.9% | +23.5% | -18.5% | +79.2% | +138.8% | +64.1% | -63.7% | +30.4% | -5.2% | -14.4% | +278.4% | -5.6% | -5.1% | +35.9% | -35.5% |
Free cash flow at Other Companies
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is Chipotle Mexican Grill's free cash flow?
- Chipotle Mexican Grill (CMG) reported free cash flow of $228.39M in Q4 2025.
- How has Chipotle Mexican Grill's free cash flow changed year-over-year?
- Chipotle Mexican Grill's free cash flow decreased by 35.5% year-over-year, from $353.89M to $228.39M.
- What is the long-term trend for Chipotle Mexican Grill's free cash flow?
- Over 4 years (2021 to 2025), Chipotle Mexican Grill's free cash flow has grown at a 14.6% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), from $839.61M to $1.45B.
- What does free cash flow mean?
- The cash a company has left over after paying for its operating expenses and capital investments.