Free cash flow
Applied Materials Free cash flow decreased by 49.1% to $1.04B in Q4 2025 compared to the prior quarter. Year-over-year, this metric grew by 91.2%, from $544.00M to $1.04B. Over 4 years (FY 2021 to FY 2025), Free cash flow shows an upward trend with a 4.5% 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.
cf_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 | $1.55B | $942.00M | $2.51B | $205.00M | $1.26B | $634.00M | $1.98B | $2.04B | $2.33B | $1.25B | $2.10B | $1.14B | $2.09B | $2.17B | $544.00M | $1.06B | $2.05B | $2.04B | $1.04B |
| QoQ Change | — | -39.2% | +166.9% | -91.8% | +514.1% | -49.6% | +212.8% | +2.7% | +14.3% | -46.5% | +68.2% | -45.8% | +84.0% | +3.8% | -74.9% | +95.0% | +93.2% | -0.3% | -49.1% |
| YoY Change | — | — | — | — | -18.7% | -32.7% | -21.1% | +893.7% | +84.9% | +96.5% | +5.7% | -44.3% | -10.3% | +74.0% | -74.0% | -6.5% | -1.8% | -5.8% | +91.2% |
Free cash flow at Other Companies
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is Applied Materials's free cash flow?
- Applied Materials (AMAT) reported free cash flow of $1.04B in Q4 2025.
- How has Applied Materials's free cash flow changed year-over-year?
- Applied Materials's free cash flow increased by 91.2% year-over-year, from $544.00M to $1.04B.
- What is the long-term trend for Applied Materials's free cash flow?
- Over 4 years (2021 to 2025), Applied Materials's free cash flow has grown at a 4.5% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), from $4.77B to $5.70B.
- What does free cash flow mean?
- The cash a company has left over after paying for its operating expenses and capital investments.