Operating Cash Flow
Colgate-Palmolive Operating Cash Flow decreased by 48.6% to $747.00M in Q1 2026 compared to the prior quarter. Year-over-year, this metric grew by 24.5%, from $600.00M to $747.00M. Over 4 years (FY 2021 to FY 2025), Operating Cash Flow shows an upward trend with a 6.0% CAGR. This decline may warrant attention — for this metric, higher values are generally preferred.
Analysis
How to read this metric
Consistently high operating cash flow indicates a healthy, self-sustaining business capable of funding its own growth and returning capital to shareholders.
Detailed definition
Net cash from operating activities measures the total amount of cash generated by a company's core business operations....
Peer comparison
Investors often compare this to capital expenditures to calculate Free Cash Flow, a primary valuation metric for mature tech giants.
net_cash_from_operatingHistorical 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 | Q1 '26 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value | $627.00M | $994.00M | $1.11B | $386.00M | $528.00M | $969.00M | $673.00M | $735.00M | $722.00M | $1.15B | $1.14B | $681.00M | $990.00M | $1.17B | $1.27B | $600.00M | $884.00M | $1.26B | $1.45B | $747.00M |
| QoQ Change | — | +58.5% | +11.3% | -65.1% | +36.8% | +83.5% | -30.5% | +9.2% | -1.8% | +59.6% | -1.4% | -40.1% | +45.4% | +17.9% | +8.7% | -52.7% | +47.3% | +42.6% | +15.2% | -48.6% |
| YoY Change | — | — | — | — | -15.8% | -2.5% | -39.2% | +90.4% | +36.7% | +18.9% | +68.8% | -7.3% | +37.1% | +1.3% | +11.7% | -11.9% | -10.7% | +8.1% | +14.5% | +24.5% |
Operating Cash Flow at Other Companies
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is Colgate-Palmolive's operating cash flow?
- Colgate-Palmolive (CL) reported operating cash flow of $747.00M in Q1 2026.
- How has Colgate-Palmolive's operating cash flow changed year-over-year?
- Colgate-Palmolive's operating cash flow increased by 24.5% year-over-year, from $600.00M to $747.00M.
- What is the long-term trend for Colgate-Palmolive's operating cash flow?
- Over 4 years (2021 to 2025), Colgate-Palmolive's operating cash flow has grown at a 6.0% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), from $3.33B to $4.20B.
- What does operating cash flow mean?
- The actual amount of cash a company brings in from its day-to-day business activities.