Operating Cash Flow
CVS Health Operating Cash Flow increased by 25.3% to $4.25B in Q1 2026 compared to the prior quarter. Year-over-year, this metric declined by 6.7%, from $4.56B to $4.25B. Over 2 years (FY 2021 to FY 2025), Operating Cash Flow shows a downward trend with a -23.7% CAGR. This is a positive signal — higher values indicate stronger performance for this metric.
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 | Q1 '23 | Q2 '23 | Q3 '23 | Q1 '24 | Q2 '24 | Q3 '24 | Q4 '24 | Q1 '25 | Q2 '25 | Q3 '25 | Q4 '25 | Q1 '26 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value | $5.85B | $5.52B | $4.01B | $3.56B | $5.44B | $9.12B | $7.44B | $5.91B | $2.72B | $4.90B | $3.09B | -$745.00M | $1.86B | $4.56B | $1.90B | $796.00M | $3.39B | $4.25B |
| QoQ Change | — | -5.6% | -27.5% | -11.0% | +52.8% | +67.6% | -18.5% | -20.6% | -54.0% | +80.5% | -37.0% | -124.1% | +349.7% | +144.9% | -58.4% | -58.0% | +325.9% | +25.3% |
| YoY Change | — | — | — | — | -6.9% | +65.2% | +108.8% | +8.5% | -70.2% | -34.1% | -47.7% | -127.4% | — | -7.1% | -38.6% | +206.8% | +82.3% | -6.7% |
Operating Cash Flow at Other Companies
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is CVS Health's operating cash flow?
- CVS Health (CVS) reported operating cash flow of $4.25B in Q1 2026.
- How has CVS Health's operating cash flow changed year-over-year?
- CVS Health's operating cash flow decreased by 6.7% year-over-year, from $4.56B to $4.25B.
- What is the long-term trend for CVS Health's operating cash flow?
- Over 2 years (2021 to 2025), CVS Health's operating cash flow has grown at a -23.7% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), from $18.27B to $10.64B.
- What does operating cash flow mean?
- The actual amount of cash a company brings in from its day-to-day business activities.