Free cash flow
General Electric Free cash flow decreased by 19.4% to $1.49B in Q1 2026 compared to the prior quarter. Year-over-year, this metric grew by 14.7%, from $1.30B to $1.49B. Over 4 years (FY 2021 to FY 2025), Free cash flow shows an upward trend with a 36.7% 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 | Q1 '26 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Value | $251.00M | $2.05B | $2.08B | -$896.00M | $230.00M | $1.13B | $4.09B | -$538.00M | $90.00M | $1.42B | $2.61B | $571.00M | $835.00M | $1.24B | $1.03B | $1.30B | $1.92B | $2.19B | $1.85B | $1.49B |
| QoQ Change | — | +714.7% | +1.6% | -143.1% | +125.7% | +389.6% | +262.8% | -113.2% | +116.7% | >999% | +83.7% | -78.1% | +46.2% | +48.7% | -17.1% | +26.3% | +47.5% | +14.3% | -15.7% | -19.4% |
| YoY Change | — | — | — | — | -8.4% | -44.9% | +96.7% | +40.0% | -60.9% | +26.2% | -36.1% | +206.1% | +827.8% | -12.6% | -60.6% | +127.8% | +129.8% | +76.7% | +79.6% | +14.7% |
Free cash flow at Other Companies
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is General Electric's free cash flow?
- General Electric (GE) reported free cash flow of $1.49B in Q1 2026.
- How has General Electric's free cash flow changed year-over-year?
- General Electric's free cash flow increased by 14.7% year-over-year, from $1.30B to $1.49B.
- What is the long-term trend for General Electric's free cash flow?
- Over 4 years (2021 to 2025), General Electric's free cash flow has grown at a 36.7% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), from $2.08B to $7.26B.
- What does free cash flow mean?
- The cash a company has left over after paying for its operating expenses and capital investments.