Free cash flow
Linde Free cash flow decreased by 42.9% to $898.00M in Q1 2026 compared to the prior quarter. Year-over-year, this metric grew by 0.8%, from $891.00M to $898.00M. Over 4 years (FY 2021 to FY 2025), Free cash flow shows a downward trend with a -6.4% 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 | $1.08B | $1.82B | $2.39B | $1.35B | $1.31B | $1.87B | $1.16B | $1.08B | $1.29B | $1.57B | $1.58B | $906.00M | $796.00M | $1.67B | $1.56B | $891.00M | $954.00M | $1.67B | $1.57B | $898.00M |
| QoQ Change | — | +67.6% | +31.9% | -43.6% | -3.3% | +43.4% | -38.2% | -6.9% | +19.6% | +21.8% | +0.3% | -42.5% | -12.1% | +109.2% | -6.4% | -42.8% | +7.1% | +75.3% | -6.0% | -42.9% |
| YoY Change | — | — | — | — | +20.7% | +3.3% | -51.6% | -20.1% | -1.2% | -16.1% | +36.0% | -16.0% | -38.3% | +5.9% | -1.1% | -1.7% | +19.8% | +0.4% | +0.8% | +0.8% |
Free cash flow at Other Companies
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is Linde's free cash flow?
- Linde (LIN) reported free cash flow of $898.00M in Q1 2026.
- How has Linde's free cash flow changed year-over-year?
- Linde's free cash flow increased by 0.8% year-over-year, from $891.00M to $898.00M.
- What is the long-term trend for Linde's free cash flow?
- Over 4 years (2021 to 2025), Linde's free cash flow has grown at a -6.4% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), from $6.64B to $5.09B.
- What does free cash flow mean?
- The cash a company has left over after paying for its operating expenses and capital investments.