Free cash flow
Steel Dynamics Free cash flow decreased by 87.7% to $10.34M in Q1 2026 compared to the prior quarter. Year-over-year, this metric grew by 106.8%, from -$152.90M to $10.34M. Over 4 years (FY 2021 to FY 2025), Free cash flow shows a downward trend with a -19.6% 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.
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 | $310.02M | $416.19M | $519.36M | $659.64M | $837.71M | $1.25B | $799.23M | $507.46M | $449.53M | $555.34M | $349.70M | -$19.09M | -$36.61M | $138.50M | -$106.30M | -$152.90M | $13.28M | $556.92M | $84.22M | $10.34M |
| QoQ Change | — | +34.2% | +24.8% | +27.0% | +27.0% | +49.8% | -36.3% | -36.5% | -11.4% | +23.5% | -37.0% | -105.5% | -91.7% | +478.4% | -176.8% | -43.8% | +108.7% | >999% | -84.9% | -87.7% |
| YoY Change | — | — | — | — | +170.2% | +201.5% | +53.9% | -23.1% | -46.3% | -55.7% | -56.2% | -103.8% | -108.1% | -75.1% | -130.4% | -700.8% | +136.3% | +302.1% | +179.2% | +106.8% |
Free cash flow at Other Companies
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is Steel Dynamics's free cash flow?
- Steel Dynamics (STLD) reported free cash flow of $10.34M in Q1 2026.
- How has Steel Dynamics's free cash flow changed year-over-year?
- Steel Dynamics's free cash flow increased by 106.8% year-over-year, from -$152.90M to $10.34M.
- What is the long-term trend for Steel Dynamics's free cash flow?
- Over 4 years (2021 to 2025), Steel Dynamics's free cash flow has grown at a -19.6% compound annual growth rate (CAGR), from $1.20B to $501.51M.
- What does free cash flow mean?
- The cash a company has left over after paying for its operating expenses and capital investments.