Charter Communications, Inc. (CHTR) Cash Flow Statement
Where CHTR’s cash came from and went, 2025
December 31, 2025 · U.S. dollars- Cash from operations
- $16.08B +11.4% vs 2024
- Capital expenditures
- $11.66B 21.3% of revenue
- Free cash flow
- $4.42B 8.1% margin
- Returned to shareholders
- $5.13B 116% of free cash flow
- Change in cash
- $92.0M cash at year-end $598.0M
Cash from operations
$16.08B
Capital expenditures
−$11.66B
Share buybacks (net)
−$5.13B
Net borrowing (repayment)
+$1.06B
Other financing
−$296.0M
Change in cash
$92.0M
Drawn to scale: where the cash came from and how it was used. Hover for values.
CHTR operating cash flow, capex and free cash flow
Operating cash flowCapital expendituresFree cash flowFCF margin (right axis)
CHTR cash flow trends, 2016–2025
| Metric | Trend | Then | Latest | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operating cash flow | $8.04B2016 | $16.08B2025 | +8.0%/yr | |
| Capital expenditures | $33.53B2016 | $11.66B2025 | −11.1%/yr | |
| Free cash flow | −$25.49B2016 | $4.42B2025 | — | |
| Free cash flow margin | −87.9%2016 | 8.1%2025 | +96.0 pts | |
| Operating cash flow / net income | 2.152016 | 2.792025 | +0.64 | |
| Stock-based compensation | $492.0M2016 | $673.0M2025 | +3.5%/yr | |
| Dividends paid | $12.43B2016 | $22.0M2023 | −59.6%/yr | |
| Share buybacks (net) | $1.56B2016 | $5.13B2025 | +14.1%/yr | |
| Capex / revenue | 115.6%2016 | 21.3%2025 | −94.3 pts |
Change is the average annual growth (CAGR) or the difference between the first and latest year.
CHTR cash flow by activity
OperatingInvestingFinancingChange in cash
CHTR net income vs operating cash flow
Net incomeOperating cash flow
Operating cash flow above net income usually means earnings are backed by cash (depreciation and stock-based pay are non-cash expenses).
CHTR cash flow statement
| 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | 2020 | 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operating activities | ||||||||||
| Net income | $5.77B | $5.85B | $5.26B | $5.85B | $5.32B | $3.68B | $1.99B | $1.51B | $10.12B | $3.75B |
| Depreciation & amortization | $8.71B | $8.67B | $8.70B | $8.90B | $9.35B | $9.70B | $9.93B | $10.32B | $10.59B | $6.91B |
| Stock-based compensation | $673.0M | $651.0M | $692.0M | $470.0M | $430.0M | $351.0M | $315.0M | $285.0M | $310.0M | $492.0M |
| Change in working capital | −$653.0M | −$1.05B | −$447.0M | −$396.0M | $160.0M | $193.0M | −$1.00B | −$243.0M | $441.0M | $980.0M |
| Other non-cash items | $1.58B | $301.0M | $231.0M | $99.0M | $984.0M | $638.0M | $520.0M | −$99.0M | −$9.50B | −$4.08B |
| Cash from operating activities | $16.08B | $14.43B | $14.43B | $14.93B | $16.24B | $14.56B | $11.75B | $11.77B | $11.95B | $8.04B |
| Investing activities | ||||||||||
| Capital expenditures | −$11.66B | −$11.27B | −$10.94B | −$8.82B | −$7.55B | −$7.96B | −$7.14B | −$9.60B | −$7.87B | −$33.53B |
| Investments (net) | — | −$10.65B | −$11.25B | −$9.11B | −$7.75B | −$8.16B | −$7.33B | −$9.74B | −$8.10B | −$11.29B |
| Acquisitions & other investing | $39.0M | $11.08B | $10.64B | $7.22B | $5.32B | $7.96B | $6.25B | $8.94B | $6.21B | $33.31B |
| Cash from investing activities | −$11.62B | −$10.84B | −$11.55B | −$10.72B | −$9.99B | −$8.16B | −$8.22B | −$10.39B | −$9.76B | −$11.51B |
| Financing activities | ||||||||||
| Dividends paid | — | — | −$22.0M | −$111.0M | −$44.0M | −$16.06B | −$118.0M | −$153.0M | −$153.0M | −$12.43B |
| Share repurchases & issuance (net) | −$5.13B | −$1.21B | −$3.21B | −$10.28B | −$15.43B | −$11.22B | −$6.87B | −$4.40B | −$11.71B | −$1.56B |
| Net borrowing (repayment) | $1.06B | −$2.69B | $124.0M | $6.26B | $8.73B | $3.54B | $6.27B | $3.02B | $8.66B | $12.34B |
| Shares issued | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $23.0M | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Other financing | −$296.0M | $116.0M | $298.0M | −$38.0M | $96.0M | $14.77B | −$30.0M | $299.0M | $105.0M | $6.64B |
| Cash from financing activities | −$4.37B | −$3.79B | −$2.81B | −$4.17B | −$6.65B | −$8.95B | −$748.0M | −$1.23B | −$3.10B | $5.00B |
| Summary | ||||||||||
| Net change in cash | $92.0M | −$203.0M | $64.0M | $44.0M | −$400.0M | −$2.55B | $2.78B | $144.0M | −$914.0M | −$20.73B |
| Cash at end of period | $598.0M | $506.0M | $709.0M | $645.0M | $601.0M | $1.00B | $3.55B | $765.0M | $621.0M | $1.53B |
| Free cash flow | $4.42B | $3.16B | $3.49B | $6.10B | $8.68B | $6.61B | $4.61B | $2.17B | $4.08B | −$25.49B |
| Free cash flow margin | 8.1% | 5.7% | 6.4% | 11.3% | 16.8% | 13.7% | 10.1% | 5.0% | 9.8% | −87.9% |
| Capex / revenue | 21.3% | 20.5% | 20.0% | 16.3% | 14.6% | 16.5% | 15.6% | 22.0% | 18.9% | 115.6% |
| Operating cash flow / net income | 2.79 | 2.47 | 2.74 | 2.55 | 3.05 | 3.96 | 5.90 | 7.81 | 1.18 | 2.15 |
| Jun '26 | Mar '26 | Dec '25 | Sep '25 | Jun '25 | Mar '25 | Dec '24 | Sep '24 | Jun '24 | Mar '24 | Dec '23 | Sep '23 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Operating activities | ||||||||||||
| Net income | $1.52B | $1.36B | $1.55B | $1.32B | $1.50B | $1.41B | $1.68B | $1.47B | $1.42B | $1.28B | $1.23B | $1.44B |
| Depreciation & amortization | $2.20B | $2.21B | $2.19B | $2.16B | $2.18B | $2.18B | $2.17B | $2.15B | $2.17B | $2.19B | $2.19B | $2.13B |
| Stock-based compensation | $138.0M | $203.0M | $143.0M | $151.0M | $157.0M | $222.0M | $138.0M | $146.0M | $153.0M | $214.0M | $152.0M | $164.0M |
| Change in working capital | −$81.0M | $181.0M | −$410.0M | −$154.0M | −$299.0M | $210.0M | −$486.0M | −$89.0M | $43.0M | −$516.0M | $234.0M | $163.0M |
| Other non-cash items | $147.0M | $346.0M | $288.0M | $1.01B | $71.0M | $214.0M | −$36.0M | $229.0M | $64.0M | $44.0M | $52.0M | $51.0M |
| Cash from operating activities | $3.92B | $4.30B | $3.76B | $4.48B | $3.60B | $4.24B | $3.46B | $3.90B | $3.85B | $3.21B | $3.85B | $3.94B |
| Investing activities | ||||||||||||
| Capital expenditures | −$2.87B | −$2.85B | −$3.33B | −$3.05B | −$2.87B | −$2.40B | −$3.06B | −$2.56B | −$2.85B | −$2.79B | −$2.79B | −$2.85B |
| Investments (net) | — | — | — | −$3.16B | −$2.62B | −$2.80B | −$2.58B | −$2.44B | −$2.73B | −$2.91B | −$2.64B | −$2.89B |
| Acquisitions & other investing | −$328.0M | −$119.0M | $297.0M | $2.93B | $2.64B | $2.38B | $3.06B | $2.52B | $2.81B | $2.70B | $2.62B | $2.77B |
| Cash from investing activities | −$3.20B | −$2.97B | −$3.04B | −$3.28B | −$2.85B | −$2.82B | −$2.58B | −$2.48B | −$2.77B | −$3.00B | −$2.82B | −$2.97B |
| Financing activities | ||||||||||||
| Dividends paid | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | −$1.0M | −$16.0M |
| Share repurchases & issuance (net) | −$852.0M | −$1.03B | −$766.0M | −$2.11B | −$1.45B | −$802.0M | −$114.0M | −$222.0M | −$361.0M | −$516.0M | −$1.19B | −$783.0M |
| Net borrowing (repayment) | −$215.0M | −$135.0M | −$327.0M | $834.0M | $651.0M | −$95.0M | −$1.18B | −$1.35B | — | — | — | −$107.0M |
| Shares issued | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Other financing | $318.0M | −$145.0M | $447.0M | −$51.0M | −$164.0M | −$155.0M | $175.0M | $254.0M | −$736.0M | $258.0M | $295.0M | $27.0M |
| Cash from financing activities | −$749.0M | −$1.31B | −$646.0M | −$1.33B | −$964.0M | −$1.05B | −$1.12B | −$1.31B | −$1.10B | −$258.0M | −$900.0M | −$879.0M |
| Summary | ||||||||||||
| Net change in cash | −$23.0M | $24.0M | $77.0M | −$128.0M | −$217.0M | $360.0M | −$244.0M | $108.0M | −$19.0M | −$48.0M | $138.0M | $93.0M |
| Cash at end of period | $599.0M | $622.0M | $598.0M | $521.0M | $649.0M | $866.0M | $506.0M | $750.0M | $642.0M | $661.0M | $709.0M | $571.0M |
| Free cash flow | $1.05B | $1.45B | $426.0M | $1.43B | $726.0M | $1.84B | $398.0M | $1.34B | $1.00B | $421.0M | $1.06B | $1.10B |
| Free cash flow margin | 7.8% | 10.7% | 3.1% | 10.5% | 5.3% | 13.4% | 2.9% | 9.7% | 7.3% | 3.1% | 7.7% | 8.1% |
| Capex / revenue | 21.2% | 21.0% | 24.5% | 22.3% | 20.9% | 17.5% | 22.0% | 18.6% | 20.8% | 20.4% | 20.4% | 21.0% |
| Operating cash flow / net income | 2.58 | 3.16 | 2.43 | 3.40 | 2.41 | 3.01 | 2.06 | 2.65 | 2.71 | 2.51 | 3.14 | 2.75 |
Negative numbers are cash paid out. Quarterly columns are labeled by the month the quarter ended. Figures in U.S. dollars as reported; data from EODHD.
CHTR cash generation
In fiscal 2025 (ended December 31, 2025), Charter generated $16.1 billion of cash from operations (up 11.4%) and spent $11.7 billion on capital expenditures, leaving free cash flow of $4.4 billion, 8.1% of revenue. It returned $5.1 billion to shareholders through dividends ($0) and net share buybacks ($5.1 billion). Cash and equivalents rose by $92.0 million over the year.
Related: CHTR income statement, CHTR balance sheet. See the CHTR stock overview for the latest quote and news.
CHTR cash flow FAQ
What is Charter's free cash flow?
Charter's free cash flow was $4.4 billion in fiscal 2025: $16.1 billion of operating cash flow minus $11.7 billion of capital expenditures It was $3.2 billion a year earlier..
How much cash does Charter generate from operations?
Charter generated $16.1 billion of cash from operating activities in fiscal 2025, 2.79 times its net income of $5.8 billion.
How much does Charter spend on capital expenditures?
Charter spent $11.7 billion on capital expenditures in fiscal 2025, 21.3% of revenue, compared with $11.3 billion the year before.
How much stock does Charter buy back?
Charter spent $5.1 billion on net share repurchases in fiscal 2025.