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EQIX (Equinix) Free Cash Flow : $192 Mil (TTM As of Sep. 2024)


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What is Equinix Free Cash Flow?

Equinix's total free cash flow for the months ended in Sep. 2024 was $34 Mil. Its total free cash flow for the trailing twelve months (TTM) ended in Sep. 2024 was $192 Mil.

Equinix's Free Cash Flow per Share for the months ended in Sep. 2024 was $0.36. Its free cash flow per share for the trailing twelve months (TTM) ended in Sep. 2024 was $2.01.

During the past 12 months, the average Free Cash Flow per Share Growth Rate of Equinix was -48.30% per year. During the past 3 years, the average Free Cash Flow per Share Growth Rate was 146.60% per year. Please click Growth Rate Calculation Example (GuruFocus) to see how GuruFocus calculates Wal-Mart Stores Inc (WMT)'s revenue growth rate. You can apply the same method to get the Free Cash Flow Growth Rate using Free Cash Flow per Share data.

During the past 13 years, Equinix's highest 3-Year average Free Cash Flow per Share Growth Rate was 146.60% per year. The lowest was -93.30% per year. And the median was 17.80% per year.


Equinix Free Cash Flow Historical Data

The historical data trend for Equinix's Free Cash Flow can be seen below:

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.

* Premium members only.

Equinix Free Cash Flow Chart

Equinix Annual Data
Trend Dec14 Dec15 Dec16 Dec17 Dec18 Dec19 Dec20 Dec21 Dec22 Dec23
Free Cash Flow
Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only -86.79 27.32 -204.31 685.18 435.58

Equinix Quarterly Data
Dec19 Mar20 Jun20 Sep20 Dec20 Mar21 Jun21 Sep21 Dec21 Mar22 Jun22 Sep22 Dec22 Mar23 Jun23 Sep23 Dec23 Mar24 Jun24 Sep24
Free Cash Flow Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only 168.00 2.58 -109.00 264.00 34.00

Equinix Free Cash Flow Calculation

Free Cash Flow is considered one of the most important parameters to measure a company's earnings power by value investors because it is not subject to estimates of Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization (DDA). However, when we look at the Free Cash Flow, we should look from a long term perspective, because any year's Free Cash Flow can be drastically affected by the spending on Property, Plant, & Equipment (PPE) of the business in that year. Over the long term, Free Cash Flow should give pretty good picture on the real earnings power of the company.

Equinix's Free Cash Flow for the fiscal year that ended in Dec. 2023 is calculated as

Free Cash Flow (A: Dec. 2023 )=Cash Flow from Operations+Capital Expenditure
=3216.595+-2781.018
=436

Equinix's Free Cash Flow for the quarter that ended in Sep. 2024 is calculated as

Free Cash Flow (Q: Sep. 2024 )=Cash Flow from Operations+Capital Expenditure
=758+-724
=34

Free Cash Flow for the trailing twelve months (TTM) ended in Sep. 2024 adds up the quarterly data reported by the company within the most recent 12 months, which was $192 Mil.

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.


Equinix  (NAS:EQIX) Free Cash Flow Explanation

Free Cash Flow is very close to Warren Buffett's definition of Owner's Earnings, except that in Warren Buffett's Owner's Earnings, the spending for Property, Plant, and Equipment is only for maintenance (replacement), while in the Free Cash Flow calculation, the cost of new Property, Plant, and Equipment due to business expansion is also deducted. There, Free Cash Flow is more conservative than Owner's Earnings.

In Don Yacktman's calculation of forward rate of return, he uses Free Cash Flow for the calculation. Yacktman explained the forward rate of return concept in detail in his interview with GuruFocus. Yacktman defines forward rate of return as the normalized free cash flow yield plus real growth plus inflation.

This is what Yacktman said in his March 2012 interview - when the S&P 500 was at 1400:

If the business is stable, this calculation is fairly straightforward. For instance, on the S&P 500 we would normalize earnings. We would then calculate what percentage of those earnings are not reinvested in the underlying businesses and are therefore free. Historically, for the S&P 500, this has been just under 50% of earnings. Currently, we expect the S&P to earn about 70 on a normalized basis, a number which is far below reported earnings due to our adjusting for record high profit margins. $70 X ½ / 1400 gives you a normalized free cash flow yield of approximately 2.5%.

The historical real growth rate of the S&P 500 (companies) is about 1.5%. Assuming an inflation rate of 2.5%, the forward rate of return on an investment in the S&P 500 is about 6.5% today (2.5% free cash flow yield plus 1.5% real growth plus 2.5% inflation).

For the growth part of the Forward Rate of Return calculation, GuruFocus uses the 5-year average growth rate of EBITDA per share as the growth rate, and the growth rate is always capped at 20%. For the Free Cash Flow we use per share data averaged over seven years. The reason we use seven years is because research shows that seven years is the length of the typical business cycle.

Therefore, as of Sep24, Equinix's Forward Rate of Return (Yacktman) % is

Forward Rate of Return (Yacktman) % (Sep24)=Normalized Free Cash Flow/Price+5-Year EBITDA Growth Rate
=1.79009524/887.63+0.0696
=7.16 %

* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD.
* For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.


Be Aware

Free Cash Flow within a report period can be affected by management's decisions of capital spending. Therefore, it is important to look at long term when it comes to Free Cash Flow.


Equinix Free Cash Flow Related Terms

Thank you for viewing the detailed overview of Equinix's Free Cash Flow provided by GuruFocus.com. Please click on the following links to see related term pages.


Equinix Business Description

Address
One Lagoon Drive, Redwood City, CA, USA, 94065
Equinix operates 260 data centers in 71 markets worldwide. It generates 44% of total revenue in the Americas, 35% in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, and 21% in Asia-Pacific. The firm has more than 10,000 customers, including 2,100 network providers, that are dispersed over five verticals: cloud and IT services, content providers, network and mobile services, financial services, and enterprise. About 70% of Equinix's revenue comes from renting space to tenants and related services, and more than 15% comes from interconnection. Equinix operates as a real estate investment trust.
Executives
Adaire Fox-martin director, Director C/O EQUINIX, INC, ONE LAGOON DRIVE, REDWOOD CITY CA 94065
Keith D Taylor officer: VP Finance, CAO 301 VELOCITY WAY, 5TH FLOOR, FOSTER CITY CA 94404
Christopher B Paisley director 14870 THREE OAKS COURT, SARATOGA CA 95070
Brandi Galvin officer: General Counsel 301 VELOCITY WAY, 5TH FLOOR, FOSTER CITY CA 94404
Scott Crenshaw officer: EVP, GM Digital Services ONE FANATICAL PLACE, CITY OF WINDCREST, SAN ANTONIO TX 78133
Michael Earl Campbell officer: Chief Sales Officer 1 LAGOON DRIVE, REDWOOD CITY CA 94065
Simon Miller officer: Chief Accounting Officer 1 LAGOON DR, REDWOOD CITY CA 94065
Charles J Meyers officer: CEO and President 301 VELOCITY WAY, 5TH FLOOR, FOSTER CITY CA 94404
Jonathan Lin officer: EVP, GM, Data Center Services C/O EQUINIX, INC., ONE LAGOON DRIVE, REDWOOD CITY CA 94065
Camp Peter Van director, officer: Chief Executive Officer C/O PACKETEER INC, 10201 N DEANZA BLVD, CUPERTINO CA 95014
Gary Hromadko director, 10 percent owner, other: Affiliate of Director 301 VELOCITY WAY 5TH FLOOR, FOSTER CITY CA 94404
Fidelma Russo director C/O IRON MOUNTAIN INCORPORATED, ONE FEDERAL STREET, BOSTON MA 02110
Karl Strohmeyer officer: Chief Customer & Rev Officer ONE LAGOON DRIVE, 4TH FLOOR, REDWOOD CITY CA 94065
Thomas S Olinger director C/O AMB PROPERTY CORPORATION, PIER 1, BAY 1, SAN FRANCISCO CA 94111
Jeetendra I Patel director 200 E. RANDOLPH DRIVE, CHICAGO IL 60601