>Small question, Doug. Isn't "free cash flow" profits plus depreciation
>minus capital expenditures, since cash flow is profits+depreciation?
>Depreciation is merely a book calculation and capital expenditures come out
>of cash flow, not just profits. Some part of the capital expenditures may
>be replacement and some may be capacity expansion. Don't mean to be picky
>if you were just using shorthand.
You're right; I was just using shorthand. The Fed's flow of funds defines internal funds as after-tax profits plus depreciation allowances, and the "financing gap" as the difference between internal funds and capital expenditures. Free cash flow is the financing gap with the sign reversed.
>Any idea about the number or proportion of companies buying back stock
>without the free cash flow?
Nope. I'm just working with the flow of funds numbers for the entire nonfinancial corporate sector. If someone out there has the Compustat tapes and wants to run some disaggregated numbers, please let me know!
Doug