The focus on traditional financial statements is ?????? data rather than cash flow. Howevet, cash flow is important to investors, manapers, and texe snalysts. Therefore, corporate decision makers and security analysts need to modify accounting data provided to them. An important modficere in the conce of free cash fow (FCP). Many analysts regard FCF as being the single and most important number that can be developed from Bee accouncry stronceity. even more important than net income. The equation for free cash flow is: FCF=[ ESIT (1-T) Depreciation and amortization ]-[ Capital expenditures ANet operating morking capital ] cash flow is the cash flow actually available for payments to all investors (stockholders and debtholders) after the company has made incucica in fixed assets, new products, and ??????- A negative FCF means that the company does not have sufficient ?????? Guids ta france its investments in flxed assets and working capital, and that is will have to raise new money in the ?????? markets to pay for these inverieneras. Seperve FCF is not always bad. If FCF is negative because after-tax eperating income is negative this is bad, because the company is probably experimeng aperal problems. Exceptions to this might be startup companies, companies incurring significant expenses to launch a new product line, and nigh-growth companieswith large capital investments.