noob question on cash flow

hi team - appreciate the answers in advance. this is probably a very easy question. 

1. assuming no revenues, if operating expenses are $1M... shouldn't cash from operations be -$1m?

2. if you have no revenues, $1M in cogs, $1M in opex, would cash from operations be -$2M?

3. should operating income / profit always tie to cash from operations in the cash flow statement? should these be the same #?

2 Comments
 
Most Helpful

No, not at all. Expenses are different from cash outflows. For example, if you pay $100 for inventory, but have not sold it yet, that will not show up anywhere on an income statement because we have not recognized the revenue associated with that purchase, but we still would have obviously lost cash. Similarly, if someone gives Netflix $60 for their years’ subscription, but they haven’t used even 1 month yet, then we of course have $60 of cash inflow, but we cannot record any of that as revenue because we have not yet provided the service. I recommend you spend a few hours Googling and reading about Accrual Accounting.

Array
 

Sit voluptatem ut facere quis voluptatibus deserunt dolores perspiciatis. Consectetur amet velit excepturi natus ex nulla. Corporis dolorum suscipit veritatis doloremque.

Ut ut eos saepe quis rerum mollitia odio. Illo repellat dignissimos doloribus in eos.

Tenetur illum eligendi et necessitatibus nam. Tempore occaecati sit repellendus quisquam est laudantium quia. Voluptate tenetur voluptatem ad harum dolores omnis aut.

Quia enim commodi hic dolores. Excepturi cupiditate dolorem eius quo. Voluptates nihil vitae voluptatem ut nihil. Praesentium sequi sint id ratione. Sunt eos voluptas sed enim et aliquam. Odit animi sit sit eos accusamus recusandae praesentium. Enim quidem qui vel neque.

Career Advancement Opportunities

September 2026 Private Equity

  • The Riverside Company 99.6%
  • Blackstone Group 99.3%
  • KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) 98.9%
  • Warburg Pincus 98.5%
  • Vista Equity Partners 98.1%

Overall Employee Satisfaction

September 2026 Private Equity

  • Blackstone Group 99.6%
  • KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) 99.3%
  • The Riverside Company 98.9%
  • Ardian 98.5%
  • Warburg Pincus 98.1%

Professional Growth Opportunities

September 2026 Private Equity

  • Bain Capital 99.6%
  • The Riverside Company 99.3%
  • Blackstone Group 98.9%
  • Starwood Capital Group 98.5%
  • KKR (Kohlberg Kravis Roberts) 98.1%

Total Avg Compensation

September 2026 Private Equity

  • Principal (9) $653
  • Director/MD (24) $547
  • Vice President (99) $363
  • 3rd+ Year Associate (106) $280
  • 2nd Year Associate (235) $272
  • 1st Year Associate (414) $231
  • 3rd+ Year Analyst (33) $157
  • 2nd Year Analyst (97) $134
  • 1st Year Analyst (273) $126
  • Intern/Summer Associate (38) $81
  • Intern/Summer Analyst (356) $61
notes
16 IB Interviews Notes

“... there’s no excuse to not take advantage of the resources out there available to you. Best value for your $ are the...”

Leaderboard

1
redever's picture
redever
99.2
2
BankonBanking's picture
BankonBanking
99.0
3
Secyh62's picture
Secyh62
99.0
4
kanon's picture
kanon
99.0
5
dosk17's picture
dosk17
98.9
6
GameTheory's picture
GameTheory
98.9
7
Betsy Massar's picture
Betsy Massar
98.9
8
DrApeman's picture
DrApeman
98.9
9
CompBanker's picture
CompBanker
98.9
10
Mimbs's picture
Mimbs
98.8
success
From 10 rejections to 1 dream investment banking internship

“... I believe it was the single biggest reason why I ended up with an offer...”