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1/ Just a quick reminder that negative free cash flow is not bad in and of itself. The key question is whether investments will pay off. To answer that you need to understanding the basic unit of economic analysis - i.e., how the company makes money.
2/ Walmart was consistently free cash flow negative in the decade+ after it went public. But the the store economics were very attractive so investment > net operating profit after tax created a lot of value.
3/ This is more complicated now as investments are increasingly expensed on the income statement vs capitalized on the balance sheet. Separating operating costs from investment expense is tricky but more relevant than ever. Then work to grasp the basic unit of economic analysis.
