Ranking of companies in generating operating cash flows based on data envelopment analysis

The purpose of this research is to evaluate and rank the efficiency of pharmaceutical companies in creating operational cash flows in line with the objectives of financial reporting. The research method for collecting theoretical bases and research data is library studies. In this research, in order to evaluate the efficiency of pharmaceutical companies in creating operational cash flow, the Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) model with weight limit is used. The results of this research show that Farabi pharmaceutical company has the highest efficiency score in creating Operating Cash Flows (OCFs) and Loqman pharmaceutical company has the lowest efficiency score. The findings of this research confirm that DEA is a suitable technique for evaluating the performance of companies in creating operational cash flow. Also, this technique, along with traditional financial analysis, can be considered a useful instrument for deciding and evaluating the performance and efficiency of companies. This article can make analysts more familiar; financial and accounting researchers with DEA applications in financial and accounting analysis. Also, this research can expand the use of scientific models in financial and accounting research.