Cycle Stock
The working stock you sell through between reorders.
Definition
Cycle stock is the portion of inventory you expect to sell through during the normal time between replenishments, the working stock that cycles up when an order arrives and down as you sell. It sits alongside safety stock: cycle stock covers expected demand, safety stock covers the unexpected.
Cycle stock vs safety stock
Think of your on-hand inventory right after a delivery as two layers. Cycle stock is the part you plan to sell before the next order lands. Safety stock is the cushion underneath it that you only dip into when demand or lead time surprises you. Cycle stock plus safety stock is roughly your peak inventory level for a SKU.
How cycle stock sets your order quantity
Your order quantity is essentially the cycle stock you are buying. A quick example: if you reorder every 45 days and sell 30 units a day, your cycle stock is about 1,350 units, the amount you expect to sell before the next shipment lands. Order more at a time and you hold more cycle stock, place fewer orders, but carry more inventory and more holding cost. Order less and you flip the trade. That tension between ordering cost and holding cost is exactly what an economic order quantity (EOQ), the order size that minimizes total ordering plus holding cost, is designed to balance.
How cycle stock connects to your restock cadence
Velocity sets the pace. A fast mover burns through its cycle stock quickly, so it needs reordering more often. The reorder point is just the cycle stock you will sell during the lead time plus the safety stock underneath, which is why fast SKUs trigger a PO long before slow ones.
Related terms
Order the right quantity every time
Inventory Hero turns each SKU's velocity and lead time into a reorder point and order quantity, balancing how much working stock to carry against holding cost.