Barnes & Noble Education, Inc.

NYSE:BNED Stock Report

Market Cap: US$307.3m

Barnes & Noble Education Past Earnings Performance

Past criteria checks 0/6

Barnes & Noble Education has been growing earnings at an average annual rate of 23.2%, while the Specialty Retail industry saw earnings declining at 3.2% annually. Revenues have been growing at an average rate of 2.8% per year.

Key information

23.19%

Earnings growth rate

58.96%

EPS growth rate

Specialty Retail Industry Growth26.64%
Revenue growth rate2.83%
Return on equity-3.32%
Net Margin-0.56%
Last Earnings Update31 Jan 2026

Recent past performance updates

Recent updates

Seeking Alpha • Mar 25

Barnes & Noble Education: Mixed Quarter But Too Cheap To Ignore - Buy

Summary Barnes & Noble Education reported mixed Q3/FY2026 results, with strong demand for the company's First Day offerings offset by persistent margin pressure. As a result, management lowered the company's Adjusted EBITDA guidance range from $65 to $75 million to $65 to $70 million. However, management expects to reverse recent margin trends in the near future and continues to target 15% to 20% Adjusted EBITDA growth in fiscal year 2027. Perhaps most notably, the company has stated its intent to pay a quarterly cash dividend of $0.08 per share, starting in Q1/FY2027. Even with somewhat lower-than-expected profitability, upside remains substantial. Consequently,  I am reiterating my "Buy" rating and $15.00 price target on BNED stock. Read the full article on Seeking Alpha
Analysis Article • May 29

Investors Will Want Barnes & Noble Education's (NYSE:BNED) Growth In ROCE To Persist

Finding a business that has the potential to grow substantially is not easy, but it is possible if we look at a few key...
Analysis Article • Apr 07

Barnes & Noble Education, Inc.'s (NYSE:BNED) Popularity With Investors Is Under Threat From Overpricing

There wouldn't be many who think Barnes & Noble Education, Inc.'s ( NYSE:BNED ) price-to-sales (or "P/S") ratio of 0.2x...
Seeking Alpha • Mar 12

Barnes & Noble Education: Profitable Quarter But Cash Flow Disappoints - Hold

Summary Barnes & Noble Education reported profitable third quarter results, with sales benefiting from persistent growth in the company's First Day program offerings. However, net income would have been negative without a sizable one-time benefit from the termination of liabilities related to a frozen retirement benefit plan. While Adjusted EBITDA increased by almost 30% on a year-over-year basis, improved profitability did not translate into higher cash generation. The decision to dilute shareholders even further shortly after completing a major recapitalization transaction has impacted investor sentiment. While BNED stock trades at a bargain valuation of just 4x estimated 2026 EV/Adjusted EBITDA, market participants will likely require management to deliver on its promises before reconsidering an investment. Read the full article on Seeking Alpha
Analysis Article • Dec 14

There's Reason For Concern Over Barnes & Noble Education, Inc.'s (NYSE:BNED) Massive 35% Price Jump

Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. ( NYSE:BNED ) shares have had a really impressive month, gaining 35% after a shaky...
Seeking Alpha • Dec 13

Barnes & Noble Education: Strong Q2 Results But Questions Remain - Hold

Summary Barnes & Noble Education reported decent Q2/FY2025 results, driven by strong growth in First Day program contributions and ongoing cost savings initiatives. While revenues were down slightly due to additional store closures, Adjusted EBITDA of $66 million increased by more than 30% on a year-over-year basis. However, persistent shareholder dilution in combination with a lack of investor communication and recent key executive resignations is keeping my from getting more constructive on the shares. Considering the renewed overhang from this week's $40 million shelf registration, I am reiterating my "Hold" rating on the shares. Read the full article on Seeking Alpha
Analysis Article • Dec 11

Barnes & Noble Education's (NYSE:BNED) Returns On Capital Are Heading Higher

If you're looking for a multi-bagger, there's a few things to keep an eye out for. One common approach is to try and...
Seeking Alpha • Oct 22

Barnes & Noble Education: Unlocking Potential Through First Day Programs

Summary Barnes & Noble Education's First Day Complete program is driving growth, with the potential to significantly boost EBITDA through increased student adoption. Strengthened balance sheet supporting future expansion, with significant upside under new management. BNED's stock is undervalued, trading at <4x EV/FY26 EBITDA, with insiders aggressively purchasing shares. Potential Russell 2000 addition creates favorable conditions for BNED's stock. Read the full article on Seeking Alpha
Seeking Alpha • Sep 24

Barnes & Noble Education: ATM Offering Ahead Of Financial Results Raises Questions

Summary Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. reported mixed Q1/FY2025 results, with revenues coming in slightly below expectations and GAAP profitability impacted by charges related to the recent recapitalization transaction. A 32% increase in First Day program revenues helped to offset sales pressure from store closures, and Adjusted EBITDA benefited from a combination of cost savings and higher productivity. In the earnings press release, management projected substantially increased profitability and cash flow for FY2025. However, momentum has faded recently, and Friday's $40 million ATM Offering isn't exactly suited to instill investor confidence ahead of the company's all-important Q2/FY2025 results. While I am reiterating my “Hold” rating for now, investors should keep a close eye on Barnes & Noble Education's operating performance when the company reports crucial Q2/FY2025 results in early December. Read the full article on Seeking Alpha
Analysis Article • Sep 24

Why We're Not Concerned Yet About Barnes & Noble Education, Inc.'s (NYSE:BNED) 26% Share Price Plunge

Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. ( NYSE:BNED ) shares have retraced a considerable 26% in the last month, reversing a...
Seeking Alpha • Jul 31

Barnes & Noble Education: Lifting Of The DOE Overhang Is A Significant Positive

Summary BNED has successfully transformed its business with First Day and First Day Complete courseware solutions, leading to significant EBITDA improvement. FDC revenue has rapidly grown, with potential for further growth as the majority of students are not currently enrolled in schools offering FDC. Proposed regulations by the DOE that could have impacted FDC programs were ultimately abandoned, providing a positive outlook for BNED's future growth. As BNED's FDC transformation continues, shares could appreciate significantly, with a $2 billion valuation ($73 / share) potentially attainable by FY27. Read the full article on Seeking Alpha
Seeking Alpha • Jul 19

Barnes & Noble Education: Recapitalization Transaction Strengthens, But Major Overhang Remains

Summary Following a heavily dilutive recapitalization transaction and subsequent 1:100 reverse stock split, Barnes & Noble Education's shares have been quite volatile as of late. Two weeks ago, the company reported better-than-expected results for FY2024 with Adjusted EBITDA exceeding management's projections amid a 37% increase in First Day program revenue. Going forward, cash flows should benefit from substantially lower average debt levels. As a result, Barnes & Noble might start to generate free cash flow in the current fiscal year. Thursday's break-out in BNED stock to new post-recapitalization highs on massive trading volume might very well result in some follow-through on Friday and going into next week. However, the federal government's recently announced plan to end automatic textbook fees remains a major overhang for the company. Given the potential make-or-break character of the proposed changes, I prefer to remain on the sidelines. Read the full article on Seeking Alpha
Seeking Alpha • Jul 03

Barnes & Noble Education Is Growing, But Not Fast Enough

Summary Barnes & Noble Education reported Q4 and full year earnings, showing a per-share loss for both periods. Revenue from BNC First Day increased 37% year over year to $474 million, a significant part of total revenue. The company faces risks such as heavy losses, competition in book-selling, seasonality, and potential dilution of shares. Read the full article on Seeking Alpha
Seeking Alpha • Apr 19

Barnes & Noble Education: Shares Crater After Proposed Recapitalization - Hold

Summary Last month, Barnes & Noble Education reported better-than-expected Q3/FY2024 results and reiterated expectations for full-year Adjusted EBITDA of $40 million. Unfortunately, the company also warned investors of a potential equity offering "at a substantial discount to the current market price" thus causing a 15% selloff in the shares. On Tuesday, the company announced a number of transactions to strengthen the balance sheet and enhance liquidity. In aggregate, the company will issue 2.58 billion (!) new common shares. Existing shareholders should consider participating in the rights offering in order to significantly reduce their average purchase price and bet on the market assigning a higher valuation to the recapitalized company. However, given the massive risks associated with the recently proposed end to automatic text book fees, at least in my opinion, Barnes & Noble Education remains a highly speculative investment. Read the full article on Seeking Alpha
Seeking Alpha • Jan 22

Barnes & Noble Education: After The DOE Scare, Why I've Tripled Down

Summary I've recently tripled down on my investment in BNED, buying more shares after a significant sell-off. The sell-off was triggered by an article suggesting a policy change that would affect BNED's business, but I believe the sell-off is irrational. I explain the benefits of BNED's First Day Complete program and argue that the sell-off is based on misunderstandings and fear. Read the full article on Seeking Alpha
Analysis Article • Jan 11

An Intrinsic Calculation For Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. (NYSE:BNED) Suggests It's 33% Undervalued

Key Insights Using the 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity, Barnes & Noble Education fair value estimate is US$1.65 Barnes...
Seeking Alpha • Dec 13

Barnes & Noble Education: After A Great Q2 2024, Look For $2 Per Share

Summary Barnes & Noble Education is a mispriced opportunity with the potential for a breakout and a near-term price target of $2 per share. BNED's Q2 FY 2024 results were strong, with impressive free cash flow, increased retail sales, and improved Adj. EBITDA. The company's First Day and First Day Complete business transformation is promising, and the adoption of this model is expected to drive major growth in Adj. EBITDA. Read the full article on Seeking Alpha
Seeking Alpha • Oct 05

Barnes & Noble Education: Making Sense Of The Transformation

Summary Barnes & Noble Education is attempting to pivot away from its traditional textbook model and survive through its new initiative called First Day Complete (FDC). FDC aims to convert campuses to a subscription-like model by bundling textbooks with tuition/course costs, potentially improving BNED's financial performance. BNED faces challenges such as poor forecasting, cannibalization of its legacy business, and competition from other entities launching similar models. The success of BNED's pivot remains uncertain. Read the full article on Seeking Alpha
Seeking Alpha • Jul 03

Barnes & Noble Education: Pressure On Revenue And Margin Remains

Summary The company lowered guidance for Q4 2023 (fiscal) due to lower revenue and unfavorable product mix. The sale of the DSS segment is in line with the company's strategic goals; however, in my opinion, it could put pressure on operating margins in the coming quarters. The operating profit of the company is still in the negative zone. Read the full article on Seeking Alpha
Seeking Alpha • Jan 25

Barnes & Noble Education: Losses Are Growing

Summary Barnes & Noble has missed EPS expectations for four consecutive quarters. Top and bottom line fundamentals are downward trending, generating negative cash from operations and taking on increasingly high debt with interest expenses. Its newer student subscription model shows promising growth but has yet to significantly impact total sales at $90 million in revenue. Investing is about growing your capital. Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. (BNED) has unfortunately been unable to do this for themselves or investors for a long time. Over the last five years, investors have seen the stock price drop by 70.23%. Five-year stock trend (SeekingAlpha.com) The business fundamentals have been trending downwards, with negative cash flow, total debt is increasing, and we see a spike in interest expenses. Although the company has grown revenue from its newer FDC business model, it continues to miss quarterly earnings expectations, and there is little obvious growth potential in the next year. For this reason, I do not recommend buying this stock and giving it a hold status. Company overview BNED is the college bookstore spin-off of the now privately owned Barnes and Noble book chain, established in 2015. At a glance, the business looks good. It is the number one operator of college bookstores. We can see that the company has a large footprint offline and online and reports high annual revenue. BNED overview (investor presentation) However, if we ignore COVID-inflicted FY21, revenue has been downward trending with little future growth prospect insight. The company has been producing losses for years. BNED was debt free until FY17, which has since increased to $573.6 million, and high-interest rates on loans are adding to expenses. Income statement trend (marketscreener.com) Annual total debt (SeekingAlpha.com) The company generates revenue through three business segments. Firstly, the most significant segment is retail, which includes 793 college, university or K-12 physical bookstores and 606 virtual bookstores. It accounted for 94% of annual sales in FY22. Secondly, there is the wholesale segment. The wholesale business is still one of the largest in the USA and accounts for 7.3% of annual sales. They sell to their 606 virtual bookstores and over 3000 physical bookstores. This segment also sells inventory application management solutions to 350 college bookshops. Thirdly, there is the smallest but fastest-growing segment, digital student solutions ((DSS)), at a share of 2.3%. It includes subscription-based services to help students with their academic performances. The increase in sales from FY21 to FY22 is not on trend due to the COVID-19 pandemic's impact. Business segments (marketscreener.com) We can see this if we look at Q2 2023's 13 and 26 weeks end in the table below. Only the DSS segment saw an increase over the three-month period, although retail has increased over the last nine months. Q2 23 Segment results for 3 and 9 months in thousands of dollars (sec.gov) One of the potential growth drivers is that the company has a new business model, the First Day Complete program, which is a subscription-based model that gives students access to all their required learning material before the start of the school term. However, it is currently insufficient to improve the overall business at less than $100 million in revenue. New revenue model (Investor Presentation 2023) Financials and valuation BNED has been producing back-to-back financial disappointments, missing earning expectations for four consecutive quarters. Last quarter the company reported revenues of $617.1 million, which was a decrease of 1.6% YoY from the quarter prior, and this is amidst an inflationary market. Its net income was $22.1 million, a decrease of 1.5% YoY, and the profit margin is at a low of 3.6%, which has remained similar YoY. If we look at earnings per share, the company is at $0.42 per share, a decrease of $0.01 from last year's Q2, and earnings missed analyst expectations by 45%.

Revenue & Expenses Breakdown

How Barnes & Noble Education makes and spends money. Based on latest reported earnings, on an LTM basis.

Earnings and Revenue History

NYSE:BNED Revenue, expenses and earnings (USD Millions)
DateRevenueEarningsG+A ExpensesR&D Expenses
31 Jan 261,729-102900
01 Nov 251,67722890
02 Aug 251,635202850
03 May 251,610-662840
25 Jan 251,564-832800
26 Oct 241,558-1112880
27 Jul 241,566-1293010
27 Apr 241,567-753120
27 Jan 241,573-773200
28 Oct 231,554-893320
29 Jul 231,553-903450
29 Apr 231,543-903580
28 Jan 231,527-523400
29 Oct 221,491-673490
30 Jul 221,510-683580
30 Apr 221,496-623540
29 Jan 221,493-1103790
30 Oct 211,502-1223700
31 Jul 211,471-1373540
01 May 211,407-1343160
30 Jan 211,468-1283420
31 Oct 201,559-813550
01 Aug 201,735-533770
02 May 201,851-384040
25 Jan 201,929-444160
26 Oct 191,974-424210
27 Jul 192,017-184220
27 Apr 192,035-244240
26 Jan 192,058394320
27 Oct 182,113-2454330
28 Jul 182,185-2564330
28 Apr 182,204-2534340
27 Jan 182,189-2694260
28 Oct 172,107184110
29 Jul 171,991-23970
29 Apr 171,87453810
28 Jan 171,82623690
29 Oct 161,823-53690
30 Jul 161,808-13700
30 Apr 161,80803740
30 Jan 161,78733740
31 Oct 151,790103720
01 Aug 151,786123650

Quality Earnings: BNED is currently unprofitable.

Growing Profit Margin: BNED is currently unprofitable.

Free Cash Flow vs Earnings Analysis

Past Earnings Growth Analysis

Earnings Trend: BNED is unprofitable, but has reduced losses over the past 5 years at a rate of 23.2% per year.

Accelerating Growth: Unable to compare BNED's earnings growth over the past year to its 5-year average as it is currently unprofitable

Earnings vs Industry: BNED is unprofitable, making it difficult to compare its past year earnings growth to the Specialty Retail industry (-2.3%).

Return on Equity

High ROE: BNED has a negative Return on Equity (-3.32%), as it is currently unprofitable.

Return on Assets

Return on Capital Employed

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Company Analysis and Financial Data Status

DataLast Updated (UTC time)
Company Analysis2026/05/22 11:32
End of Day Share Price 2026/05/22 00:00
Earnings2026/01/31
Annual Earnings2025/05/03

Data Sources

The data used in our company analysis is from S&P Global Market Intelligence LLC. The following data is used in our analysis model to generate this report. Data is normalised which can introduce a delay from the source being available.

PackageDataTimeframeExample US Source *
Company Financials10 years
  • Income statement
  • Cash flow statement
  • Balance sheet
Analyst Consensus Estimates+3 years
  • Forecast financials
  • Analyst price targets
Market Prices30 years
  • Stock prices
  • Dividends, Splits and Actions
Ownership10 years
  • Top shareholders
  • Insider trading
Management10 years
  • Leadership team
  • Board of directors
Key Developments10 years
  • Company announcements

* Example for US securities, for non-US equivalent regulatory forms and sources are used.

Unless specified all financial data is based on a yearly period but updated quarterly. This is known as Trailing Twelve Month (TTM) or Last Twelve Month (LTM) Data. Learn more.

Analysis Model and Snowflake

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Industry and Sector Metrics

Our industry and section metrics are calculated every 6 hours by Simply Wall St, details of our process are available on Github.

Analyst Sources

Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. is covered by 3 analysts. 0 of those analysts submitted the estimates of revenue or earnings used as inputs to our report. Analysts submissions are updated throughout the day.

AnalystInstitution
Alex FuhrmanCraig-Hallum Capital Group LLC
Ryan MacDonaldNeedham & Company
Gregory PendySidoti & Company, LLC