Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. (BNED) stock analysis
Close on Nov 12, 2026Market cap $440.25MP/E 19.8Yield –
StockData Score
Prices as of Nov 11, 2026How the score works
Mixed14 of 30 checks passed
Barnes & Noble Education passes 14 of the 30 checks behind our score; 7 could not be run for lack of data and count as not passed. Each dot in the shape is one check — hover it for the numbers.
- Valuation
- 3/6
- Growth
- 3/6
- Past performance
- 2/6
- Financial health
- 5/6
- Dividend
- 1/6
What stands out
Trading below fair value
The share price of $12.84 is below our fair value estimate of $14.66.
Return on capital over 10%
Return on invested capital was 13.2%, above the 10% that usually covers the cost of capital.
No debt
Barnes & Noble Education has no borrowings on its latest balance sheet.
Interest well covered
No meaningful interest expense to cover.
What to watch
Margin of safety under 20%
The price is 12.4% below fair value, less than the 20% cushion we look for.
Return on equity under 15%
Return on equity was 8.3% over the last twelve months and averaged -35.2% over five years; we look for 15% on both.
Revenue growing under 10% a year
Revenue grew 3.6% a year over the last three fiscal years, short of the 10% we look for.
Bankruptcy risk in the grey zone
The Altman Z-score is 1.83; above 3 is the safe zone and below 1.8 the distress zone.
Valuation3/6
P/E against its history
Not enough price and earnings history to compare.
P/E above the industry
Barnes & Noble Education's P/E of 20.1 is above the Miscellaneous Retail median of 17.9.
EV/EBITDA below its 5-year median
Barnes & Noble Education's EV/EBITDA of 5.9 is below its 5-year median of 6.5.
P/B below the industry
Barnes & Noble Education's price-to-book of 1.60 is below the Miscellaneous Retail median of 2.09.
Trading below fair value
The share price of $12.84 is below our fair value estimate of $14.66.
Margin of safety under 20%
The price is 12.4% below fair value, less than the 20% cushion we look for.
Growth3/6
Revenue growing under 10% a year
Revenue grew 3.6% a year over the last three fiscal years, short of the 10% we look for.
EPS growth over 3 years
Needs positive EPS three years ago and today.
Earnings acceleration
Needs positive net income now, a year ago and five years ago.
Growing faster than the industry
Revenue grew 5.0% over the last twelve months; the Miscellaneous Retail median is 4.4%.
Guidance raised
Barnes & Noble Education raised its fiscal 2027 Adjusted EBITDA growth outlook on Mar 10, 2026.
Gross margin improving
Gross margin was 21.4% over the last twelve months, against 21.3% a year earlier.
Past performance2/6
Return on equity under 15%
Return on equity was 8.3% over the last twelve months and averaged -35.2% over five years; we look for 15% on both.
Return on capital over 10%
Return on invested capital was 13.2%, above the 10% that usually covers the cost of capital.
Return on equity below the industry
Barnes & Noble Education's return on equity of 8.3% is below the Miscellaneous Retail median of 18.5%.
Earnings over 5 years
Needs positive net income five years ago and in the latest year.
Net margin above its 5-year average
Net margin was 1.3% over the last twelve months, against a 5-year average of -3.8%.
Net margin below the industry
Barnes & Noble Education's net margin of 1.3% is below the Miscellaneous Retail median of 4.0%.
Financial health5/6
No debt
Barnes & Noble Education has no borrowings on its latest balance sheet.
Debt not rising
With no debt today, leverage cannot have risen.
Debt covered by cash flow
There is no debt to cover.
Interest well covered
No meaningful interest expense to cover.
Short-term assets cover short-term debts
Current assets are 1.66 times current liabilities.
Bankruptcy risk in the grey zone
The Altman Z-score is 1.83; above 3 is the safe zone and below 1.8 the distress zone.
Dividend1/6
Pays a dividend
Barnes & Noble Education paid dividends worth 1.2% of the share price over the last twelve months.
Yield below Treasuries
The 1.2% yield is below the 4.4% on a 1-year Treasury.
Yield below the top quarter
The top quarter of US dividend payers yield 3.8% or more; Barnes & Noble Education yields 1.2%.
Dividend stability
Fewer than five years of dividend history.
Earnings cover
Needs dividends paid and net income.
Cash-flow cover
Needs dividends paid and free cash flow.
Fair value
How we estimate itOur estimate per share
$14.66
The share price is 12% below this estimate.
| Method | Multiple used | Own 5Y median | Industry median | Value per share | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P/E | 17.9× | – | 17.9× | $11.45 | 47% |
| EV/EBITDA | 8.6× | 6.5× | 10.8× | $18.62 | 41% |
| P/B | 1.7× | 1.3× | 2.1× | $13.66 | 12% |
| Fair value | $14.66 | 100% | |||
Valuation over time
Using the earnings and balance sheet published at each date, not today's.
- P/E at month end
- Miscellaneous Retail median 17.9
An estimate from reported numbers and market multiples, not a price target or investment advice. It can be far off for companies whose profits are about to change sharply.
Market risk
From the past year of daily prices.
Liquidity
Medium risk
- Average value traded per day
- $2.67M
- Value traded per 1% price move
- $1.33M
Downside
Medium risk
- Typical loss in a bad month
- 15.9%
- Volatility (annualized)
- 66%
- Sharpe ratio, 1 year
- 0.84
- Beta to the S&P 500 (5Y)
- 1.51
Typical bad-month loss, week by week
Margins
Share of revenue, fiscal years 2013 to 2026
Gross margin
Operating margin
Net margin
Growth rates
Compound annual growth to fiscal 2026
| Per year | 1 year | 3 years | 5 years | 10 years | Five-year pace |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | +6.5% | +3.6% | +4.0% | -0.5% | |
| Gross profit | +8.4% | +1.6% | +9.7% | -2.1% | |
| Operating income | +129.5% | – | – | +23.0% | |
| Net income | – | – | – | +69.9% | |
| Free cash flow | – | -20.2% | – | +0.5% |
Returns and balance sheet
10 fiscal years. Hover a measure to see how it is calculated.
| Measure | FY2017 | FY2021 | FY2026 | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Return on equity | 0.8% | -39.3% | 6.0% | |
| Return on assets | 0.5% | -12.8% | 2.2% | |
| Current ratio | 1.46 | 1.34 | 1.71 | |
| Inventory turnover | 3.8× | 3.3× | 4.5× | |
| Capex to revenue | 1.8% | 2.0% | 0.9% | |
| Diluted shares | 2M | 2M | 35M |
Where the cash went
Fiscal 2022 to 2026, five years combined
Barnes & Noble Education generated $248.46M from operations and spent $105.27M on capital expenditure, dividends and share buybacks. 97% of that went back into the business.
DuPont analysis
Return on equity split into margin, efficiency and leverage
| Fiscal year | Net margin | Asset turnover | Equity multiplier | Return on equity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2026 | 1.0% | 2.24× | 2.70× | 6.0% |
| FY2025 | -4.1% | 1.89× | 4.82× | -37.3% |
| FY2024 | -4.8% | 1.66× | 8.10× | -64.9% |
| FY2023 | -6.6% | 1.50× | 5.38× | -53.4% |
| FY2022 | -4.6% | 1.42× | 4.03× | -26.4% |
| FY2021 | -9.9% | 1.29× | 3.08× | -39.3% |
| FY2020 | -2.1% | 1.76× | 2.42× | -8.8% |
| FY2019 | -1.2% | 2.05× | 2.16× | -5.3% |
| FY2018 | -11.5% | 1.88× | 1.98× | -42.7% |
| FY2017 | 0.3% | 1.58× | 1.67× | 0.8% |
Piotroski F-Score
Nine tests of profitability, balance sheet and efficiency, fiscal 2026 against fiscal 2025
- ProfitableNet income above zero$16.87M
- Cash generatingOperating cash flow above zero$50.06M
- Return on assets improvedROA up on the prior year-7.2% → 2.1%
- Earnings backed by cashOperating cash flow above net income$50.06M vs $16.87M
- Less leverageLong-term debt to assets fell– → –
- Better liquidityCurrent ratio rose1.67 → 1.71
- No dilutionShare count did not rise26M → 35M
- Gross margin improvedGross margin up on the prior year20.98% → 21.35%
- More efficientAsset turnover rose1.77 → 2.17
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