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Side-by-side financial comparison of ASGN Inc (ASGN) and Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. (BNED). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
ASGN Inc is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($970.0M vs $598.2M, roughly 1.6× Barnes & Noble Education, Inc.). Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. runs the higher net margin — 4.2% vs 0.6%, a 3.6% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (6.9% vs -3.0%). Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. produced more free cash flow last quarter ($61.9M vs $9.1M). Over the past eight quarters, Barnes & Noble Education, Inc.'s revenue compounded faster (20.0% CAGR vs -3.2%).
ASGN Inc is a leading U.S.-headquartered professional services and workforce solutions provider. It specializes in supplying skilled talent and consulting services across high-growth segments including information technology, creative, digital, life sciences, and engineering, primarily serving enterprise clients across North America.
Barnes & Noble Booksellers is an American bookseller with the largest number of retail outlets in the United States. The company operates approximately 700+ retail stores across the United States.
ASGN vs BNED — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q1 FY2026 vs Q2 FY2026
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $970.0M | $598.2M |
| Net Profit | $5.5M | $25.0M |
| Gross Margin | 27.5% | 21.7% |
| Operating Margin | 2.9% | 6.8% |
| Net Margin | 0.6% | 4.2% |
| Revenue YoY | -3.0% | 6.9% |
| Net Profit YoY | -73.7% | -49.7% |
| EPS (diluted) | $0.13 | $0.72 |
Green = leading value per metric. Periods may differ when fiscal calendars don't align.
8-Quarter Revenue & Profit Trend
Side-by-side quarterly history. Quarters aligned by calendar period so offset fiscal years line up.
| Q1 26 | $970.0M | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $980.1M | $598.2M | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.0B | $274.2M | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.0B | $233.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $968.3M | $419.7M | ||
| Q4 24 | $985.0M | $559.7M | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.0B | $250.9M | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.0B | $192.7M |
| Q1 26 | $5.5M | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $25.2M | $25.0M | ||
| Q3 25 | $38.1M | $-18.3M | ||
| Q2 25 | $29.3M | $-23.0M | ||
| Q1 25 | $20.9M | $17.9M | ||
| Q4 24 | $42.4M | $43.2M | ||
| Q3 24 | $47.5M | $-103.9M | ||
| Q2 24 | $47.2M | $-41.9M |
| Q1 26 | 27.5% | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 28.9% | 21.7% | ||
| Q3 25 | 29.4% | 20.2% | ||
| Q2 25 | 28.7% | 30.3% | ||
| Q1 25 | 28.4% | 22.3% | ||
| Q4 24 | 29.0% | 23.0% | ||
| Q3 24 | 29.1% | 17.9% | ||
| Q2 24 | 29.1% | 28.7% |
| Q1 26 | 2.9% | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 5.7% | 6.8% | ||
| Q3 25 | 6.7% | -8.4% | ||
| Q2 25 | 5.8% | -4.9% | ||
| Q1 25 | 4.8% | 4.5% | ||
| Q4 24 | 7.5% | 8.4% | ||
| Q3 24 | 7.7% | -15.4% | ||
| Q2 24 | 7.8% | -16.3% |
| Q1 26 | 0.6% | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 2.6% | 4.2% | ||
| Q3 25 | 3.8% | -6.7% | ||
| Q2 25 | 2.9% | -9.9% | ||
| Q1 25 | 2.2% | 4.3% | ||
| Q4 24 | 4.3% | 7.7% | ||
| Q3 24 | 4.6% | -41.4% | ||
| Q2 24 | 4.6% | -21.7% |
| Q1 26 | $0.13 | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $0.58 | $0.72 | ||
| Q3 25 | $0.87 | $-0.54 | ||
| Q2 25 | $0.67 | $2.97 | ||
| Q1 25 | $0.48 | $0.59 | ||
| Q4 24 | $0.94 | $1.63 | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.06 | $-7.69 | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.02 | $-15.68 |
Balance Sheet & Financial Strength
Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand | $143.6M | $11.7M |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | $1.5B | $122.5M |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $1.8B | $283.2M |
| Total Assets | $4.0B | $1.1B |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | 0.82× | 0.43× |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q1 26 | $143.6M | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $161.2M | $11.7M | ||
| Q3 25 | — | $7.3M | ||
| Q2 25 | — | $9.1M | ||
| Q1 25 | — | $9.2M | ||
| Q4 24 | $205.2M | $11.6M | ||
| Q3 24 | — | $8.2M | ||
| Q2 24 | — | $10.5M |
| Q1 26 | $1.5B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $1.2B | $122.5M | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.2B | $170.0M | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.2B | $103.1M | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.3B | $141.2M | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.0B | $177.6M | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.0B | $221.9M | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.0B | $196.3M |
| Q1 26 | $1.8B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $1.8B | $283.2M | ||
| Q3 25 | $1.8B | $256.5M | ||
| Q2 25 | $1.8B | $272.2M | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.8B | $292.9M | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.8B | $211.4M | ||
| Q3 24 | $1.8B | $149.8M | ||
| Q2 24 | $1.8B | $80.4M |
| Q1 26 | $4.0B | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $3.7B | $1.1B | ||
| Q3 25 | $3.7B | $950.8M | ||
| Q2 25 | $3.7B | $790.3M | ||
| Q1 25 | $3.7B | $1.1B | ||
| Q4 24 | $3.4B | $1.0B | ||
| Q3 24 | $3.4B | $973.2M | ||
| Q2 24 | $3.5B | $909.9M |
| Q1 26 | 0.82× | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 0.65× | 0.43× | ||
| Q3 25 | 0.64× | 0.66× | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.66× | 0.38× | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.72× | 0.48× | ||
| Q4 24 | 0.58× | 0.84× | ||
| Q3 24 | 0.58× | 1.48× | ||
| Q2 24 | 0.57× | 2.44× |
Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency
How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Operating Cash FlowLast quarter | — | $66.2M |
| Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex | $9.1M | $61.9M |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | 0.9% | 10.4% |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | 1.0% | 0.7% |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | — | 2.65× |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | $290.6M | $-4.6M |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $102.3M | $66.2M | ||
| Q3 25 | $83.9M | $-67.6M | ||
| Q2 25 | $124.9M | $52.6M | ||
| Q1 25 | $16.8M | $-41.9M | ||
| Q4 24 | $100.2M | $47.4M | ||
| Q3 24 | $135.8M | $-143.5M | ||
| Q2 24 | $90.7M | $81.7M |
| Q1 26 | $9.1M | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $93.7M | $61.9M | ||
| Q3 25 | $72.0M | $-71.3M | ||
| Q2 25 | $115.8M | $49.5M | ||
| Q1 25 | $6.6M | $-44.7M | ||
| Q4 24 | $88.9M | $44.4M | ||
| Q3 24 | $127.9M | $-147.5M | ||
| Q2 24 | $85.4M | $79.1M |
| Q1 26 | 0.9% | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 9.6% | 10.4% | ||
| Q3 25 | 7.1% | -26.0% | ||
| Q2 25 | 11.3% | 21.3% | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.7% | -10.7% | ||
| Q4 24 | 9.0% | 7.9% | ||
| Q3 24 | 12.4% | -58.8% | ||
| Q2 24 | 8.3% | 41.1% |
| Q1 26 | 1.0% | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 0.9% | 0.7% | ||
| Q3 25 | 1.2% | 1.4% | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.9% | 1.3% | ||
| Q1 25 | 1.1% | 0.7% | ||
| Q4 24 | 1.1% | 0.5% | ||
| Q3 24 | 0.8% | 1.6% | ||
| Q2 24 | 0.5% | 1.4% |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 4.06× | 2.65× | ||
| Q3 25 | 2.20× | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 4.26× | — | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.80× | -2.34× | ||
| Q4 24 | 2.36× | 1.10× | ||
| Q3 24 | 2.86× | — | ||
| Q2 24 | 1.92× | — |
Financial Flow Comparison
Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
ASGN
Segment breakdown not available.
BNED
| Course Materials Product | $459.3M | 77% |
| General Merchandise Product | $112.9M | 19% |
| Serviceand Other | $26.1M | 4% |
