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Side-by-side financial comparison of Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. (BNED) and Element Solutions Inc (ESI). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
Element Solutions Inc is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($840.0M vs $598.2M, roughly 1.4× Barnes & Noble Education, Inc.). Element Solutions Inc runs the higher net margin — 6.7% vs 4.2%, a 2.5% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, Element Solutions Inc posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (41.0% vs 6.9%). Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. produced more free cash flow last quarter ($61.9M vs $-74.2M). Over the past eight quarters, Barnes & Noble Education, Inc.'s revenue compounded faster (20.0% CAGR vs 17.1%).
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.
Element Solutions Inc is an American specialty chemicals production corporation listed on the New York Stock Exchange.
BNED vs ESI — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q2 FY2026 vs Q1 FY2026
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $598.2M | $840.0M |
| Net Profit | $25.0M | $56.0M |
| Gross Margin | 21.7% | 38.4% |
| Operating Margin | 6.8% | 13.3% |
| Net Margin | 4.2% | 6.7% |
| Revenue YoY | 6.9% | 41.0% |
| Net Profit YoY | -49.7% | -43.0% |
| EPS (diluted) | $0.72 | $0.23 |
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 | — | $840.0M | ||
| Q4 25 | $598.2M | $676.2M | ||
| Q3 25 | $274.2M | $656.1M | ||
| Q2 25 | $233.0M | $625.2M | ||
| Q1 25 | $419.7M | $593.7M | ||
| Q4 24 | $559.7M | $624.2M | ||
| Q3 24 | $250.9M | $645.0M | ||
| Q2 24 | $192.7M | $612.7M |
| Q1 26 | — | $56.0M | ||
| Q4 25 | $25.0M | $6.2M | ||
| Q3 25 | $-18.3M | $39.3M | ||
| Q2 25 | $-23.0M | $47.4M | ||
| Q1 25 | $17.9M | $98.0M | ||
| Q4 24 | $43.2M | $54.7M | ||
| Q3 24 | $-103.9M | $40.3M | ||
| Q2 24 | $-41.9M | $93.2M |
| Q1 26 | — | 38.4% | ||
| Q4 25 | 21.7% | 40.9% | ||
| Q3 25 | 20.2% | 42.2% | ||
| Q2 25 | 30.3% | 42.6% | ||
| Q1 25 | 22.3% | 42.2% | ||
| Q4 24 | 23.0% | 41.0% | ||
| Q3 24 | 17.9% | 41.5% | ||
| Q2 24 | 28.7% | 43.6% |
| Q1 26 | — | 13.3% | ||
| Q4 25 | 6.8% | 10.3% | ||
| Q3 25 | -8.4% | 15.4% | ||
| Q2 25 | -4.9% | 15.1% | ||
| Q1 25 | 4.5% | 13.0% | ||
| Q4 24 | 8.4% | 12.0% | ||
| Q3 24 | -15.4% | 14.7% | ||
| Q2 24 | -16.3% | 15.7% |
| Q1 26 | — | 6.7% | ||
| Q4 25 | 4.2% | 0.9% | ||
| Q3 25 | -6.7% | 6.0% | ||
| Q2 25 | -9.9% | 7.6% | ||
| Q1 25 | 4.3% | 16.5% | ||
| Q4 24 | 7.7% | 8.8% | ||
| Q3 24 | -41.4% | 6.2% | ||
| Q2 24 | -21.7% | 15.2% |
| Q1 26 | — | $0.23 | ||
| Q4 25 | $0.72 | $0.03 | ||
| Q3 25 | $-0.54 | $0.16 | ||
| Q2 25 | $2.97 | $0.20 | ||
| Q1 25 | $0.59 | $0.40 | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.63 | $0.22 | ||
| Q3 24 | $-7.69 | $0.17 | ||
| Q2 24 | $-15.68 | $0.39 |
Balance Sheet & Financial Strength
Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand | $11.7M | $177.3M |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | $122.5M | — |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $283.2M | $2.7B |
| Total Assets | $1.1B | $5.7B |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | 0.43× | — |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q1 26 | — | $177.3M | ||
| Q4 25 | $11.7M | $626.5M | ||
| Q3 25 | $7.3M | $594.3M | ||
| Q2 25 | $9.1M | $529.9M | ||
| Q1 25 | $9.2M | $499.2M | ||
| Q4 24 | $11.6M | $359.4M | ||
| Q3 24 | $8.2M | $376.0M | ||
| Q2 24 | $10.5M | $309.3M |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $122.5M | $1.6B | ||
| Q3 25 | $170.0M | $1.6B | ||
| Q2 25 | $103.1M | $1.6B | ||
| Q1 25 | $141.2M | $1.6B | ||
| Q4 24 | $177.6M | $1.8B | ||
| Q3 24 | $221.9M | $1.9B | ||
| Q2 24 | $196.3M | $1.9B |
| Q1 26 | — | $2.7B | ||
| Q4 25 | $283.2M | $2.7B | ||
| Q3 25 | $256.5M | $2.7B | ||
| Q2 25 | $272.2M | $2.6B | ||
| Q1 25 | $292.9M | $2.5B | ||
| Q4 24 | $211.4M | $2.4B | ||
| Q3 24 | $149.8M | $2.4B | ||
| Q2 24 | $80.4M | $2.4B |
| Q1 26 | — | $5.7B | ||
| Q4 25 | $1.1B | $5.1B | ||
| Q3 25 | $950.8M | $5.0B | ||
| Q2 25 | $790.3M | $5.0B | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.1B | $4.8B | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.0B | $4.9B | ||
| Q3 24 | $973.2M | $5.1B | ||
| Q2 24 | $909.9M | $5.0B |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 0.43× | 0.61× | ||
| Q3 25 | 0.66× | 0.61× | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.38× | 0.62× | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.48× | 0.64× | ||
| Q4 24 | 0.84× | 0.76× | ||
| Q3 24 | 1.48× | 0.78× | ||
| Q2 24 | 2.44× | 0.81× |
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 | $61.9M | $-74.2M |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | 10.4% | -8.8% |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | 0.7% | 3.0% |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | 2.65× | — |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | $-4.6M | — |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $66.2M | — | ||
| Q3 25 | $-67.6M | $100.1M | ||
| Q2 25 | $52.6M | — | ||
| Q1 25 | $-41.9M | $26.0M | ||
| Q4 24 | $47.4M | — | ||
| Q3 24 | $-143.5M | $98.5M | ||
| Q2 24 | $81.7M | — |
| Q1 26 | — | $-74.2M | ||
| Q4 25 | $61.9M | — | ||
| Q3 25 | $-71.3M | $83.6M | ||
| Q2 25 | $49.5M | — | ||
| Q1 25 | $-44.7M | $15.0M | ||
| Q4 24 | $44.4M | — | ||
| Q3 24 | $-147.5M | $85.9M | ||
| Q2 24 | $79.1M | — |
| Q1 26 | — | -8.8% | ||
| Q4 25 | 10.4% | — | ||
| Q3 25 | -26.0% | 12.7% | ||
| Q2 25 | 21.3% | — | ||
| Q1 25 | -10.7% | 2.5% | ||
| Q4 24 | 7.9% | — | ||
| Q3 24 | -58.8% | 13.3% | ||
| Q2 24 | 41.1% | — |
| Q1 26 | — | 3.0% | ||
| Q4 25 | 0.7% | 2.5% | ||
| Q3 25 | 1.4% | 2.5% | ||
| Q2 25 | 1.3% | 2.8% | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.7% | 1.9% | ||
| Q4 24 | 0.5% | 3.6% | ||
| Q3 24 | 1.6% | 2.0% | ||
| Q2 24 | 1.4% | 2.4% |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 2.65× | — | ||
| Q3 25 | — | 2.55× | ||
| Q2 25 | — | — | ||
| Q1 25 | -2.34× | 0.27× | ||
| Q4 24 | 1.10× | — | ||
| Q3 24 | — | 2.44× | ||
| Q2 24 | — | — |
Financial Flow Comparison
Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.
Revenue Breakdown by Segment
BNED
| Course Materials Product | $459.3M | 77% |
| General Merchandise Product | $112.9M | 19% |
| Serviceand Other | $26.1M | 4% |
ESI
| Electronics ex-Metals | $377.8M | 45% |
| Pass-through Metals | $255.7M | 30% |
| Other | $206.5M | 25% |
