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Side-by-side financial comparison of Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. (BNED) and FORWARD AIR CORP (FWRD). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
FORWARD AIR CORP is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($631.2M vs $598.2M, roughly 1.1× Barnes & Noble Education, Inc.). Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. runs the higher net margin — 4.2% vs -4.5%, a 8.7% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (6.9% vs -0.3%). Over the past eight quarters, Barnes & Noble Education, Inc.'s revenue compounded faster (20.0% CAGR vs 7.9%).
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.
Forward Air Corp is a leading North American asset-light logistics and transportation provider. It offers core services including expedited less-than-truckload freight delivery, final-mile logistics, intermodal transport, warehousing, and supply chain solutions, serving key sectors such as e-commerce, retail, manufacturing, and automotive across the U.S., Canada, and Mexico.
BNED vs FWRD — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q2 FY2026 vs Q4 FY2025
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $598.2M | $631.2M |
| Net Profit | $25.0M | $-28.3M |
| Gross Margin | 21.7% | — |
| Operating Margin | 6.8% | -0.5% |
| Net Margin | 4.2% | -4.5% |
| Revenue YoY | 6.9% | -0.3% |
| Net Profit YoY | -49.7% | 22.2% |
| EPS (diluted) | $0.72 | $-0.90 |
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.
| Q4 25 | $598.2M | $631.2M | ||
| Q3 25 | $274.2M | $631.8M | ||
| Q2 25 | $233.0M | $618.8M | ||
| Q1 25 | $419.7M | $613.3M | ||
| Q4 24 | $559.7M | $632.8M | ||
| Q3 24 | $250.9M | $655.9M | ||
| Q2 24 | $192.7M | $643.7M | ||
| Q1 24 | $415.4M | $541.8M |
| Q4 25 | $25.0M | $-28.3M | ||
| Q3 25 | $-18.3M | $-16.3M | ||
| Q2 25 | $-23.0M | $-12.6M | ||
| Q1 25 | $17.9M | $-50.6M | ||
| Q4 24 | $43.2M | $-36.4M | ||
| Q3 24 | $-103.9M | $-73.4M | ||
| Q2 24 | $-41.9M | $-645.4M | ||
| Q1 24 | $-9.3M | $-61.7M |
| Q4 25 | 21.7% | — | ||
| Q3 25 | 20.2% | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 30.3% | — | ||
| Q1 25 | 22.3% | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 23.0% | — | ||
| Q3 24 | 17.9% | — | ||
| Q2 24 | 28.7% | — | ||
| Q1 24 | 24.2% | — |
| Q4 25 | 6.8% | -0.5% | ||
| Q3 25 | -8.4% | 2.4% | ||
| Q2 25 | -4.9% | 3.2% | ||
| Q1 25 | 4.5% | 0.8% | ||
| Q4 24 | 8.4% | 12.0% | ||
| Q3 24 | -15.4% | 3.5% | ||
| Q2 24 | -16.3% | -170.2% | ||
| Q1 24 | 0.4% | -12.1% |
| Q4 25 | 4.2% | -4.5% | ||
| Q3 25 | -6.7% | -2.6% | ||
| Q2 25 | -9.9% | -2.0% | ||
| Q1 25 | 4.3% | -8.3% | ||
| Q4 24 | 7.7% | -5.8% | ||
| Q3 24 | -41.4% | -11.2% | ||
| Q2 24 | -21.7% | -100.3% | ||
| Q1 24 | -2.2% | -11.4% |
| Q4 25 | $0.72 | $-0.90 | ||
| Q3 25 | $-0.54 | $-0.52 | ||
| Q2 25 | $2.97 | $-0.41 | ||
| Q1 25 | $0.59 | $-1.68 | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.63 | $-1.69 | ||
| Q3 24 | $-7.69 | $-2.66 | ||
| Q2 24 | $-15.68 | $-23.47 | ||
| Q1 24 | $-3.49 | $-2.81 |
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 | $106.0M |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | $122.5M | $1.7B |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $283.2M | $113.3M |
| Total Assets | $1.1B | $2.7B |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | 0.43× | 14.89× |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | $11.7M | $106.0M | ||
| Q3 25 | $7.3M | $140.4M | ||
| Q2 25 | $9.1M | $95.1M | ||
| Q1 25 | $9.2M | $116.3M | ||
| Q4 24 | $11.6M | $104.9M | ||
| Q3 24 | $8.2M | $136.6M | ||
| Q2 24 | $10.5M | $84.9M | ||
| Q1 24 | $8.1M | $152.0M |
| Q4 25 | $122.5M | $1.7B | ||
| Q3 25 | $170.0M | $1.7B | ||
| Q2 25 | $103.1M | — | ||
| Q1 25 | $141.2M | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $177.6M | — | ||
| Q3 24 | $221.9M | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $196.3M | — | ||
| Q1 24 | $30.2M | $1.7B |
| Q4 25 | $283.2M | $113.3M | ||
| Q3 25 | $256.5M | $139.8M | ||
| Q2 25 | $272.2M | $151.8M | ||
| Q1 25 | $292.9M | $154.6M | ||
| Q4 24 | $211.4M | $201.7M | ||
| Q3 24 | $149.8M | $226.1M | ||
| Q2 24 | $80.4M | $283.8M | ||
| Q1 24 | $121.5M | $926.1M |
| Q4 25 | $1.1B | $2.7B | ||
| Q3 25 | $950.8M | $2.8B | ||
| Q2 25 | $790.3M | $2.8B | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.1B | $2.8B | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.0B | $2.8B | ||
| Q3 24 | $973.2M | $3.1B | ||
| Q2 24 | $909.9M | $3.1B | ||
| Q1 24 | $1.2B | $4.0B |
| Q4 25 | 0.43× | 14.89× | ||
| Q3 25 | 0.66× | 12.05× | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.38× | — | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.48× | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 0.84× | — | ||
| Q3 24 | 1.48× | — | ||
| Q2 24 | 2.44× | — | ||
| Q1 24 | 0.25× | 1.81× |
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 | — |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | 10.4% | — |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | 0.7% | 1.3% |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | 2.65× | — |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | $-4.6M | — |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q4 25 | $66.2M | — | ||
| Q3 25 | $-67.6M | $52.7M | ||
| Q2 25 | $52.6M | — | ||
| Q1 25 | $-41.9M | $27.6M | ||
| Q4 24 | $47.4M | $-23.2M | ||
| Q3 24 | $-143.5M | $51.2M | ||
| Q2 24 | $81.7M | $-45.2M | ||
| Q1 24 | $-35.8M | $-51.7M |
| Q4 25 | $61.9M | — | ||
| Q3 25 | $-71.3M | $48.6M | ||
| Q2 25 | $49.5M | — | ||
| Q1 25 | $-44.7M | $15.7M | ||
| Q4 24 | $44.4M | $-30.5M | ||
| Q3 24 | $-147.5M | $40.7M | ||
| Q2 24 | $79.1M | $-59.6M | ||
| Q1 24 | $-39.0M | $-56.7M |
| Q4 25 | 10.4% | — | ||
| Q3 25 | -26.0% | 7.7% | ||
| Q2 25 | 21.3% | — | ||
| Q1 25 | -10.7% | 2.6% | ||
| Q4 24 | 7.9% | -4.8% | ||
| Q3 24 | -58.8% | 6.2% | ||
| Q2 24 | 41.1% | -9.3% | ||
| Q1 24 | -9.4% | -10.5% |
| Q4 25 | 0.7% | 1.3% | ||
| Q3 25 | 1.4% | 0.7% | ||
| Q2 25 | 1.3% | 0.8% | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.7% | 1.9% | ||
| Q4 24 | 0.5% | 1.1% | ||
| Q3 24 | 1.6% | 1.6% | ||
| Q2 24 | 1.4% | 2.2% | ||
| Q1 24 | 0.8% | 0.9% |
| Q4 25 | 2.65× | — | ||
| Q3 25 | — | — | ||
| Q2 25 | — | — | ||
| Q1 25 | -2.34× | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 1.10× | — | ||
| Q3 24 | — | — | ||
| Q2 24 | — | — | ||
| Q1 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% |
FWRD
| Omni Logistics Segment | $359.8M | 57% |
| Network | $183.9M | 29% |
| Intermodal Segment | $50.2M | 8% |
| Truckload | $41.6M | 7% |
