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Side-by-side financial comparison of Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. (BNED) and Symbotic Inc. (SYM). Click either name above to swap in a different company.
Symbotic Inc. is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($630.0M vs $598.2M, roughly 1.1× Barnes & Noble Education, Inc.). Barnes & Noble Education, Inc. runs the higher net margin — 4.2% vs 2.1%, a 2.1% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, Symbotic Inc. posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (29.4% vs 6.9%). Symbotic Inc. produced more free cash flow last quarter ($189.5M vs $61.9M). Over the past eight quarters, Barnes & Noble Education, Inc.'s revenue compounded faster (20.0% CAGR vs 13.2%).
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.
Symbotic Inc. is an American robotics warehouse automation company based in Wilmington, Massachusetts.
BNED vs SYM — Head-to-Head
Income Statement — Q2 FY2026 vs Q2 FY2026
| Metric | | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $598.2M | $630.0M |
| Net Profit | $25.0M | $13.4M |
| Gross Margin | 21.7% | 21.2% |
| Operating Margin | 6.8% | 79.9% |
| Net Margin | 4.2% | 2.1% |
| Revenue YoY | 6.9% | 29.4% |
| Net Profit YoY | -49.7% | 248.9% |
| EPS (diluted) | $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 | — | $630.0M | ||
| Q4 25 | $598.2M | $630.0M | ||
| Q3 25 | $274.2M | $618.5M | ||
| Q2 25 | $233.0M | $592.1M | ||
| Q1 25 | $419.7M | $549.7M | ||
| Q4 24 | $559.7M | $486.7M | ||
| Q3 24 | $250.9M | $503.6M | ||
| Q2 24 | $192.7M | $491.9M |
| Q1 26 | — | $13.4M | ||
| Q4 25 | $25.0M | $2.6M | ||
| Q3 25 | $-18.3M | $-3.6M | ||
| Q2 25 | $-23.0M | $-5.9M | ||
| Q1 25 | $17.9M | $-3.9M | ||
| Q4 24 | $43.2M | $-3.5M | ||
| Q3 24 | $-103.9M | $-2.5M | ||
| Q2 24 | $-41.9M | $-2.5M |
| Q1 26 | — | 21.2% | ||
| Q4 25 | 21.7% | 21.2% | ||
| Q3 25 | 20.2% | 20.6% | ||
| Q2 25 | 30.3% | 18.2% | ||
| Q1 25 | 22.3% | 19.6% | ||
| Q4 24 | 23.0% | 16.4% | ||
| Q3 24 | 17.9% | 12.7% | ||
| Q2 24 | 28.7% | 13.7% |
| Q1 26 | — | 79.9% | ||
| Q4 25 | 6.8% | 1.0% | ||
| Q3 25 | -8.4% | -3.5% | ||
| Q2 25 | -4.9% | -6.2% | ||
| Q1 25 | 4.5% | -5.8% | ||
| Q4 24 | 8.4% | -5.1% | ||
| Q3 24 | -15.4% | -4.3% | ||
| Q2 24 | -16.3% | -5.1% |
| Q1 26 | — | 2.1% | ||
| Q4 25 | 4.2% | 0.4% | ||
| Q3 25 | -6.7% | -0.6% | ||
| Q2 25 | -9.9% | -1.0% | ||
| Q1 25 | 4.3% | -0.7% | ||
| Q4 24 | 7.7% | -0.7% | ||
| Q3 24 | -41.4% | -0.5% | ||
| Q2 24 | -21.7% | -0.5% |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $0.72 | $0.02 | ||
| Q3 25 | $-0.54 | $-0.04 | ||
| Q2 25 | $2.97 | $-0.05 | ||
| Q1 25 | $0.59 | $-0.04 | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.63 | $-0.03 | ||
| Q3 24 | $-7.69 | $-0.03 | ||
| Q2 24 | $-15.68 | $-0.02 |
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 | $1.8B |
| Total DebtLower is stronger | $122.5M | — |
| Stockholders' EquityBook value | $283.2M | $663.8M |
| Total Assets | $1.1B | $3.0B |
| Debt / EquityLower = less leverage | 0.43× | — |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q1 26 | — | $1.8B | ||
| Q4 25 | $11.7M | $1.8B | ||
| Q3 25 | $7.3M | $1.2B | ||
| Q2 25 | $9.1M | $777.6M | ||
| Q1 25 | $9.2M | $954.9M | ||
| Q4 24 | $11.6M | $903.0M | ||
| Q3 24 | $8.2M | $727.3M | ||
| Q2 24 | $10.5M | $870.5M |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | $122.5M | — | ||
| Q3 25 | $170.0M | — | ||
| Q2 25 | $103.1M | — | ||
| Q1 25 | $141.2M | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $177.6M | — | ||
| Q3 24 | $221.9M | — | ||
| Q2 24 | $196.3M | — |
| Q1 26 | — | $663.8M | ||
| Q4 25 | $283.2M | $663.8M | ||
| Q3 25 | $256.5M | $221.3M | ||
| Q2 25 | $272.2M | $210.8M | ||
| Q1 25 | $292.9M | $205.4M | ||
| Q4 24 | $211.4M | $196.5M | ||
| Q3 24 | $149.8M | $197.2M | ||
| Q2 24 | $80.4M | $418.7M |
| Q1 26 | — | $3.0B | ||
| Q4 25 | $1.1B | $3.0B | ||
| Q3 25 | $950.8M | $2.4B | ||
| Q2 25 | $790.3M | $1.8B | ||
| Q1 25 | $1.1B | $2.0B | ||
| Q4 24 | $1.0B | $1.7B | ||
| Q3 24 | $973.2M | $1.6B | ||
| Q2 24 | $909.9M | $1.6B |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 0.43× | — | ||
| Q3 25 | 0.66× | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 0.38× | — | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.48× | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 0.84× | — | ||
| Q3 24 | 1.48× | — | ||
| Q2 24 | 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 | $191.5M |
| Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex | $61.9M | $189.5M |
| FCF MarginFCF / Revenue | 10.4% | 30.1% |
| Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue | 0.7% | — |
| Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit | 2.65× | 14.34× |
| TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters | $-4.6M | — |
8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.
| Q1 26 | — | $191.5M | ||
| Q4 25 | $66.2M | $191.5M | ||
| Q3 25 | $-67.6M | $530.7M | ||
| Q2 25 | $52.6M | $-138.3M | ||
| Q1 25 | $-41.9M | $269.6M | ||
| Q4 24 | $47.4M | $205.0M | ||
| Q3 24 | $-143.5M | $-99.4M | ||
| Q2 24 | $81.7M | $50.4M |
| Q1 26 | — | $189.5M | ||
| Q4 25 | $61.9M | — | ||
| Q3 25 | $-71.3M | — | ||
| Q2 25 | $49.5M | — | ||
| Q1 25 | $-44.7M | — | ||
| Q4 24 | $44.4M | $197.7M | ||
| Q3 24 | $-147.5M | $-120.1M | ||
| Q2 24 | $79.1M | $33.5M |
| Q1 26 | — | 30.1% | ||
| Q4 25 | 10.4% | — | ||
| Q3 25 | -26.0% | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 21.3% | — | ||
| Q1 25 | -10.7% | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 7.9% | 40.6% | ||
| Q3 24 | -58.8% | -23.9% | ||
| Q2 24 | 41.1% | 6.8% |
| Q1 26 | — | — | ||
| Q4 25 | 0.7% | — | ||
| Q3 25 | 1.4% | — | ||
| Q2 25 | 1.3% | — | ||
| Q1 25 | 0.7% | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 0.5% | 1.5% | ||
| Q3 24 | 1.6% | 4.1% | ||
| Q2 24 | 1.4% | 3.4% |
| Q1 26 | — | 14.34× | ||
| Q4 25 | 2.65× | 73.61× | ||
| Q3 25 | — | — | ||
| Q2 25 | — | — | ||
| Q1 25 | -2.34× | — | ||
| Q4 24 | 1.10× | — | ||
| Q3 24 | — | — | ||
| 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% |
SYM
| Systems | $590.3M | 94% |
| Operation services | $28.8M | 5% |
| Software maintenance and support | $10.9M | 2% |
