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Side-by-side financial comparison of Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc. (PLAY) and UL Solutions Inc. (ULS). Click either name above to swap in a different company.

UL Solutions Inc. is the larger business by last-quarter revenue ($789.0M vs $448.2M, roughly 1.8× Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc.). UL Solutions Inc. runs the higher net margin — 8.5% vs -9.4%, a 17.9% gap on every dollar of revenue. On growth, UL Solutions Inc. posted the faster year-over-year revenue change (6.8% vs -1.1%). UL Solutions Inc. produced more free cash flow last quarter ($86.0M vs $-20.6M). Over the past eight quarters, UL Solutions Inc.'s revenue compounded faster (8.5% CAGR vs -13.5%).

Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc. is an American restaurant and entertainment business headquartered in Dallas. Each Dave & Buster's location has a full-service restaurant, full bar, and a video arcade, the latter of which is known as the "Million Dollar Midway". As of February 2024, the company has 158 locations in the United States, as well as two in Puerto Rico and two in Canada.

The UL enterprise is a global private safety company headquartered in Northbrook, Illinois, composed of three organizations, UL Research Institutes, UL Standards & Engagement and UL Solutions.

PLAY vs ULS — Head-to-Head

Bigger by revenue
ULS
ULS
1.8× larger
ULS
$789.0M
$448.2M
PLAY
Growing faster (revenue YoY)
ULS
ULS
+7.8% gap
ULS
6.8%
-1.1%
PLAY
Higher net margin
ULS
ULS
17.9% more per $
ULS
8.5%
-9.4%
PLAY
More free cash flow
ULS
ULS
$106.6M more FCF
ULS
$86.0M
$-20.6M
PLAY
Faster 2-yr revenue CAGR
ULS
ULS
Annualised
ULS
8.5%
-13.5%
PLAY

Income Statement — Q3 FY2026 vs Q4 FY2025

Metric
PLAY
PLAY
ULS
ULS
Revenue
$448.2M
$789.0M
Net Profit
$-42.1M
$67.0M
Gross Margin
85.8%
49.7%
Operating Margin
-3.6%
15.0%
Net Margin
-9.4%
8.5%
Revenue YoY
-1.1%
6.8%
Net Profit YoY
-28.7%
-17.3%
EPS (diluted)
$-1.22
$0.33

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.

Revenue
PLAY
PLAY
ULS
ULS
Q4 25
$448.2M
$789.0M
Q3 25
$557.4M
$783.0M
Q2 25
$567.7M
$776.0M
Q1 25
$534.5M
$705.0M
Q4 24
$453.0M
$739.0M
Q3 24
$557.1M
$731.0M
Q2 24
$588.1M
$730.0M
Q1 24
$599.0M
$670.0M
Net Profit
PLAY
PLAY
ULS
ULS
Q4 25
$-42.1M
$67.0M
Q3 25
$11.4M
$100.0M
Q2 25
$21.7M
$91.0M
Q1 25
$9.3M
$67.0M
Q4 24
$-32.7M
$81.0M
Q3 24
$40.3M
$88.0M
Q2 24
$41.4M
$101.0M
Q1 24
$36.1M
$56.0M
Gross Margin
PLAY
PLAY
ULS
ULS
Q4 25
85.8%
49.7%
Q3 25
86.3%
50.3%
Q2 25
85.5%
49.4%
Q1 25
85.5%
48.4%
Q4 24
85.0%
47.4%
Q3 24
85.3%
49.0%
Q2 24
85.2%
50.1%
Q1 24
84.1%
47.6%
Operating Margin
PLAY
PLAY
ULS
ULS
Q4 25
-3.6%
15.0%
Q3 25
9.5%
19.9%
Q2 25
11.1%
17.9%
Q1 25
8.3%
15.5%
Q4 24
1.4%
15.6%
Q3 24
15.2%
17.8%
Q2 24
14.5%
17.3%
Q1 24
14.9%
13.6%
Net Margin
PLAY
PLAY
ULS
ULS
Q4 25
-9.4%
8.5%
Q3 25
2.0%
12.8%
Q2 25
3.8%
11.7%
Q1 25
1.7%
9.5%
Q4 24
-7.2%
11.0%
Q3 24
7.2%
12.0%
Q2 24
7.0%
13.8%
Q1 24
6.0%
8.4%
EPS (diluted)
PLAY
PLAY
ULS
ULS
Q4 25
$-1.22
$0.33
Q3 25
$0.32
$0.49
Q2 25
$0.62
$0.45
Q1 25
$0.32
$0.33
Q4 24
$-0.84
$0.40
Q3 24
$0.99
$0.44
Q2 24
$0.99
$0.50
Q1 24
$0.95
$0.28

Balance Sheet & Financial Strength

Snapshot of each company's liquidity, leverage and book value from the latest quarter.

Metric
PLAY
PLAY
ULS
ULS
Cash + ST InvestmentsLiquidity on hand
$13.6M
$295.0M
Total DebtLower is stronger
$1.6B
$491.0M
Stockholders' EquityBook value
$130.8M
$1.3B
Total Assets
$4.1B
$2.9B
Debt / EquityLower = less leverage
12.17×
0.39×

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Cash + ST Investments
PLAY
PLAY
ULS
ULS
Q4 25
$13.6M
$295.0M
Q3 25
$12.0M
$255.0M
Q2 25
$11.9M
$272.0M
Q1 25
$6.9M
$267.0M
Q4 24
$8.6M
$298.0M
Q3 24
$13.1M
$327.0M
Q2 24
$32.1M
$295.0M
Q1 24
$37.3M
$344.0M
Total Debt
PLAY
PLAY
ULS
ULS
Q4 25
$1.6B
$491.0M
Q3 25
$1.6B
$544.0M
Q2 25
$1.6B
$608.0M
Q1 25
$1.5B
$653.0M
Q4 24
$1.5B
$742.0M
Q3 24
$1.3B
$797.0M
Q2 24
$1.3B
$810.0M
Q1 24
$1.3B
$879.0M
Stockholders' Equity
PLAY
PLAY
ULS
ULS
Q4 25
$130.8M
$1.3B
Q3 25
$166.2M
$1.2B
Q2 25
$146.8M
$1.1B
Q1 25
$145.8M
$970.0M
Q4 24
$226.6M
$904.0M
Q3 24
$284.4M
$872.0M
Q2 24
$292.5M
$769.0M
Q1 24
$251.2M
$671.0M
Total Assets
PLAY
PLAY
ULS
ULS
Q4 25
$4.1B
$2.9B
Q3 25
$4.1B
$2.9B
Q2 25
$4.1B
$2.9B
Q1 25
$4.0B
$2.9B
Q4 24
$3.9B
$2.8B
Q3 24
$3.8B
$2.9B
Q2 24
$3.8B
$2.7B
Q1 24
$3.8B
$2.8B
Debt / Equity
PLAY
PLAY
ULS
ULS
Q4 25
12.17×
0.39×
Q3 25
9.57×
0.46×
Q2 25
10.98×
0.56×
Q1 25
10.45×
0.67×
Q4 24
6.58×
0.82×
Q3 24
4.72×
0.91×
Q2 24
4.58×
1.05×
Q1 24
5.33×
1.31×

Cash Flow & Capital Efficiency

How much cash each business actually produces after reinvestment. Cash flow is harder to manipulate than net income.

Metric
PLAY
PLAY
ULS
ULS
Operating Cash FlowLast quarter
$58.0M
$144.0M
Free Cash FlowOCF − Capex
$-20.6M
$86.0M
FCF MarginFCF / Revenue
-4.6%
10.9%
Capex IntensityCapex / Revenue
17.5%
7.4%
Cash ConversionOCF / Net Profit
2.15×
TTM Free Cash FlowTrailing 4 quarters
$-195.6M
$403.0M

8-quarter trend — quarters aligned by calendar period.

Operating Cash Flow
PLAY
PLAY
ULS
ULS
Q4 25
$58.0M
$144.0M
Q3 25
$34.0M
$155.0M
Q2 25
$95.8M
$147.0M
Q1 25
$108.9M
$154.0M
Q4 24
$-7.2M
$130.0M
Q3 24
$101.8M
$150.0M
Q2 24
$108.8M
$103.0M
Q1 24
$97.2M
$141.0M
Free Cash Flow
PLAY
PLAY
ULS
ULS
Q4 25
$-20.6M
$86.0M
Q3 25
$-55.2M
$109.0M
Q2 25
$-58.8M
$105.0M
Q1 25
$-61.0M
$103.0M
Q4 24
$-138.4M
$72.0M
Q3 24
$-14.3M
$84.0M
Q2 24
$-4.2M
$47.0M
Q1 24
$-25.4M
$84.0M
FCF Margin
PLAY
PLAY
ULS
ULS
Q4 25
-4.6%
10.9%
Q3 25
-9.9%
13.9%
Q2 25
-10.4%
13.5%
Q1 25
-11.4%
14.6%
Q4 24
-30.6%
9.7%
Q3 24
-2.6%
11.5%
Q2 24
-0.7%
6.4%
Q1 24
-4.2%
12.5%
Capex Intensity
PLAY
PLAY
ULS
ULS
Q4 25
17.5%
7.4%
Q3 25
16.0%
5.9%
Q2 25
27.2%
5.4%
Q1 25
31.8%
7.2%
Q4 24
29.0%
7.8%
Q3 24
20.8%
9.0%
Q2 24
19.2%
7.7%
Q1 24
20.5%
8.5%
Cash Conversion
PLAY
PLAY
ULS
ULS
Q4 25
2.15×
Q3 25
2.98×
1.55×
Q2 25
4.41×
1.62×
Q1 25
11.71×
2.30×
Q4 24
1.60×
Q3 24
2.53×
1.70×
Q2 24
2.63×
1.02×
Q1 24
2.69×
2.52×

Financial Flow Comparison

Revenue → gross profit → operating profit → net profit for each company.

Revenue Breakdown by Segment

PLAY
PLAY

Game Play Credit Usage$273.1M61%
Food And Nonalcoholic Beverages$115.1M26%
Alcoholic Beverage$53.7M12%
Other Entertainment$6.3M1%
Gift Card Revenue$3.5M1%

ULS
ULS

Industrial$352.0M45%
Ongoing Certification Services$259.0M33%
Software And Advisory$102.0M13%
Software$75.0M10%

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