Build-A-Bear Workshop vs Barnes & Noble Education
Barnes & Noble Education reported revenue of $1.7 billion in fiscal 2026, 3.2 times Build-A-Bear Workshop's $530 million in fiscal 2026. Build-A-Bear Workshop's revenue grew 6.7% in its latest year, and Barnes & Noble Education's grew 6.5%. Free cash flow was $40 million at Build-A-Bear Workshop and $34 million at Barnes & Noble Education. Their fiscal years end in different months (January 31 and May 2), so the periods don't line up exactly.
Side by side
| Build-A-Bear Workshop | Barnes & Noble Education | |
|---|---|---|
| Latest fiscal year | FY2026, Jan 31, 2026 | FY2026, May 2, 2026 |
| Revenue | $530M | $1.7B |
| Revenue growth | 6.7% | 6.5% |
| Revenue growth a year, last 5 years | 15.7% | 4.0% |
| Gross margin | 55.8% | 21.4% |
| Operating margin | — | 2.1% |
| Net margin | 9.8% | 1.0% |
| Free cash flow | $40M | $34M |
| Free cash flow margin | 7.5% | 2.0% |
| Return on capital | — | 8.2% |
| Net debt to EBITDA | — | 0.9x |
| Dividends and buybacks | $39M | $0M |
| Change in diluted share count | −4.0% | 31.6% |
| Last close | $29.70 | $12.58 |
| P/E at the last close | 7.4× | 19.7× |
| Insider trades, last 12 months | — | — |
| Piotroski F-score | — | 8 of 9 |
Amounts in each company's own currency, US$ unless marked (a foreign company may report in another), each company's latest fiscal year from its 10-K, or 20-F or 40-F for a foreign company. Growth rates compare with the year before; the five-year rate is the average a year. Free cash flow is cash from operations minus capital spending; return on capital is after-tax operating income over the money invested in the business; P/E is the last close over the latest earnings per share. Banks are measured differently (return on equity, efficiency ratio), so some rows apply to one company only.
Ten years
Revenue
US$ billions, fiscal years
Build-A-Bear WorkshopBarnes & Noble Education
Operating margin
Percent of revenue
Build-A-Bear WorkshopBarnes & Noble Education
Free cash flow
US$ billions. Cash from operations minus capital expenditure.
Build-A-Bear WorkshopBarnes & Noble Education
Source: the companies' Form 10-K filings, from SEC EDGAR, and the last close. For information only, not investment advice: the figures describe results, not which company is the better investment. The Filing Desk is not affiliated with either company. Full figures on the Build-A-Bear Workshop and Barnes & Noble Education pages.