Xcel BrandsXELB -3.05%43 Piotroski F-Score is 3 as of Jun. 25, 2026, which is at its 10-year median of 3.00. GuruFocus rates XELB with a GF Score™ of 43/100 and a GF Value™ of $1.20 (Significantly Overvalued). The stock has 6 warning signs investors should review. Among 1,055 Manufacturing - Apparel & Accessories companies, Xcel Brands ranks worse than 82.18% on this metric.
Warning Sign:
Piotroski F-Score of 3 is low, which usually implies poor business operation.
The zones of discrimination were as such:
Good or high score = 7, 8, 9
Bad or low score = 0, 1, 2, 3
Xcel Brands has an F-score of 3. It is a bad or low score, which usually implies poor business operation.
The historical rank and industry rank for Xcel Brands's Piotroski F-Score or its related term are showing as below:
XELB'
s Piotroski F-Score Range Over the Past 10 Years
Min: 1 Med: 3 Max: 8
Current: 3
During the past 13 years, the highest Piotroski F-Score of Xcel Brands was 8. The lowest was 1. And the median was 3.
The developer of the system is Joseph D. Piotroski is relatively unknown accounting professor who shuns publicity and rarely gives interviews.
He graduated from the University of Illinois with a B.S. in accounting in 1989, received an M.B.A. from Indiana University in 1994. Five years later, in 1999, after earning a Ph.D. in accounting from the University of Michigan, he became an associate professor of accounting at the University of Chicago.
He wanted to see if he can develop a system (using a simple nine-point scoring system) that can increase the returns of a strategy of investing in low price to book (referred to in the paper as high book to market) value companies.
What he found was something that exceeded his most optimistic expectations.
Buying only those companies that scored highest (8 or 9) on his nine-point scale, or F-Score as he called it, over the 20 year period from 1976 to 1996 led to an average out-performance over the market of 13.4%.
Even more impressive were the results of a strategy of investing in the highest F-Score companies (8 or 9) and shorting companies with the lowest F-Score (0 or 1).
Over the same period from 1976 to 1996 (20 years) this strategy led to an average yearly return of 23%, substantially outperforming the average S&P 500 index return of 15.83% over the same period.
Xcel Brands Piotroski F-Score Related Terms
Xcel Brands Piotroski F-Score Historical Data
* Premium members only.
The historical data trend for Xcel Brands's Piotroski F-Score can be seen below:
* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD. * For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.
XELB vs PMNT, NCI, JL: Piotroski F-Score Comparison
For the Apparel Manufacturing subindustry, Xcel Brands's Piotroski F-Score, along with its competitors' market caps and Piotroski F-Score data, can be viewed below:
* Competitive companies are chosen from companies within the same industry, with headquarter located in same country, with closest market capitalization; x-axis shows the market cap, and y-axis shows the term value; the bigger the dot, the larger the market cap. Note that "N/A" values will not show up in the chart.
Xcel Brands Piotroski F-Score vs Manufacturing - Apparel & Accessories Industry
For the Manufacturing - Apparel & Accessories industry and Consumer Cyclical sector, Xcel Brands's Piotroski F-Score distribution charts can be found below:
* The bar in red indicates where Xcel Brands's Piotroski F-Score falls into.
* For Operating Data section: All numbers are indicated by the unit behind each term and all currency related amount are in USD. * For other sections: All numbers are in millions except for per share data, ratio, and percentage. All currency related amount are indicated in the company's associated stock exchange currency.
*Note: If the latest quarterly/semi-annual/annual total assets data is 0, then we will use previous quarterly/semi-annual/annual data for all the items in the balance sheet.
Profitability
Question 1. Return on Assets (ROA)
Net income before extraordinary items for the year divided by Total Assets at the beginning of the year.
Score 1 if positive, 0 if negative.
Xcel Brands's current Net Income (TTM) was -17.15.
==> Negative ==> Score 0.
Question 2. Cash Flow Return on Assets (CFROA)
Net cash flow from operating activities (operating cash flow) divided by Total Assets at the beginning of the year.
Xcel Brands's return on assets of this year was -0.32681096. Xcel Brands's return on assets of last year was -0.28305674.
==> Last year is higher ==> Score 0.
Question 4. Quality of Earnings (Accrual)
Compare Cash flow return on assets (2) to return on assets (1)
Xcel Brands's gearing of this year was 0.30343247. Xcel Brands's gearing of last year was 0.23134156.
==> Last year is lower than this year ==> Score 0.
Question 6. Change in Working Capital (Liquidity)
Compare this year's current ratio (current assets divided by current liabilities) to last year's current ratio.
Score 1 if this year's current ratio is higher, 0 if it's lower
Xcel Brands's current ratio of this year was 0.58348481. Xcel Brands's current ratio of last year was 0.27789976.
==> This year's current ratio is higher. ==> Score 1.
Question 7. Change in Shares in Issue
Compare the number of shares in issue this year, to the number in issue last year.
Score 0 if there is larger number of shares in issue this year, 1 otherwise.
Xcel Brands's number of shares in issue this year was 5.904. Xcel Brands's number of shares in issue last year was 2.374.
==> There is larger number of shares in issue this year. ==> Score 0.
Efficiency
Question 8. Change in Gross Margin
Compare this year's gross margin (Gross Profit divided by sales) to last year's.
Score 1 if this year's gross margin is higher, 0 if it's lower.
Xcel Brands's gross margin of this year was 1. Xcel Brands's gross margin of last year was 0.9399217.
==> This year's gross margin is higher. ==> Score 1.
Question 9. Change in asset turnover
Compare this year's asset turnover (total sales for the year divided by total assets at the beginning of the year) to last year's asset turnover ratio.
Score 1 if this year's asset turnover ratio is higher, 0 if it's lower
Xcel Brands's asset turnover of this year was 0.09051938. Xcel Brands's asset turnover of last year was 0.11094302.
==> Last year's asset turnover is higher ==> Score 0.
Evaluation
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Good or high score = 7, 8, 9
Bad or low score = 0, 1, 2, 3
Xcel Brands has an F-score of 3. It is a bad or low score, which usually implies poor business operation.
Xcel Brands (XELB) has a Piotroski F-Score of 3 as of Jun. 25, 2026. The Piotroski F-score grades a company's business operating strength from 0-9. View historical data on Xcel Brands and its competitors. This is near median its historical median of 3.00. Over the past decade, Xcel Brands' Piotroski F-Score has ranged from 1.00 to 8.00. According to the industry distribution chart, Xcel Brands ranks #867 out of 1055 companies in the Manufacturing - Apparel & Accessories industry, placing it in the top 82.2%.
Is Xcel Brands' Piotroski F-Score too high?
Xcel Brands' current Piotroski F-Score of 3 is near median its 10-year median of 3.00. Over the past 10 years, this metric has ranged from a low of 1.00 to a high of 8.00. The Manufacturing - Apparel & Accessories industry median Piotroski F-Score is 5.00. Xcel Brands' value of 3 is 40% below this industry median. Based on the distribution chart, Xcel Brands ranks #867 out of 1055 companies in the Manufacturing - Apparel & Accessories industry, which is in the bottom quartile relative to peers. Overall, Xcel Brands has a GF Score™ of 43/100 and is considered Significantly Overvalued, reflecting its overall financial health beyond just this single metric.
How does Xcel Brands' Piotroski F-Score compare to PMNT and NCI?
According to the Manufacturing - Apparel & Accessories industry distribution chart, Xcel Brands ranks #867 out of 1055 companies for Piotroski F-Score. This places Xcel Brands in the lower half of its industry. The industry median Piotroski F-Score is 5.00. Xcel Brands' value of 3 is 40% below this benchmark. Historically, Xcel Brands' own Piotroski F-Score has ranged from 1.00 to 8.00 over the past decade. While the company's 10-year median is 3.00 vs. the industry median of 5.00, Xcel Brands has consistently been below the industry average. See the competitive comparison table and distribution chart on this page for a detailed peer-by-peer breakdown.
What is a good Piotroski F-Score for a Manufacturing - Apparel & Accessories company?
The median Piotroski F-Score among Manufacturing - Apparel & Accessories companies is 5.00, based on 1,055 companies in the industry. Companies in the top quartile (top 25%) have a Piotroski F-Score significantly above this median, while those in the bottom quartile fall well below. However, Piotroski F-Score should not be evaluated in isolation — investors should consider it alongside profitability, growth, and financial strength metrics. Xcel Brands's current Piotroski F-Score of 3 is 40% below the industry median. Use the industry distribution chart on this page to see where any company falls relative to its peers.
What does a high Piotroski F-Score mean?
A high Piotroski F-Score can signal that a stock is expensive relative to its fundamentals. The Piotroski F-score grades a company's business operating strength from 0-9. View historical data on Xcel Brands and its competitors. For the Manufacturing - Apparel & Accessories industry, the median Piotroski F-Score is 5.00 — values significantly above this may indicate overvaluation, while values below may suggest a bargain or underlying issues. Xcel Brands's current Piotroski F-Score is 3, which is near median its own 10-year median of 3.00. However, context matters — high-growth companies often justify higher valuations. Always evaluate alongside other metrics like GF Score™ and GF Value™.
Is Xcel Brands stock overvalued right now?
Based on GuruFocus' analysis, Xcel Brands (XELB) is currently considered Significantly Overvalued. The stock's GF Value™ is $1.20, compared to a current price of $1.90 — trading 57.9% above its estimated fair value. The current Piotroski F-Score is 3, which is near median its 10-year median of 3.00 and 40% below the Manufacturing - Apparel & Accessories industry median of 5.00. Xcel Brands' overall GF Score™ is 43/100 with 6 warning signs to review. Investors should evaluate multiple metrics — including profitability, growth, and financial strength — before making a decision.
How is Piotroski F-Score calculated?
Piotroski F-Score is calculated from a company's financial statements. For Xcel Brands (XELB), the current Piotroski F-Score is 3 as of Jun. 25, 2026. GuruFocus calculates this using data sourced from SEC filings and annual reports. See the calculation section and 30-year financial data on this page for the full breakdown.
Is Xcel Brands (XELB) Overvalued in 2026?
Based on GuruFocus' analysis, Xcel Brands stock appears to be overvalued.
The current stock price of $1.90 is trading 57.9% above its estimated GF Value™ of $1.20.
GuruFocus considers Xcel Brands to be Significantly Overvalued.
Key valuation signals for XELB:
Piotroski F-Score: 3 (near median its 10-year median of 3.00)
GF Value™: $1.20 vs. price of $1.90 (57.9% above fair value)
Industry Position: 40% below the Manufacturing - Apparel & Accessories median (#867 of 1055)
No single metric tells the full story. See the XELB stock analysis page for a complete view including 30-year financials, guru trades, and insider activity.
Xcel Brands Inc is a media and brand management company. It is engaged in design, merchandising and planning, sourcing and production, licensing, marketing, and brand development. The company offers branded apparel, footwear, accessories, jewelry, home goods, and other consumer products. Its brand portfolio consists of the Isaac Mizrahi, Judith Ripka, H Halston, C Wonder, and the Highline Collective brands. The company licenses its brands to third parties, provides certain designs, production, and marketing services, and generates licensing, design, and service fee revenues through contractual arrangements and other agreements.
43GF Score
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