BNED (Barnes & Noble Education) Return-on-Tangible-Asset: 1.60% (As of Apr. 2026)

Author: Vera Yuan Vera Yuan
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Director of Data and Quant Analytics at GuruFocus
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Dr. Charlie Tian is the founder and CEO of GuruFocus.com, a leading global investment research platform established in 2004. With a Ph.D. in physics, Dr. Tian transitioned from science to finance, applying a data-driven, disciplined approach to value investing.

BNED Barnes & Noble Education Inc BNED
51 GF Score
Price $12.03
GF Value $2.40
Valuation Significantly Overvalued
! 4 Warning Signs
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What is Barnes & Noble Education Return-on-Tangible-Asset?

Barnes & Noble Education BNED +0.59% 51 Return-on-Tangible-Asset is 1.60% as of Apr. 2026. GuruFocus rates BNED with a GF Score™ of 51/100 and a GF Value™ of $2.40 (Significantly Overvalued). The stock has 4 warning signs investors should review. Among 1,139 Retail - Cyclical companies, Barnes & Noble Education ranks worse than 57.95% on this metric.

Return-on-Tangible-Asset is calculated as Net Income divided by its average total tangible assets. Total tangible assets equals to Total Assets minus Intangible Assets. Barnes & Noble Education's annualized Net Income for the quarter that ended in Apr. 2026 was $14 Mil. Barnes & Noble Education's average total tangible assets for the quarter that ended in Apr. 2026 was $872 Mil. Therefore, Barnes & Noble Education's annualized Return-on-Tangible-Asset for the quarter that ended in Apr. 2026 was 1.60%.

The historical rank and industry rank for Barnes & Noble Education's Return-on-Tangible-Asset or its related term are showing as below:

BNED' s Return-on-Tangible-Asset Range Over the Past 10 Years
Min: -32.99   Med: -8.1   Max: 2.42
Current: 1.95

During the past 13 years, Barnes & Noble Education's highest Return-on-Tangible-Asset was 2.42%. The lowest was -32.99%. And the median was -8.10%.

BNED's Return-on-Tangible-Asset is ranked worse than
57.95% of 1139 companies
in the Retail - Cyclical industry
Industry Median: 2.99 vs BNED: 1.95

Barnes & Noble Education  (NYSE:BNED) Return-on-Tangible-Asset Explanation

Return-on-Tangible-Asset measures the rate of return on the average total tangible assets (total assets minus intangible assets). Tangible means physical in nature. Intangible Assets are assets that are not physical in nature, and typically "derive their value from legal or intellectual rights." Return-on-Tangible-Asset measures a firm's efficiency at generating profits from its tangible assets. It shows how well a company uses what it has to generate earnings. Return-on-Tangible-Assets can vary drastically across industries. Therefore, Return-on-Tangible-Asset should not be used to compare companies in different industries.


Be Aware

Like ROE and ROA, Return-on-Tangible-Asset is calculated with only 12 months data. Fluctuations in the company’s earnings or business cycles can affect the ratio drastically. It is important to look at the ratio from a long term perspective. Return-on-Tangible-Asset can be affected by events such as stock buyback or issuance, and by a company’s tax rate and its interest payment. Return-on-Tangible-Asset may not reflect the true earning power of the assets. A more accurate measurement is ROC % (ROC).

Many analysts argue the higher return the better. Buffett states that really high Return-on-Tangible-Asset may indicate vulnerability in the durability of the competitive advantage.


Barnes & Noble Education Return-on-Tangible-Asset Related Terms


Barnes & Noble Education Return-on-Tangible-Asset Historical Data

* Premium members only.

The historical data trend for Barnes & Noble Education's Return-on-Tangible-Asset 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.

Barnes & Noble Education Return-on-Tangible-Asset Chart

Barnes & Noble Education Annual Data
Trend Apr17 Apr18 Apr19 Apr20 Apr21 Apr22 Apr23 Apr24 Apr25 Apr26
Return-on-Tangible-Asset
Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only -7.57 -11.23 -8.99 -8.62 2.42

Barnes & Noble Education Quarterly Data
Jul21 Oct21 Jan22 Apr22 Jul22 Oct22 Jan23 Apr23 Jul23 Oct23 Jan24 Apr24 Jul24 Oct24 Jan25 Apr25 Jul25 Oct25 Jan26 Apr26
Return-on-Tangible-Asset Get a 7-Day Free Trial Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only Premium Member Only -10.71 -9.20 10.70 2.59 1.60

BNED vs BBW, FLWS, ONEW: Return-on-Tangible-Asset Comparison

For the Specialty Retail subindustry, Barnes & Noble Education's Return-on-Tangible-Asset, along with its competitors' market caps and Return-on-Tangible-Asset 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.


Barnes & Noble Education Return-on-Tangible-Asset vs Retail - Cyclical Industry

For the Retail - Cyclical industry and Consumer Cyclical sector, Barnes & Noble Education's Return-on-Tangible-Asset distribution charts can be found below:

* The bar in red indicates where Barnes & Noble Education's Return-on-Tangible-Asset falls into.


BNED
51GF Score
Barnes & Noble Education Inc BNED
Return-on-Tangible-Asset is just one metric. See GF Score™, valuation, warning signs, and more.
View Full Analysis

Barnes & Noble Education Return-on-Tangible-Asset Calculation

Barnes & Noble Education's annualized Return-on-Tangible-Asset for the fiscal year that ended in Apr. 2026 is calculated as:

Return-on-Tangible-Asset=Net Income/( (Total Tangible Assets+Total Tangible Assets)/ count )
(A: Apr. 2026 )  (A: Apr. 2025 )(A: Apr. 2026 )
=Net Income/( (Total Assets - Intangible Assets+Total Assets - Intangible Assets)/ count )
(A: Apr. 2026 )  (A: Apr. 2025 )(A: Apr. 2026 )
=16.872/( (712.044+681.805)/ 2 )
=16.872/696.9245
=2.42 %

Barnes & Noble Education's annualized Return-on-Tangible-Asset for the quarter that ended in Apr. 2026 is calculated as:

Return-on-Tangible-Asset=Net Income/( (Total Tangible Assets+Total Tangible Assets)/ count )
(Q: Apr. 2026 )  (Q: Jan. 2026 )(Q: Apr. 2026 )
=Net Income/( (Total Assets - Intangible Assets+Total Assets - Intangible Assets)/ count )
(Q: Apr. 2026 )  (Q: Jan. 2026 )(Q: Apr. 2026 )
=13.936/( (1062.384+681.805)/ 2 )
=13.936/872.0945
=1.60 %

* 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.

In the calculation of annual Return-on-Tangible-Asset, the net income of the last fiscal year and the average total tangible assets over the fiscal year are used. In calculating the quarterly data, the Net Income data used here is four times the quarterly (Apr. 2026) net income data.

What does a Return-on-Tangible-Asset of 1.60% mean?
Barnes & Noble Education (BNED) has a Return-on-Tangible-Asset of 1.60% as of Apr. 2026. Return on tangible assets is the ratio of current-period net income to average two-period tangible assets. View historical data on Barnes & Noble Education and its competitors. According to the industry distribution chart, Barnes & Noble Education ranks #660 out of 1139 companies in the Retail - Cyclical industry, placing it in the top 57.9%.
Is Barnes & Noble Education's Return-on-Tangible-Asset too high?
Barnes & Noble Education's current Return-on-Tangible-Asset is 1.60%. The Retail - Cyclical industry median Return-on-Tangible-Asset is 2.99. Barnes & Noble Education's value of 1.60% is 46.5% below this industry median. Based on the distribution chart, Barnes & Noble Education ranks #660 out of 1139 companies in the Retail - Cyclical industry, which is below the industry midpoint. Overall, Barnes & Noble Education has a GF Score™ of 51/100 and is considered Significantly Overvalued, reflecting its overall financial health beyond just this single metric.
How does Barnes & Noble Education's Return-on-Tangible-Asset compare to BBW and FLWS?
According to the Retail - Cyclical industry distribution chart, Barnes & Noble Education ranks #660 out of 1139 companies for Return-on-Tangible-Asset. This places Barnes & Noble Education in the lower half of its industry. The industry median Return-on-Tangible-Asset is 2.99. Barnes & Noble Education's value of 1.60% is 46.5% below this benchmark. See the competitive comparison table and distribution chart on this page for a detailed peer-by-peer breakdown.
What is a good Return-on-Tangible-Asset for a Retail - Cyclical company?
The median Return-on-Tangible-Asset among Retail - Cyclical companies is 2.99, based on 1,139 companies in the industry. Companies in the top quartile (top 25%) have a Return-on-Tangible-Asset significantly above this median, while those in the bottom quartile fall well below. However, Return-on-Tangible-Asset should not be evaluated in isolation — investors should consider it alongside profitability, growth, and financial strength metrics. Barnes & Noble Education's current Return-on-Tangible-Asset of 1.60% is 46.5% 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 Return-on-Tangible-Asset mean?
A high Return-on-Tangible-Asset can signal that a stock is expensive relative to its fundamentals. Return on tangible assets is the ratio of current-period net income to average two-period tangible assets. View historical data on Barnes & Noble Education and its competitors. For the Retail - Cyclical industry, the median Return-on-Tangible-Asset is 2.99 — values significantly above this may indicate overvaluation, while values below may suggest a bargain or underlying issues. Barnes & Noble Education's current Return-on-Tangible-Asset is 1.60%. However, context matters — high-growth companies often justify higher valuations. Always evaluate alongside other metrics like GF Score™ and GF Value™.
Is Barnes & Noble Education stock overvalued right now?
Based on GuruFocus' analysis, Barnes & Noble Education (BNED) is currently considered Significantly Overvalued. The stock's GF Value™ is $2.40, compared to a current price of $12.03 — trading 401.3% above its estimated fair value. The current Return-on-Tangible-Asset is 1.60% and 46.5% below the Retail - Cyclical industry median of 2.99. Barnes & Noble Education's overall GF Score™ is 51/100 with 4 warning signs to review. Investors should evaluate multiple metrics — including profitability, growth, and financial strength — before making a decision.
How is Return-on-Tangible-Asset calculated?
Return-on-Tangible-Asset is calculated from a company's financial statements. For Barnes & Noble Education (BNED), the current Return-on-Tangible-Asset is 1.60% as of Apr. 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 Barnes & Noble Education (BNED) Overvalued in 2026?

Based on GuruFocus' analysis, Barnes & Noble Education stock appears to be overvalued. The current stock price of $12.03 is trading 401.3% above its estimated GF Value™ of $2.40. GuruFocus considers Barnes & Noble Education to be Significantly Overvalued.

Key valuation signals for BNED:

  • Return-on-Tangible-Asset: 1.60%
  • GF Value™: $2.40 vs. price of $12.03 (401.3% above fair value)
  • GF Score™: 51/100 with 4 warning signs
  • Industry Position: 46.5% below the Retail - Cyclical median (#660 of 1139)

No single metric tells the full story. See the BNED stock analysis page for a complete view including 30-year financials, guru trades, and insider activity.


Barnes & Noble Education Business Description

Address 180 Park Avenue, Suite 301, Florham Park, NJ, USA, 07932
Barnes & Noble Education Inc is a contract operator of physical and virtual bookstores for college and university campuses and K-12 institutions across the United States. The company is also a textbook wholesaler and inventory management hardware and software provider. It offers course materials through physical and online bookstores, including new and used print textbooks, rental options, digital textbooks, and publisher-hosted digital courseware. Products are also offered directly to students through Textbooks.com. The majority of the company's revenue is derived from the sale of products through its bookstore locations, including virtual bookstores, and the bookstore affiliated e-commerce websites.
51GF Score

Get the complete analysis for BNED

Return-on-Tangible-Asset is just one metric. See GF Value™, 30-year financials, guru trades, warning signs, and more.

$12.03
Price
$2.40
GF Value