Dave & Buster's Q2 Loss Widens to $12.5M as Comparable Sales Fall 2.9%
PLAY is trading near its 52-week low of $7.94 (7.7% below the low) on elevated volume (3.8× avg).
Summary
Dave & Buster's reported a $12.5M Q2 net loss with comparable sales down 2.9%, but generated positive adjusted free cash flow and maintained $492.1M in liquidity.
Key Events · Earnings and Guidance · PLAY
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Q2 Net Loss of $12.5M
Net loss of $12.5M ($0.36 per diluted share) compared to net income of $11.4M ($0.32 per share) in Q2 fiscal 2025. Revenue declined 2.4% to $544.1M.
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Comparable Sales Decline 2.9%
Comparable store sales fell 2.9% year-over-year, though management noted improvement in July and continued improvement in Q3 to date.
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Adjusted EBITDA Down 24%
Adjusted EBITDA of $98.9M versus $129.8M in the prior-year quarter, reflecting margin compression from lower entertainment revenue and higher operating costs.
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Positive Adjusted Free Cash Flow
Adjusted free cash flow of $19.5M for the six months ended August 4, 2026, versus negative $36.5M in the prior-year period, driven by higher operating cash flow and sale-leaseback proceeds.
Analysis · PLAY · Trade & Services
Dave & Buster's swung to a $12.5 million net loss in Q2 fiscal 2026 from an $11.4 million profit a year earlier, with comparable store sales down 2.9% and Adjusted EBITDA falling 24% to $98.9 million. The deterioration comes just weeks after a CEO transition and against a backdrop of the stock trading near its 52-week low. Positively, the company generated $19.5 million in adjusted free cash flow for the first half and ended the quarter with $492.1 million in available liquidity, giving it runway to execute its Back-to-Basics turnaround strategy.
How filings like this one have moved
In the 30 days to Oct 3, 2026, 28.9% of the 1666 measured filings Wiseek scored 7 moved their stock by 5% or more by the next session's close. The median move was -0.57%. These are measured outcomes after filings of this importance, not a forecast for this one.
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At the time of this filing, PLAY was trading at $7.33 on NASDAQ in the Trade & Services sector, with a market capitalization of approximately $294.7M. The 52-week trading range was $7.94 to $24.99. This filing was assessed with negative market sentiment and an importance score of 7 out of 10.