Research Analysts Issue Forecasts for PLAY FY2027 Earnings

Dave & Buster’s Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLAY) – Research analysts at Zacks Research lifted their FY2027 EPS estimates for shares of Dave & Buster’s Entertainment in a report issued on Tuesday, September 29th. Zacks Research analyst Team now forecasts that the restaurant operator will earn ($1.56) per share for the year, up from their prior estimate of ($1.57). Zacks Research has a “Strong Sell” rating on the stock. The consensus estimate for Dave & Buster’s Entertainment’s current full-year earnings is ($1.58) per share. Zacks Research also issued estimates for Dave & Buster’s Entertainment’s Q2 2028 earnings at ($0.16) EPS, Q3 2028 earnings at ($1.22) EPS, FY2028 earnings at ($1.36) EPS, Q1 2029 earnings at $0.49 EPS, Q2 2029 earnings at ($0.19) EPS and FY2029 earnings at ($0.84) EPS.

PLAY has been the subject of a number of other reports. Citizens Jmp started coverage on shares of Dave & Buster’s Entertainment in a research report on Monday, June 29th. They set a “market perform” rating for the company. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Dave & Buster’s Entertainment from $12.00 to $9.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 15th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of Dave & Buster’s Entertainment in a research report on Tuesday, September 15th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Dave & Buster’s Entertainment in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets dropped their target price on Dave & Buster’s Entertainment from $22.00 to $13.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 15th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have assigned a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Dave & Buster’s Entertainment has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $17.33.

Dave & Buster’s Entertainment Stock Performance

Shares of PLAY stock opened at $6.75 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 0.30, a quick ratio of 0.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 17.07. The company has a market cap of $235.10 million, a PE ratio of -2.63 and a beta of 1.92. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $8.88 and its 200-day simple moving average is $10.67. Dave & Buster’s Entertainment has a 52 week low of $6.26 and a 52 week high of $22.10.

Dave & Buster’s Entertainment (NASDAQ:PLAY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, September 14th. The restaurant operator reported ($0.27) earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.19 by ($0.46). Dave & Buster’s Entertainment had a negative net margin of 4.26% and a negative return on equity of 51.87%. The business had revenue of $544.10 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $556.83 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.32 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 2.4% on a year-over-year basis.

Insider Activity

In other Dave & Buster’s Entertainment news, CFO Cory Hatton purchased 4,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, September 28th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $6.50 per share, for a total transaction of $26,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief financial officer owned 104,475 shares in the company, valued at $679,087.50. The trade was a 3.98% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Nathaniel Lipman purchased 12,000 shares of Dave & Buster’s Entertainment stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 17th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $6.78 per share, with a total value of $81,360.00. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 30,715 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $208,247.70. The trade was a 64.12% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Insiders own 1.73% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Dave & Buster’s Entertainment

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Tidal Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Dave & Buster’s Entertainment in the 2nd quarter valued at about $182,000. Engineers Gate Manager LP lifted its position in shares of Dave & Buster’s Entertainment by 200.7% during the second quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 537,254 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $6,125,000 after purchasing an additional 358,588 shares during the last quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC grew its stake in Dave & Buster’s Entertainment by 289.7% in the second quarter. Squarepoint Ops LLC now owns 131,168 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $1,495,000 after purchasing an additional 97,507 shares in the last quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Dave & Buster’s Entertainment in the second quarter worth about $141,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC bought a new stake in Dave & Buster’s Entertainment in the second quarter valued at about $353,000. 91.45% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Stories Impacting Dave & Buster’s Entertainment

Here are the key news stories impacting Dave & Buster’s Entertainment this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Zacks Research made modestly more favorable revisions to some longer-term forecasts, including FY2027 EPS to $(1.56) from $(1.57), FY2028 EPS to $(1.36) from $(1.49), and third-quarter FY2028 EPS to $(1.22) from $(1.45). However, the estimates still project losses. Zacks Research estimate revisions
• Neutral Sentiment: The latest earnings comparison highlights that Dave & Buster’s generated $544.1 million in revenue, below the $556.8 million consensus estimate, while revenue fell 2.4% year over year. The company reported a $0.27-per-share loss versus an expected $0.19 profit and $0.32 EPS in the prior-year period. Q2 earnings highlights
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks Research reduced several forecasts, including Q2 FY2028 EPS to $(0.16) from $(0.05), Q1 FY2029 EPS to $0.49 from $0.56, Q2 FY2029 EPS to $(0.19) from $(0.15), and FY2029 EPS to $(0.84) from $(0.83). Zacks maintained a “Strong Sell” rating, reinforcing concerns about prolonged losses. PLAY earnings estimates reduced
• Negative Sentiment: The consensus price target was cut 24.35% to $13.70, while a separate fair-value assessment also declined as analysts questioned whether management can successfully execute its turnaround. These valuation reductions add to selling pressure, particularly given PLAY’s negative earnings, weak recent revenue trend and elevated financial leverage. Consensus price target reduction Fair value cut and turnaround concerns

About Dave & Buster’s Entertainment

Dave & Buster’s Entertainment, Inc (NASDAQ: PLAY) is an entertainment and dining company that operates venues combining arcade games, sports viewing, food and beverages, and social experiences. Its Dave & Buster’s locations are designed for adults and families and offer interactive games, prize redemption, casual dining, full-service bars, and space for group events and parties.

The company also operates Main Event, a family entertainment brand offering bowling, arcade games, laser tag, virtual reality attractions, and food and beverages.