Dave & Buster's Reports First Quarter 2025 Financial Results

DALLAS, June 10, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc., (NASDAQ: PLAY), (“Dave & Buster's” or “the Company”), an owner and operator of entertainment and dining venues, today announced financial results for its first quarter of fiscal 2025 ended May 6, 2025.

First Quarter 2025 Financial Summary

• First quarter revenue of $567.7 million decreased 3.5% from the first quarter of fiscal 2024.
• Comparable store sales decreased 8.3% compared to the same calendar period in fiscal 2024.
• Net income totaled $21.7 million, or $0.62 per diluted share, compared with net income of $41.4 million, or $0.99 per diluted share in the first quarter of fiscal 2024. Adjusted Net income totaled $26.7 million, or $0.76 per diluted share, compared with an Adjusted Net income of $46.4 million, or $1.12 per diluted share in the first quarter of fiscal 2024.
• Adjusted EBITDA of $136.1 million decreased 14.5%, or $23.0 million, from the first quarter of fiscal 2024.

Other Highlights

• The Company opened two new Dave & Buster's stores and relocated one store in the first quarter. Subsequent to the end of the first quarter, the Company has opened two additional Dave & Buster's stores.
• The Company completed the remodels of 13 Dave & Buster’s stores in the first quarter.
• During the first quarter, the Company repurchased $23.9 million of shares representing 1.0 million shares or 2.9% of the Company's outstanding shares as of the end of fiscal 2024. The Company has $104.1 million remaining on its share repurchase authorization.
• The Company has experienced a sequential improvement in its comparable store sales trend since February (the first month of its first quarter). The table below provides detail of recent comparable store sales versus the respective prior year period including quarter to date performance of the Company's second quarter of fiscal 2025:

“I am pleased to report that we are making good progress and our operating results significantly improved over the course of the first quarter. While performance in the first quarter was nowhere close to where we want and expect to be, our “back to basics” strategy is working and is driving a material recovery in our top-line trajectory. In the quarter, we unwound many clear mistakes and made high confidence changes to marketing, menu, operations, remodels and games investment. We are improving our execution every day and have a very clear road map of work to do to continue to drive improvements and meaningful growth in the business. The leadership team and our Board are as confident as ever that our current actions will lead to significantly improved revenue, adjusted EBITDA, free cash flow and shareholder value in the months ahead,” said Kevin Sheehan, Board Chair and Interim Chief Executive Officer.

Sheehan continued, “We are encouraged by what we are seeing so far in June as results month to date continue to improve. As you all know, our financial position remains strong and we have an excellent business model with high returns on new unit investment, best in class store level unit economics, disciplined expense management, and significant operating free cash flow generation. As we have discussed before, the current leadership team and the full Board are laser focused on managing this business to drive both revenue growth and free cash flow generation. Our team continues to be energized by the opportunities we see ahead to meaningfully improve the operating performance of the business and shareholder value.”

First Quarter 2025 Results

Total revenue was $567.7 million, a decrease of 3.5% from $588.1 million in the first quarter of fiscal 2024.

Comparable store sales decreased 8.3% versus the comparable period of fiscal 2024.

Operating income totaled $63.2 million, or 11.1% of revenue, compared with operating income of $85.5 million, or 14.5% of revenue in the first quarter of fiscal 2024.

Net income totaled $21.7 million, or $0.62 per diluted share, compared with net income of $41.4 million, or $0.99 per diluted share in the first quarter of fiscal 2024. Adjusted Net income totaled $26.7 million, or $0.76 per diluted share, compared with an Adjusted Net income of $46.4 million, or $1.12 per diluted share in the first quarter of fiscal 2024.

Adjusted EBITDA totaled $136.1 million, or 24.0% of revenue, compared with Adjusted EBITDA of $159.1 million, or 27.1% of revenue in the first quarter of fiscal 2024.

Store operating income before depreciation and amortization totaled $162.2 million, or 28.6% of revenue, compared with store operating income before depreciation and amortization of $183.2 million, or 31.2% of revenue in the first quarter of fiscal 2024.

Cash Flow, Liquidity, Leverage and Share Repurchases

The Company generated $95.8 million in operating cash during the first quarter, ending the quarter with $423.2 million of available liquidity (cash plus availability under its $650.0 million revolving credit facility). The Company ended the quarter with a Net Total Leverage Ratio of 3.1x.¹

During the quarter, the Company repurchased 1.0 million shares at a total cost of $23.9 million and representing 2.9% of the Company's outstanding shares as of the end of fiscal 2024. The Company's most recent share repurchases were in March of 2025.

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¹ Net Total Leverage Ratio is defined in the Company's Credit Facility as the ratio of the aggregate principal amount of any Consolidated Debt less Unrestricted Cash and unrestricted Permitted Investments to Credit Adjusted EBITDA.

Outlook for Financial Items in Fiscal 2025

The Company reiterates its outlook for certain financial items for fiscal 2025, which ends on February 3, 2026:

• Total capital expenditures of less than $220 million²
• Pre-opening expense of approximately $20 million
• Cash interest expense of $130 million to $140 million
  

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² Includes capital expenditures on new stores (net of anticipated payments from landlords), remodels and other initiatives, games and maintenance.

Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q Available

The Company’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, available at www.sec.gov and on the Company’s investor relations website, contains a thorough review of its financial results for the first quarter ended May 6, 2025.

Investor Conference Call and Webcast

Management will host a conference call to discuss these results on Tuesday, June 10, 2025 at 4:00 p.m. Central Time (5:00 p.m. Eastern Time). Both the live and archived webcast of the conference call are available at ir.daveandbusters.com. Participants in the U.S. can access the conference call by dialing toll-free (877) 883-0383, and international participants can access by dialing (412) 902-6506. The participant entry number is 4149547. A replay will be available after the call for one year beginning at 6:00 p.m. Central Time (7:00 p.m. Eastern Time) and can be accessed by dialing toll-free (877) 344-7529 or by the international toll number (412) 317-0088. The replay access code is 6466433.

About Dave & Buster’s Entertainment, Inc.

Founded in 1982 and headquartered in Coppell, Texas, Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc., is the owner and operator of 236 venues in North America that offer premier entertainment and dining experiences to guests through two distinct brands: Dave & Buster’s and Main Event. The Company has 175 Dave & Buster’s branded stores in 43 states, Puerto Rico, and Canada and offers guests the opportunity to “Eat Drink Play and Watch,” all in one location. Each store offers a full menu of entrées and appetizers, a complete selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages, and an extensive assortment of entertainment attractions centered around playing games and watching live sports and other televised events. The Company also operates 61 Main Event branded stores in 22 states across the country, and offers state-of-the-art bowling, laser tag, hundreds of arcade games and virtual reality, making it the perfect place for families to connect and make memories. For more information about each brand, visit daveandbusters.com and mainevent.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

The Company cautions that this release contains forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties, including: our ability to continue as a going concern; our ability to obtain waivers, and thereafter continue to satisfy covenant requirements under our revolving credit facility; our ability to access other funding sources; our overall level of indebtedness; general business and economic conditions; the impact of competition; the seasonality of the Company's business; adverse weather conditions; future commodity prices; guest and employee complaints and litigation; fuel and utility costs; labor costs and availability; changes in consumer and corporate spending; changes in demographic trends; changes in governmental regulations; unfavorable publicity; our ability to open new stores; and acts of God. Accordingly, actual results may differ materially from the forward-looking statements, and the Company therefore cautions you against relying on such forward-looking statements. The Company intends these forward-looking statements to speak only as of the time of this release and does not undertake to update or revise them as more appropriate information becomes available, except as required by law.

Non-GAAP Measures

To supplement its consolidated financial statements, which are prepared and presented in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”), the Company uses the following non-GAAP financial measures: Adjusted EBITDA, Credit Adjusted EBITDA (calculated in accordance with the Company’s Credit Facility), Net Total Leverage Ratio (calculated in accordance with the Company’s Credit Facility), Store operating income before depreciation and amortization, Adjusted net income, and Adjusted net income per share - Diluted, reconciliations of which can be found on the following pages (collectively the “non-GAAP financial measures”). The presentation of this financial information is not intended to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for, or superior to, the financial information prepared and presented in accordance with GAAP. The Company uses these non-GAAP financial measures for financial and operational decision making and as a means to evaluate period-to-period comparisons. The Company believes that they provide useful information about operating results, enhance the overall understanding of our operating performance and future prospects, and allow for greater transparency with respect to key metrics used by management in its financial and operational decision making. The non-GAAP measures used by the Company in this press release may be different from the measures used by other companies or calculated differently than similar measures used by other companies.

For Investor Relations Inquiries:

Cory Hatton, Head of Entertainment Finance, Investor Relations & Treasurer
Dave & Buster’s Entertainment, Inc.
[email protected]

Adjusted EBITDA:

Adjusted EBITDA represents net income before income taxes, depreciation and amortization expense and other items, as calculated below. Adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP financial measure commonly used in our industry and should not be construed as an alternative to net income as an indicator of operating performance or as an alternative to cash flow provided by operating activities as a measure of liquidity (as determined in accordance with GAAP). Adjusted EBITDA may not be comparable to similarly titled measures reported by other companies. Adjusted EBITDA is presented because we believe that it provides useful information to investors and analysts regarding our operating performance. By reporting Adjusted EBITDA, we provide a basis for comparison of our business operations between current, past and future periods by excluding items that we do not believe are indicative of our core operating performance. A reconciliation of net income to Adjusted EBITDA is provided below for the periods presented:

Store Operating Income Before Depreciation and Amortization:

Store Operating Income Before Depreciation and Amortization, a non-GAAP measure, represents operating income, plus depreciation and amortization expense, general and administrative expenses and pre-opening costs. We believe that Store Operating Income Before Depreciation and Amortization is another useful measure in evaluating our operating performance because it removes the impact of general and administrative expenses, which are not incurred at the store level, and the costs of opening new stores, which are non-recurring at the store level, and thereby enables the comparability of the operating performance of our stores for the periods presented. We also believe that Store Operating Income Before Depreciation and Amortization is a useful measure in evaluating our operating performance within the entertainment and dining industry because it permits the evaluation of store-level productivity, efficiency, and performance, and we use Store Operating Income Before Depreciation and Amortization as a means of evaluating store financial performance compared with our competitors. However, because this measure excludes significant items such as general and administrative expenses and pre-opening costs, as well as our interest expense, net, loss on debt extinguishment/refinance and depreciation and amortization expense, which are important in evaluating our consolidated financial performance from period to period, the value of this measure is limited as a measure of our consolidated financial performance.

Credit Adjusted EBITDA and Net Total Leverage Ratio:

Credit Adjusted EBITDA, a non-GAAP measure, represents net income plus certain items as defined at Adjusted EBITDA above, as well as certain other adjustments as defined in our Credit Facility. These other adjustments include (i) entertainment revenue deferrals, (ii) the cost of new projects, including store pre-opening costs, (iii) business optimization expenses and other restructuring costs, and (iv) other costs and adjustments as permitted by the Debt Agreements. We believe the presentation of Credit Adjusted EBITDA is appropriate as it provides additional information to investors about the calculation of, and compliance with, certain financial covenants in the Credit Facility. The following table sets forth a reconciliation of Net income to Credit Adjusted EBITDA for the periods shown:

The following table provides a calculation of Net Total Leverage Ratio, as defined in our senior secured credit facility, for the period shown:

Adjusted Net Income and Adjusted Net Income Per Share - Diluted:

Adjusted Net income, a non-GAAP measure, represents net income before special items, as calculated below, and Adjusted Net income per share - Diluted, a non-GAAP measure, represents Adjusted Net income on a fully diluted, per share basis. We believe excluding these special items from net income provides investors with a clearer perspective of our ongoing operating performance and a more relevant comparison to prior period results. The following table presents a reconciliation of Net income to Adjusted Net income and presents Adjusted Net income per diluted share, for the periods shown: