Forensic Analysis · Retail / Consumer Discretionary · as of Jun 28, 2026
Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc. (PLAY)
A forensic read on Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc. built from its complete SEC filings — financial-health screens, earnings quality, red flags and a price-aware rating. Reproducible math, not opinion.
D · Weak — demands caution
Forensic grade
Distress
Financial health
0.1
Altman Z-score
Clean
Earnings quality
2
Forensic signals
-53.0%
ROE
$411M
Market cap
Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc. earns a D (Weak — demands caution) forensic quality grade, and its Altman Z-score is 0.1, placing it in the Distress zone. 2 forensic signals were flagged in its latest SEC filings, led by return on invested capital.
What the filings flag
2%Return on invested capital.Return on invested capital is 2% and slipping from 7% — well below its ~9% cost of capital, so reinvested dollars may be destroying value, not building it.
suspendedDividend — suspended.The dividend has been SUSPENDED — $5M paid in FY2021, then $0 in FY2023. A suspension is a major signal the board is conserving cash; the prior payment history doesn't offset it.
Key fundamentals
Net Margin-2.3%
Free Cash Flow$-100.6M
Latest Revenue$2.10B
Revenue Growth YoY-1.4%
Go deeper — free with an account
The forensic grade and screens above are free — no account needed. An account adds the full interactive deep-dive on Dave & Buster's Entertainment, Inc.:
🔒The written investment read — what the numbers mean, in plain English
🔒Ask anything about PLAY's filings — AI Q&A across the 10-K, 10-Qs & 8-Ks
🔒Interactive valuation — reverse-DCF sliders, Monte Carlo & scenario stress
🔒Calibrated 12-month price forecast, with the math shown