Fact based stock research
Big Lots (NYSE:BIG)
US0893021032
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For every stock, we judge its performance against its peers and rank it on a scale of 1 to 100. The higher the rank, the better the stock performs than its peers. And, we do this for six investment strategies:
Value - shows how good of a value the stock is. Green is "inexpensive"; red is "expensive".
Growth - shows a company's growth potential. Green is "high growth" expected; red is "tough times ahead".
Safety - relates to the amount of debt a company has. Green is low debt level; red is high debt level.
Combined Financial - this isn't an average of the first three ranks but rather a consolidated view across several financial indicators. Green = good; red = tread carefully.
(NEW) Sentiment - quantifies professional analyst ratings and holdings as well as market pulse. Green = positive sentiment; red = skepticism (Only available to Premium Subscribers).
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Big Lots stock research in summary
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 9 (worse than 91% compared with investment alternatives), Big Lots (General Merchandise Stores, USA) shares have lower financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of Big Lots are a good value (attractively priced) with a consolidated Value Rank of 77 (better than 77% of alternatives) but show below-average growth (Growth Rank of 12), and are riskily financed (Safety Rank of 9), which means above-average debt burdens. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 9, is a sell recommendation based on Big Lots's financial characteristics. As the company Big Lots's key financial metrics exhibit good value (Obermatt Value Rank of 77) but low growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 12) and risky financing practices (Obermatt Safety Rank of 9), it may be a risky investment, because debt in times of crises can make things worse. The good value, better than 77% of comparable companies, may indicate the company's future is challenging. If you believe that low growth is temporary or just due to a specific current event, you may conclude that the good value of the stock provides an attractive investment opportunity. Obermatt Premium subscribers can further check the stock’s Sentiment Ranks, which also flow into the Obermatt 360° View for investors. ...read more
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360° Viewnew| Country | USA |
| Industry | General Merchandise Stores |
| Index | Dividends USA, Employee Focus US |
| Size class | Medium |
31-Jul-2025. Stock data may be delayed. Log in or sign up to get the most recent research.
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Review the performance ranks of the individual metrics that form each investment strategy.
Research History: Big Lots
| RESEARCH HISTORY | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VALUE | ||||||||
| VALUE | 99 |
|
67 |
|
73 |
|
77 |
|
| GROWTH | ||||||||
| GROWTH | 19 |
|
3 |
|
19 |
|
12 |
|
| SAFETY | ||||||||
| SAFETY | 91 |
|
71 |
|
11 |
|
9 |
|
| SENTIMENT | ||||||||
| SENTIMENT | 19 |
|
16 |
|
1 |
|
new |
|
| 360° VIEW | ||||||||
| 360° VIEW | 65 |
|
23 |
|
6 |
|
new |
|
Combined financial peformance in Detail
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 9 (worse than 91% compared with investment alternatives), Big Lots (General Merchandise Stores, USA) shares have lower financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of Big Lots are a good value (attractively priced) with a consolidated Value Rank of 77 (better than 77% of alternatives) but show below-average growth (Growth Rank of 12), and are riskily financed (Safety Rank of 9), which means above-average debt burdens. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 9, is a sell recommendation based on Big Lots's financial characteristics. As the company Big Lots's key financial metrics exhibit good value (Obermatt Value Rank of 77) but low growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 12) and risky financing practices (Obermatt Safety Rank of 9), it may be a risky investment, because debt in times of crises can make things worse. The good value, better than 77% of comparable companies, may indicate the company's future is challenging. If you believe that low growth is temporary or just due to a specific current event, you may conclude that the good value of the stock provides an attractive investment opportunity. Obermatt Premium subscribers can further check the stock’s Sentiment Ranks, which also flow into the Obermatt 360° View for investors. ...read more
| RESEARCH HISTORY | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VALUE | ||||||||
| VALUE | 99 |
|
67 |
|
73 |
|
77 |
|
| GROWTH | ||||||||
| GROWTH | 19 |
|
3 |
|
19 |
|
12 |
|
| SAFETY | ||||||||
| SAFETY | 91 |
|
71 |
|
11 |
|
9 |
|
| COMBINED | ||||||||
| COMBINED | 93 |
|
47 |
|
14 |
|
9 |
|
Value Metrics in Detail
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 77 (better than 77% compared with alternatives) for 2025, Big Lots shares are significantly less expensive than comparable stocks. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with three out of four indicators above average for Big Lots. Price-to-Sales (P/S) is 97, which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future sales is lower than for 97% of comparable companies, indicating a good value regarding Big Lots's revenue size. The same is valid for expected Price to Profits (or Price / Earnings, P/E), more favorable than for 71% of alternatives, and it's also true for the Price-to-Book Capital ratio (also referred to as market-to-book ratio) with a Price-to-Capital Rank of 84. But, compared with other companies in the same industry, dividend yields are expected to be lower than average; only 1% of all competitors have even lower dividend yields than Big Lots (a Dividend Yield Rank of 1). 99% alternative investments in the same business provide a higher dividend yield. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 77, is a buy recommendation based on Big Lots's stock price compared with the company's operational size and dividend yields. The below-average dividend yield may be a good sign, as it could mean the company has more attractive investment opportunities for the generated cash than to pay it out as dividends. A low dividend yield can also indicate a growth phase. We recommend further analyzing the stock with Obermatt’s Value, Safety, and Sentiment Ranks, including the 360° View, before making an investment decision. ...read more
| VALUE METRICS | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S) | ||||||||
| PRICE VS. REVENUES (P/S) | 94 |
|
95 |
|
97 |
|
97 |
|
| PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E) | ||||||||
| PRICE VS. PROFITS (P/E) | 86 |
|
71 |
|
71 |
|
71 |
|
| PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book) | ||||||||
| PRICE VS. CAPITAL (Market-to-Book) | 85 |
|
74 |
|
84 |
|
84 |
|
| DIVIDEND YIELD | ||||||||
| DIVIDEND YIELD | 95 |
|
1 |
|
1 |
|
1 |
|
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE | ||||||||
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: VALUE | 99 |
|
67 |
|
73 |
|
77 |
|
Growth Metrics in Detail
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 12 (better than 12% compared with alternatives), Big Lots shows one of the most restricted growth dynamics in its industry. There is little momentum in this company. The Growth Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with three out of four metrics below average for Big Lots. While Profit Growth has a good rank of 94, as professionals currently expect the company to grow its profits more than 94% of its competitors, all other growth indicators are below market averages. Sales Growth has a rank of 1, which means that currently professionals expect the company to grow less than 99% of its competitors, while Capital Growth has a rank of 5 and Stock Returns have been below market median, with a rank of 1 (99% of alternative investments were better). ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 12, is a sell recommendation for growth and momentum investors. While revenue growth and capital growth are good growth momentum indicators, profit is less reliable, because profits may increase due to cost-cutting measures which typically indicate negative growth momentum. "You can save a dollar only once" is the saying about such situations. Growth Investors should look at company priorities closely if they are interested in growth, because the increase in profits is not usually an indicator of growth, and stock prices have been below market, too. While momentum is a popular investment factor, the value aspect might be the more important one, in the longer term. We recommend analyzing the stock with Obermatt’s Value, Safety, and Sentiment Ranks to arrive at a 360° View of the stock purchase case, especially since the growth performance is limited here. ...read more
| GROWTH METRICS | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| REVENUE GROWTH | ||||||||
| REVENUE GROWTH | 17 |
|
1 |
|
11 |
|
1 |
|
| PROFIT GROWTH | ||||||||
| PROFIT GROWTH | 8 |
|
17 |
|
96 |
|
94 |
|
| CAPITAL GROWTH | ||||||||
| CAPITAL GROWTH | 83 |
|
4 |
|
26 |
|
5 |
|
| STOCK RETURNS | ||||||||
| STOCK RETURNS | 33 |
|
9 |
|
3 |
|
1 |
|
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH | ||||||||
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: GROWTH | 19 |
|
3 |
|
19 |
|
12 |
|
Safety Metrics in Detail
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 9 (better than 9% compared with alternatives), the company Big Lots has much riskier financing practices than comparable other companies, which means that their overall debt burden is significantly above the industry average. This doesn't mean that the business of Big Lots is also risky, it only means that the company is on the riskier side in respect to bankruptcy in case things turn sour, assuming that public reporting is correct. The Safety Rank is based on consolidating three financing indicators, with all three metrics below average for Big Lots. Liquidity is at 9, meaning that the company generates less profit to service its debt than 91% of its competitors. This indicates that the company is on the riskier side when it comes to debt service. Even worse, Leverage is at a rank of 28, meaning the company has an above-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has more debt than 72% of its competitors. Finally, Refinancing is at a rank of 1 which means that the portion of the debt about to be refinanced is above average. It has more debt in the refinancing stage than 99% of its competitors. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 9 (worse than 91% compared with alternatives), Big Lots has a financing structure that is significantly riskier than that of its competitors. This combination is rather dangerous in most situations. Only very promising companies with bright future outlooks and stellar reputations can operate with such risky financing. Investors should look at Obermatt’s Value, Growth, and Sentiment Ranks to confirm a very positive outlook or be careful with investing in stocks of Big Lots because it may suffer significantly in case of future difficulties. ...read more
| SAFETY METRICS | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| LEVERAGE | ||||||||
| LEVERAGE | 78 |
|
63 |
|
33 |
|
28 |
|
| REFINANCING | ||||||||
| REFINANCING | 72 |
|
94 |
|
1 |
|
1 |
|
| LIQUIDITY | ||||||||
| LIQUIDITY | 81 |
|
16 |
|
14 |
|
9 |
|
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY | ||||||||
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY | 91 |
|
71 |
|
11 |
|
9 |
|
Sentiment Metrics in Detail
| SENTIMENT | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ANALYST OPINIONS | ||||||||
| ANALYST OPINIONS | n/a |
|
5 |
|
1 |
|
new |
|
| OPINIONS CHANGE | ||||||||
| OPINIONS CHANGE | 67 |
|
50 |
|
50 |
|
new |
|
| PRO HOLDINGS | ||||||||
| PRO HOLDINGS | 61 |
|
34 |
|
6 |
|
new |
|
| MARKET PULSE | ||||||||
| MARKET PULSE | 16 |
|
17 |
|
1 |
|
new |
|
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT | ||||||||
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: SENTIMENT | 19 |
|
16 |
|
1 |
|
new |
|
Free stock analysis by the purely fact based Obermatt Method for Big Lots from July 31, 2025.
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