— Know what they know.
Not Investment Advice

KLC NYSE

KinderCare Learning Companies, Inc.
1W: -14.7% 1M: +8.8% 3M: -10.8% YTD: -10.3% 1Y: -68.3%
$3.58
-0.13 (-3.50%)
 
Weekly Expected Move ±12.6%
$3 $4 $4 $5 $5
NYSE · Consumer Defensive · Education & Training Services · Alpha Radar Neutral · Power 52 · $424.0M mcap · 34M float · 4.42% daily turnover · Short 36% of daily vol

Edge Score

Quantitative competitive moat analysis scoring five pillars of durable advantage — cost leadership, brand intangibles, switching costs, network effects, and efficient scale — using industry percentile rankings on a 0–100 scale.

NO EDGE
31.3 / 100
NoneWeakNarrowWide
Primary source: Efficient Scale  ·  ROIC: 3.7%
Cost Advantage
30
Intangibles
14
Switching Cost
12
Network Effect
45
Scale ★
80
The Edge Score quantifies a company's competitive moat using five pillars: Cost Advantage (20%, operating margin and SG&A efficiency vs industry peers), Intangible Assets (25%, gross margin premium, R&D intensity, brand pricing power), Switching Costs (25%, revenue stability, earnings consistency, customer retention proxied by operating leverage), Network Effects (15%, revenue growth with expanding margins, market share dominance), and Efficient Scale (15%, market concentration, ROIC sustainability). Each pillar is scored 0–100 using industry percentile rankings, then weighted into a composite. Wide ≥ 70, Narrow ≥ 55, Weak ≥ 40, None < 40. KLC has No discernible competitive edge (31.3/100). The business operates without significant structural advantages. The primary source of advantage is Efficient Scale. ROIC of 3.7% suggests modest returns relative to capital deployed.

Analyst Insights

Wall Street analyst consensus based on price targets and buy/sell/hold recommendations from institutional research coverage over the trailing 12 months.

Analyst Price Targets
$3
Low
$5
Avg Target
$6
High
Based on 5 analysts since May 14, 2026 earnings
Analyst Recommendations
Strong Buy: 0Buy: 1Hold: 4Sell: 2Strong Sell: 0
Rating Summary
ConsensusHold
Avg Target$4.29
Analysts7
Price Target Change History
DateFirmAnalystOldNewChangeUpside @ CallStock@Call
2026-05-18 BMO Capital $4 $6 +2 +49.3% $4.02
2026-05-18 Barclays Manav Patnaik $38 $3 -35 -25.4% $4.02
2026-05-15 Deutsche Bank Initiated $5 +31.8% $3.79
2026-05-15 UBS $3 $5 +2 +32.3% $3.78
2026-05-15 Robert W. Baird Jeffrey Meuler $20 $4 -16 -8.5% $4.37
2026-03-13 UBS Joshua Chan $10 $3 -7 +51.1% $1.99
2026-03-13 BMO Capital Jeffrey Silber $26 $4 -22 +89.6% $2.11
2025-10-15 Goldman Sachs George Tong $41 $6 -35 +2.0% $5.88
2025-10-10 UBS $21 $10 -11 +61.6% $6.19
2025-05-14 Morgan Stanley Toni Kaplan $30 $19 -11 +40.4% $13.53
2025-05-14 Robert W. Baird Jeffrey Meuler $25 $20 -5 +47.8% $13.53
2025-03-24 BMO Capital $34 $26 -8 +87.7% $13.85
2025-03-21 Robert W. Baird $30 $25 -5 +81.7% $13.76
2025-03-21 UBS $36 $21 -15 +52.6% $13.76
2024-11-25 Morgan Stanley Toni Kaplan $31 $30 -1 +43.7% $20.87
2024-11-04 Morgan Stanley Toni Kaplan Initiated $31 +8.5% $28.57
2024-11-04 UBS Joshua Chan Initiated $36 +26.0% $28.57
2024-11-04 Robert W. Baird Jeffrey Meuler Initiated $30 +5.0% $28.57
2024-11-04 BMO Capital Jeffrey Silber Initiated $34 +19.0% $28.57
2024-11-04 Goldman Sachs George Tong Initiated $41 +43.5% $28.57
2024-11-04 Barclays Manav Patnaik Initiated $38 +33.0% $28.57

Financial Rating

Composite financial health rating (A+ to F) based on discounted cash flow valuation, return on equity, return on assets, debt-to-equity leverage, and relative P/E and P/B multiples.

C+
May 22, 2026
DCF
3
ROE
1
ROA
1
D/E
1
P/E
1
P/B
5
The Financial Rating evaluates six fundamental factors — discounted cash flow (DCF) valuation, return on equity (ROE), return on assets (ROA), debt-to-equity leverage (D/E), and relative price-to-earnings (P/E) and price-to-book (P/B) multiples — each scored 1–5. KLC receives an overall rating of C+. Strongest factors: P/B (5/5). Areas of concern: ROE (1/5), ROA (1/5), D/E (1/5), P/E (1/5).
Rating Change History
DateFromTo
2026-05-15 C C+
2026-05-14 C+ C
2026-05-14 C C+
2026-05-13 C+ C
2026-05-04 C C+
2026-04-01 C- C
2026-02-24 C+ C-

InsiderStreet Scorecard

Proprietary multi-factor scorecard rating companies across seven fundamental dimensions — profitability, balance sheet strength, earnings quality, growth, value, momentum, and safety — each scored 0–100.

18 Grade D
Profitability
6
Balance Sheet
17
Earnings Quality
44
Growth
52
Value
33
Momentum
50
Safety
15
Cash Flow
27
The InsiderStreet Scorecard rates companies across eight dimensions: Profitability (margins, ROA, ROE), Balance Sheet (leverage, liquidity, coverage), Earnings Quality (accruals, cash conversion), Growth (revenue and earnings trajectory), Value (P/E, P/B, earnings yield, Graham criteria), Momentum (revenue and earnings acceleration), Safety (Altman Z-Score risk adjustment), and Cash Flow (operating cash flow quality, FCF conversion, cash coverage). The overall score blends 35% quality, 35% value, and 30% momentum, with a penalty for distress-zone Altman scores. KLC scores highest in Growth (52/100) and lowest in Profitability (6/100). A grade of D flags significant fundamental concerns across multiple dimensions.

Risk & Quality Signals

Academic financial models used by institutional investors to assess bankruptcy risk, earnings manipulation, financial strength, and credit quality.

Altman Z-Score
0.85
Distress Zone
Piotroski F-Score
5/9
Beneish M-Score
-2.50
Unlikely Manipulator
Ohlson O-Score
-4.58
Bankruptcy prob: 1.0%
Low Risk
Credit Rating
CCC
Score: 14.3/100
Trend: Improving
Earnings Quality
OCF/NI: -0.40x
Accruals: -16.1%
The Altman Z-Score (1968) combines five ratios — working capital, retained earnings, EBIT, market value of equity, and sales, all relative to total assets or liabilities — into a single bankruptcy predictor. KLC scores 0.85, placing it in the Distress Zone (safe > 2.99, distress < 1.81). Historically, companies in this range face elevated bankruptcy risk. The Piotroski F-Score (2000) is a 9-point binary checklist — four profitability tests (positive ROA, positive cash flow, improving ROA, cash flow exceeding net income), three leverage tests (declining debt ratio, improving current ratio, no share dilution), and two efficiency tests (improving gross margin, improving asset turnover). Each pass scores 1 point. KLC scores 5/9, indicating moderate financial health — some areas of strength offset by weaknesses in others. The Beneish M-Score (1999) is an 8-variable model that detects earnings manipulation by comparing year-over-year changes in receivables, gross margins, asset quality, sales growth, depreciation, SG&A, leverage, and accruals. Scores above −1.78 statistically resemble past manipulators. KLC's score of -2.50 falls below this threshold, suggesting earnings are unlikely to be manipulated. The Ohlson O-Score (1980) is a 9-variable logistic regression that estimates bankruptcy probability using firm size, leverage, working capital, current ratio, profitability (ROA), cash flow coverage, negative equity flag, consecutive losses flag, and earnings trajectory. The raw score is converted to a probability via logistic transformation. KLC's implied 1.0% bankruptcy probability is well within safe territory. Our Credit Rating model scores companies on five weighted components — solvency (30%), earning power (25%), leverage (20%), liquidity (15%), and cash flow quality (10%) — then blends the absolute score with sector and industry peer rankings. For companies with large buyback programs, equity is adjusted by adding back cumulative 5-year repurchases (capped at 80% of FCF generated) to avoid penalizing shareholder-friendly capital allocation. KLC receives an estimated rating of CCC (score: 14.3/100), with a improving trend.

Valuation

Key valuation multiples comparing the stock's market price to its earnings, revenue, book value, and cash flows. Lower multiples may indicate relative undervaluation versus peers.

P/E
-1.01x
PEG
0.01x
P/S
0.16x
P/B
0.91x
P/FCF
7.94x
P/OCF
1.68x
EV/EBITDA
9.54x
EV/Revenue
0.98x
EV/EBIT
17.19x
EV/FCF
73.93x
Earnings Yield
-147.20%
FCF Yield
12.59%
Shareholder Yield
0.02%
Graham Number
Equity-based multiples (P/E, P/B, P/FCF) compare the stock price to per-share fundamentals and are affected by capital structure. Enterprise value multiples (EV/EBITDA, EV/Revenue, EV/FCF) strip out debt and cash, making them more useful for cross-company comparisons regardless of how companies are financed. The Graham Number — √(22.5 × EPS × Book Value) — is Benjamin Graham's formula for the maximum price a defensive investor should pay. KLC currently has negative earnings — the P/E ratio is not meaningful.

DuPont Decomposition (5-Factor)

The 5-factor DuPont framework breaks Return on Equity into its component drivers — tax efficiency, interest burden, operating profitability, asset utilization, and financial leverage — to reveal what truly drives shareholder returns.

Tax Burden
1.027
NI / EBT
×
Interest Burden
-2.646
EBT / EBIT
×
EBIT Margin
0.057
EBIT / Rev
×
Asset Turnover
0.741
Rev / Assets
×
Equity Multiplier
4.564
Assets / Equity
=
ROE
-52.3%
The 5-factor DuPont identity decomposes ROE as: Tax Burden × Interest Burden × EBIT Margin × Asset Turnover × Equity Multiplier = ROE. This reveals whether returns are driven by operating performance, financial leverage, or tax efficiency — three very different sources of profitability. KLC's ROE of -52.3% is driven by financial leverage (equity multiplier: 4.56x). Note: high leverage means ROE is amplified by debt rather than operational performance. A tax burden ratio of 1.03 indicates minimal tax leakage — the company retains over 90% of pre-tax earnings.

Graham-Dodd Adjusted Valuation

Our adaptation of Graham's growth formula (Fair P/E = 8.5 + 2g) from The Intelligent Investor. The classic version relies on analyst growth projections, which can be unreliable. This adjusted model substitutes the company's realized 3-year EPS CAGR — a backward-looking, verifiable measure of actual earnings power — grounding the valuation in demonstrated performance rather than forecasts.

Adj. Growth Rate
0.00%
Fair P/E
8.50x
Intrinsic Value
Price/Value
Margin of Safety
Premium
Assessment
Overvalued

Profitability Trends

Historical profitability ratios tracking how efficiently the company converts revenue into returns for shareholders over time.

Leverage & Solvency Trends

Debt and liquidity metrics showing the company's financial leverage and ability to meet short-term and long-term obligations.

Efficiency & Working Capital Trends

Operating efficiency metrics measuring how quickly the company converts inventory to sales, collects receivables, and manages its cash conversion cycle.

Growth Trends (YoY %)

Year-over-year growth rates for key financial metrics, showing the trajectory of revenue, earnings, and cash flow generation.

Earnings Stability

R-squared of linear regression measuring how predictably revenue, earnings, and margins follow a trend over the trailing 5 years. 1.0 = perfectly predictable; lower values indicate erratic or cyclical behavior.

Monte Carlo Price Simulation

Geometric Brownian Motion with 1,000 antithetic paths over 1 year, seeded from 406 days of historical volatility. Percentile bands show the range of statistically plausible outcomes — this is a statistical model, not a forecast.

Current Price
$3.60
Median 1Y
$0.76
5th Pctile
$0.20
95th Pctile
$2.94
Ann. Volatility
80.7%
Analyst Target
$4.29
25th–75th percentile 5th–95th percentile Median path Historical Analyst target

Executive Compensation

C-suite compensation breakdown including salary, stock awards, options, and incentive pay. The CEO-to-employee pay ratio and Gini coefficient measure pay distribution fairness.

C-Suite Compensation

ExecutiveSalaryStockTotal
Paul Thompson
Former Chief Executive Officer
$901,923 $1,102,788 $5,271,869
Tom Wyatt
Chief Executive Officer
$78,750 $— $2,493,870
Tony Amandi Financial
ancial Officer
$525,000 $461,164 $2,449,185
Jessica Harrah People
People Officer
$391,346 $220,551 $1,285,742
Lindsay Sorhondo Operating
ief Operating Officer
$400,962 $210,521 $1,204,057

CEO Pay Ratio

Insufficient data for pay ratio.

C-Suite Pay Equality (Gini)

CEO Compensation Mix

Workforce & Productivity

Workforce efficiency metrics measuring revenue, profit, and R&D spend per employee — key indicators of operational leverage and human capital productivity.

Employees
43,700
+21750.0% YoY
Revenue / Employee
Profit / Employee
SGA / Employee
Avg labor cost proxy

Scaling Efficiency

All Ratios & Metrics

Complete fundamental data with up to 20 periods of history, sparkline trends, and current values across 13 categories and 130+ financial metrics.

Profitability
Metric Trend Q4'24 Q1'25 Q2'25 Q3'25 Q4'25 Q1'26 Current
ROE -15.5% -13.0% -8.5% -8.0% -13.9% -52.3% -52.34%
ROA -3.7% -3.1% -2.0% -1.9% -3.1% -11.5% -11.47%
ROIC -2.2% -1.0% 0.7% 1.3% 4.4% 3.7% 3.70%
ROCE -2.7% -1.2% 1.1% 2.0% 5.7% 4.8% 4.78%
Gross Margin 20.6% 22.8% 25.8% 19.8% 15.5% 13.5% 13.46%
Operating Margin -13.8% 7.3% 9.8% 3.9% 4.8% 2.9% 2.88%
Net Margin -20.6% 3.2% 5.5% 0.7% -25.7% -43.1% -43.10%
EBITDA Margin -8.8% 11.8% 14.9% 9.1% 9.4% 7.5% 7.50%
FCF Margin -12.1% -0.3% -0.1% 2.2% 4.0% 1.3% 1.32%
OCF Margin -6.3% 4.4% 4.6% 7.2% 8.7% 6.3% 6.25%
ROIC Economic snapshot only 3.61%
Cash ROA snapshot only 4.57%
Cash ROIC snapshot only 5.44%
CROIC snapshot only 1.15%
NOPAT Margin snapshot only 4.26%
Pretax Margin snapshot only -15.08%
R&D / Revenue snapshot only 0.00%
SGA / Revenue snapshot only 10.84%
SBC / Revenue snapshot only 0.38%
Valuation
Metric Trend Q4'24 Q1'25 Q2'25 Q3'25 Q4'25 Q1'26 Current
P/E Ratio -15.21 -12.58 -16.59 -11.86 -4.36 -0.68 -1.013
P/S Ratio 3.14 1.08 0.61 0.31 0.18 0.11 0.157
P/B Ratio 2.35 1.64 1.42 0.95 0.65 0.38 0.912
P/FCF -25.86 -407.12 -437.24 13.74 4.47 7.94 7.943
P/OCF 24.55 13.22 4.25 2.07 1.68 1.682
EV/EBITDA -76.65 168.81 28.13 16.79 9.32 9.54 9.538
EV/Revenue 6.74 2.85 1.76 1.17 1.06 0.98 0.979
EV/EBIT -50.07 -98.50 101.18 48.16 15.54 17.19 17.187
EV/FCF -55.52 -1078.02 -1268.80 52.71 26.16 73.93 73.932
Earnings Yield -6.6% -8.0% -6.0% -8.4% -22.9% -1.5% -1.47%
FCF Yield -3.9% -0.2% -0.2% 7.3% 22.4% 12.6% 12.59%
PEG Ratio snapshot only 0.006
EV/OCF snapshot only 15.660
EV/Gross Profit snapshot only 5.237
Acquirers Multiple snapshot only 18.172
Shareholder Yield snapshot only 0.02%
Leverage & Solvency
Metric Trend Q4'24 Q1'25 Q2'25 Q3'25 Q4'25 Q1'26 Current
Current Ratio 0.52 0.52 0.52 0.52 0.74 0.74 0.738
Quick Ratio 0.52 0.52 0.52 0.52 0.74 0.74 0.738
Debt/Equity 2.77 2.77 2.77 2.77 3.34 3.34 3.344
Net Debt/Equity 2.70 2.70 2.70 2.70 3.17 3.17 3.167
Debt/Assets 0.66 0.66 0.66 0.66 0.67 0.67 0.674
Debt/EBITDA -42.04 107.87 18.93 12.74 8.16 8.99 8.987
Net Debt/EBITDA -40.95 105.06 18.43 12.41 7.73 8.51 8.513
Interest Coverage -1.72 -0.54 0.39 0.57 2.21 1.89 1.891
Equity Multiplier 4.22 4.22 4.22 4.22 4.96 4.96 4.962
Cash Ratio snapshot only 0.275
Debt Service Coverage snapshot only 3.407
Cash to Debt snapshot only 0.053
FCF to Debt snapshot only 0.014
Defensive Interval snapshot only 301.7 days
Efficiency & Turnover
Metric Trend Q4'24 Q1'25 Q2'25 Q3'25 Q4'25 Q1'26 Current
Asset Turnover 0.18 0.36 0.55 0.74 0.74 0.74 0.741
Inventory Turnover
Receivables Turnover 6.20 12.61 19.32 25.80 24.53 24.57 24.568
Payables Turnover 11.34 22.74 34.21 46.20 45.89 47.29 47.286
DSO 59 29 19 14 15 15 14.9 days
DIO 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.0 days
DPO 32 16 11 8 8 8 7.7 days
Cash Conversion Cycle 27 13 8 6 7 7 7.1 days
Fixed Asset Turnover snapshot only 1.427
Cash Velocity snapshot only 20.552
Capital Intensity snapshot only 1.369
Growth (YoY)
Metric Trend Q4'24 Q1'25 Q2'25 Q3'25 Q4'25 Q1'26 Current
Revenue 3.2% 1.1% 1.08%
Net Income 15.5% -2.8% -2.77%
EPS 18.5% -2.8% -2.76%
FCF 2.4% 11.4% 11.44%
EBITDA 6.4% 11.7% 11.67%
Op. Income 3.0% 4.6% 4.65%
OCF Growth snapshot only 1.97%
Asset Growth snapshot only 2.81%
Equity Growth snapshot only -12.64%
Debt Growth snapshot only 5.56%
Shares Change snapshot only 0.15%
Growth Quality
Metric Trend Q4'24 Q1'25 Q2'25 Q3'25 Q4'25 Q1'26 Current
Revenue Stability
Earnings Stability
Margin Stability
Rev. Growth Consistency 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.50 0.50 0.500
Earn. Growth Consistency 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.50 0.00 0.000
FCF Positive Streak 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Earnings Persistence
Earnings Smoothness
ROE Trend
Gross Margin Trend
FCF Margin Trend
Sustainable Growth Rate
Internal Growth Rate
Cash Flow Quality
Metric Trend Q4'24 Q1'25 Q2'25 Q3'25 Q4'25 Q1'26 Current
OCF/Net Income 0.31 -0.51 -1.25 -2.79 -2.11 -0.40 -0.404
FCF/OCF 1.92 -0.06 -0.03 0.31 0.46 0.21 0.212
FCF/Net Income snapshot only -0.086
OCF/EBITDA snapshot only 0.609
CapEx/Revenue 5.8% 4.6% 4.7% 5.0% 4.7% 4.9% 4.93%
CapEx/Depreciation snapshot only 1.079
Accruals Ratio -0.03 -0.05 -0.05 -0.07 -0.10 -0.16 -0.161
Sloan Accruals snapshot only -0.015
Cash Flow Adequacy snapshot only 1.269
Dividends & Buybacks
Metric Trend Q4'24 Q1'25 Q2'25 Q3'25 Q4'25 Q1'26 Current
Dividend Yield 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.00%
Dividend/Share $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00 $0.00
Payout Ratio
FCF Payout Ratio 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.00%
Total Payout Ratio
Div. Increase Streak
Chowder Number
Buyback Yield 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.02%
Net Buyback Yield 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.02%
Total Shareholder Return 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.0% 0.02%
DuPont Factors
Metric Trend Q4'24 Q1'25 Q2'25 Q3'25 Q4'25 Q1'26 Current
Tax Burden (NI/EBT) 0.97 1.03 1.32 1.40 1.21 1.03 1.027
Interest Burden (EBT/EBIT) 1.58 2.86 -1.59 -0.76 -0.50 -2.65 -2.646
EBIT Margin -0.13 -0.03 0.02 0.02 0.07 0.06 0.057
Asset Turnover 0.18 0.36 0.55 0.74 0.74 0.74 0.741
Equity Multiplier 4.22 4.22 4.22 4.22 4.56 4.56 4.564
Per Share
Metric Trend Q4'24 Q1'25 Q2'25 Q3'25 Q4'25 Q1'26 Current
EPS (Diluted TTM) $-1.17 $-0.95 $-0.62 $-0.59 $-0.95 $-3.58 $-3.58
Book Value/Share $7.57 $7.31 $7.30 $7.30 $6.38 $6.37 $3.98
Tangible Book/Share $-6.00 $-5.79 $-5.79 $-5.78 $-5.32 $-5.32 $-5.32
Revenue/Share $5.67 $11.12 $17.03 $22.74 $23.08 $23.10 $23.10
FCF/Share $-0.69 $-0.03 $-0.02 $0.51 $0.93 $0.31 $0.31
OCF/Share $-0.36 $0.49 $0.78 $1.63 $2.01 $1.44 $1.44
Cash/Share $0.55 $0.53 $0.53 $0.53 $1.12 $1.12 $1.12
EBITDA/Share $-0.50 $0.19 $1.07 $1.59 $2.61 $2.37 $2.37
Debt/Share $20.96 $20.22 $20.21 $20.20 $21.33 $21.31 $21.31
Net Debt/Share $20.41 $19.69 $19.68 $19.68 $20.20 $20.19 $20.19
Per Employee
Metric Trend Q4'24 Q1'25 Q2'25 Q3'25 Q4'25 Q1'26 Current
Employee Count snapshot only 43,700
Revenue/Employee snapshot only $62645.33
Income/Employee snapshot only $-9699.52
EBITDA/Employee snapshot only $6430.46
FCF/Employee snapshot only $829.57
Assets/Employee snapshot only $85764.07
Market Cap/Employee snapshot only $6589.25
Academic Models
Metric Trend Q4'24 Q1'25 Q2'25 Q3'25 Q4'25 Q1'26 Current
Altman Z-Score 0.854
Altman Z-Prime snapshot only 0.087
Piotroski F-Score 2 3 3 3 6 5 5
Beneish M-Score -2.30 -2.50 -2.503
Ohlson O-Score snapshot only -4.575
Net-Net WC snapshot only $-22.23
EVA snapshot only $-198230410.79
Credit
Metric Trend Q4'24 Q1'25 Q2'25 Q3'25 Q4'25 Q1'26 Current
Credit Rating snapshot only CCC
Credit Score 16.73 10.02 11.66 12.58 19.70 14.35 14.350
Credit Grade snapshot only 17
Credit Trend snapshot only 4.326
Implied Spread (bps) snapshot only 1200.000
Industry Credit Rank snapshot only 0
Sector Credit Rank snapshot only 0

Sign in to InsiderStreet

You'll also get our free weekly newsletter with
smart money signals, market insights, and alpha ideas.
Unsubscribe anytime.

For informational purposes only. Not investment advice. Data sourced from SEC filings. Privacy Terms