Stifel Nicolaus Maintains Buy, $25 Target on Barnes & Noble

Stifel Nicolaus reiterates its Buy rating and $25 target on Barnes & Noble, Inc.

as the company makes a move to transition into tech from traditional retailing. Stifel comments, “Nook investments are driving BKS' transition from a retailer to a tech company while BKS' core businesses (retail and college) are performing about as expected and do not appear to be falling off a cliff. We are also encouraged by BKS comments around strong BN.com 2Q11 comp, as well as strong Black Friday weekend performance across the company. Considering the above, we believe BKS presents a compelling buying opportunity at 5.5x EV/FY12 EBITDA (relative to 7-7.5x hardline retail range).” BKS closed at $15.16 per share on Thursday.