EDU vs TAL: Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?
Last updated August 2026
Short answer
EDU (New Oriental Education & Technology Group) and TAL (TAL Education Group) share investment themes but are different businesses. The right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme.
EDU vs TAL: the tie-breaker metrics
Same yardstick, side by side (as of August 2026). Valuation lined up like this is most meaningful for two names in the same corner of the market, which these are. Figures are approximate; verify before investing.
| Metric | EDU | TAL | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|---|
| Forward P/E | 11.68 | 11.53 | Valuation on next year's expected earnings, the same yardstick for both. Lower is cheaper for that growth; higher means the market is paying up. |
| Trailing P/E | 19.63 | 7.81 | Valuation on the last 12 months. A big drop from trailing to forward means the market expects earnings to jump, so more growth is already in the price. |
| Beta | 0.18 | 0.07 | Volatility vs the market. Above 1 swings harder than the index; below 1 is steadier. Higher beta means bigger drawdowns to hold through. |
| Price vs 52-week range | 71% of range | 81% of range | Where today's price sits between the 52-week low and high. Near the high is momentum with less margin of safety; near the low is out of favor or a discount, depending on why. |
| Price / book | 2.27 | 1.83 | How much you pay over book value. Very high can signal an asset-light, high-return business or a rich price. |
Before you buy: how EDU and TAL affect your concentration
The metrics above tell you which is the marginally better business. The bigger risk for most people is not picking the slightly worse stock, it is over-concentrating. EDU and TAL share themes, so owning both, or adding either to what you already hold, can quietly push a large share of your portfolio into one bet.
This is the part a generic comparison page cannot answer, because it depends on what you own. Connect your brokerage and Walnut shows your real, combined EDU and TAL exposure, flags overlap with your existing positions, and tells you if adding one would tip you past a concentration you are comfortable with, read-only by default, with your login staying at your broker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.
What does New Oriental Education & Technology Group (EDU) do?
New Oriental Education & Technology Group is a Beijing-based education company that trades in the US as an ADR under the ticker EDU (a Hong Kong listing, 9901, also exists). Founded in 1993 as an English and test-prep school, it became China's best-known tutoring brand before Beijing's 2021 "double reduction" policy banned for-profit academic tutoring of core K-9 subjects and wiped out most of the company's original business. Since then it has rebuilt around segments that remain permitted: overseas test preparation and study-abroad consulting, non-academic tutoring (arts, coding, STEAM, study tours), intelligent learning devices, and a fast-growing live-streaming e-commerce operation run through its East Buy (Oriental Select) platform.
What does TAL Education Group (TAL) do?
TAL Education Group is a China-based education and technology company that provides learning services and sells AI-powered learning devices and tablets, largely under its Xueersi and Think Academy brands. Its business today is very different from the one investors knew before 2021. China's July 2021 double reduction policy banned for-profit tutoring in core academic K-12 subjects, which had accounted for more than 80% of TAL's revenue, and the stock lost roughly 90% of its value as the company shut down its curriculum-based tutoring operations. Since then TAL has rebuilt around non-academic enrichment programs, content solutions, and a growing hardware line, including learning devices such as the P4, S4, and T4 models and the TalPad T100 AI tutoring tablet, with embedded AI companions like Thinkie designed to guide learners step by step.
EDU vs TAL: how do they differ?
Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.
- EDU drivers: Overseas test prep and study-abroad demand; New learning businesses and smart devices.
- TAL drivers: Learning-device and AI hardware growth; Rebuilt non-academic learning services.
Which fits which kind of investor
A faster-growing, richer-valued name usually swings harder, so it suits a longer horizon and a higher tolerance for volatility; a steadier, more cash-generative business suits a more conservative or income-minded investor. The honest test is which set of risks you could hold through a drawdown: The dominant risk is Chinese regulation: the same government that erased the K-9 tutoring business could tighten rules on non-academic tutoring, devices, or e-commerce with little warning. For TAL, the dominant risks are specific to Chinese ADRs.
EDU or TAL: which should you pick?
EDU vs TAL: the full fundamentals
EDU. New Oriental returned to solid growth after the crackdown, with fiscal 2025 revenue near $4.9 billion and fiscal 2026 guided toward roughly $5.6 billion. The stock has traded well below pre-2021 levels and below some analysts' fair-value estimates, reflecting a persistent China-ADR discount rather than weak operations. A large net cash balance means enterprise value is well below market cap.
TAL. Figures are approximate and tied to the asOf date; verify live numbers before acting. TAL is valued as much on China policy and geopolitics as on its financials, so standard earnings multiples can be misleading. The recovery in revenue and the return to profitability are the clearest positives, but a China ADR trades with a persistent regulatory and delisting discount that can compress or expand quickly on political news rather than on business results.
Headline figures (approximate, July 2026): EDU shows revenue (fy2025) ~$4.9B, revenue (fy2026 guidance) ~$5.6B, recent quarterly revenue growth ~20% YoY, net income (fy2025) ~$372M; TAL shows revenue trend Strong double-digit growth: approximately US$575 million in fiscal Q1 2026, up about 39% year over year, and roughly US$770 million in fiscal Q3 2026, up about 27% year over year, profitability Returned to profitability, with positive net income attributable to shareholders in recent quarters (about US$131 million reported in fiscal Q3 2026) after prior operating losses, business mix Learning services plus a fast-growing AI learning-device and tablet line (Think Academy), a very different mix from the pre-2021 academic tutoring model, capital return Announced a share buyback program of up to approximately US$600 million.
The bottom line: EDU vs TAL
EDU and TAL are related but distinct: same themes, different businesses and risks. Neither wins in the abstract; the right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme. Walnut can show your combined EDU and TAL exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.
Wondering how EDU or TAL fits the portfolio you already own? Walnut is an AI investing app that connects your brokerage read-only and answers questions like that about your actual holdings: overlap, concentration, and how each position tracks the S&P 500. Compare the best AI portfolio analyzers or see the best AI investing apps in 2026.
Investing in New Oriental Education & Technology Group with AI
Connect the broker you already use and ask Walnut's AI how EDU fits what you actually hold: whether you own it already through a fund, what it would do to your concentration, and how it has tracked the S&P 500. Read-only by default, and you approve anything before it reaches your broker.
FAQ
What is the difference between EDU and TAL?
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New Oriental Education & Technology Group is a Beijing-based education company that trades in the US as an ADR under the ticker EDU (a Hong Kong listing, 9901, also exists). TAL Education Group is a China-based education and technology company that provides learning services and sells AI-powered learning devices and tablets, largely under its Xueersi and Think Academy brands. They show up together because they share investment themes, but they are different businesses, so the better fit depends on which thesis you are expressing.
Is EDU or TAL the better stock?
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Neither is universally better; they suit different views and risk levels. Walnut is informational, not investment advice. Compare what each does, the tie-breaker metrics above, and the risks, then decide which fits your thesis and what you already own.
Which is cheaper, EDU or TAL?
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On forward P/E (as of August 2026), EDU trades at 11.68x and TAL at 11.53x, so TAL is the cheaper of the two on next year's expected earnings. A lower multiple is not automatically the better buy: a richer valuation can be justified by faster growth, and a lower one can reflect real risk. Weigh the multiple against how fast each business is compounding.
Should you own both EDU and TAL?
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Because they share themes, owning both concentrates you in that theme. That can be intentional (a focused bet) or accidental (less diversification than it looks). Walnut can show your combined exposure across both, and whether adding either over-concentrates you, before you buy.
What are the risks of EDU vs TAL?
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EDU: The dominant risk is Chinese regulation: the same government that erased the K-9 tutoring business could tighten rules on non-academic tutoring, devices, or e-commerce with little warning. As a US-listed ADR built on a VIE structure, holders own contractual claims on offshore entities rather than direct equity in the operating businesses, and US-China tensions keep delisting risk alive. The East Buy e-commerce segment is competitive, personality-driven, and lower margin, so its revenue can be lumpy. Currency (renminbi) translation, macro softness in China, and intense competition from TAL Education and others add further volatility. TAL: The dominant risks are specific to Chinese ADRs. TAL operates through a variable interest entity (VIE) structure, meaning US investors own shares in an offshore holding company that contracts with the China operating entities rather than owning those entities directly, a structure Chinese authorities have never fully endorsed. Regulatory risk is real and proven: the 2021 double reduction policy erased most of TAL's revenue and value almost overnight, and renewed tightening of education, data, or foreign-investment rules could happen again with little warning. US-China tensions add delisting and audit risk under the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act, even though TAL currently complies with PCAOB rules. Beyond policy, the turnaround itself can stall: the non-academic and device markets are more competitive and lower-margin than the old tutoring business, and rivals such as New Oriental are pursuing similar pivots. Currency swings between the renminbi and US dollar, and the general opacity of China-based reporting, round out the risk profile.
Walnut is informational, not investment advice. This page is descriptive and not a recommendation to buy or sell EDU or TAL; figures are approximate and dated (as of August 2026). Verify current data before investing.