Back to top

Image: Bigstock

Here's Why You Should Retain FTI Consulting (FCN) Stock Now

Read MoreHide Full Article

A prudent investment decision involves buying stocks that have solid prospects and selling those that carry risks. At times, it is rational to hold certain stocks that have enough potential but are weighed on by tough market conditions.

One such stock is FTI Consulting, Inc. (FCN - Free Report) , which has improved 54.3% over the past year against the 10.7% decline of the industry. Moreover, earnings are expected to register 5.4% growth in 2021. 

 

Factors Driving FTI Consulting

FTI Consulting’s potential to club diverse issues like damage assessment, accounting, economics, statistics, finance and industry under a single platform looks impressive. Further, the company continues to pursue opportunities in areas such as business transformation services, transaction advisory business, restructuring, retail, construction, data and analytics, cyber business, information governance and international arbitration. This makes it an excellent partner for global clients dealing with international arbitration issues, thereby generating continued revenue growth from the existing international operations.

The company’s international operations help expand its geographic footprint and contribute to the top line. In 2019, the company earned almost 34% of total revenues from its international businesses. The industrial and geographical diversification of its customer base (throughout the United States and internationally) helps mitigate the risk of incurring material losses.

We are impressed by FTI Consulting's endeavors to reward shareholders through share buybacks. In 2019, 2018 and 2017, the company had repurchased shares worth $105.9 million, $40.7 million and $168.0 million, respectively. These initiatives not only instill investors’ confidence but also positively impact earnings per share.

Risks

Despite the aforementioned positives, the company faces its share of headwinds. Escalating investments in people are likely to increase the costs incurred by FTI Consulting and dent the bottom line in the initial stage. The timing of investments or acquisitions and the expenses related to their integrations can result in fluctuations in the company’s financial results. The company’s business experiences seasonality.

Vast global presence makes FTI Consulting vulnerable to risks associated with foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations. The company operates in many countries and derives a significant part of its sales and earnings from Europe, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and Africa. Thus, appreciation or depreciation of the U.S. dollar versus foreign currencies impacts the company’s results.

Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider

Currently, FTI Consulting carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).

Some better-ranked stocks in the broader Zacks Business Services sector are CoreLogic , Booz Allen Hamilton (BAH - Free Report) and Charles River Associates (CRAI - Free Report) , each carrying a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Long-term expected EPS (three to five years) growth rate for CoreLogic, Booz Allen Hamilton and Charles River Associates is 11%, 11.9% and 13%, respectively.

5 Stocks Set to Double

Each was hand-picked by a Zacks expert as the #1 favorite stock to gain +100% or more in 2020. Each comes from a different sector and has unique qualities and catalysts that could fuel exceptional growth.

Most of the stocks in this report are flying under Wall Street radar, which provides a great opportunity to get in on the ground floor.

Today, See These 5 Potential Home Runs >>

Published in