One-glance verdict
$136.79 our estimate vs market $137.76
Wall Street consensus: $165.50 (21.0% higher than our fair-value estimate)
1% above our estimate
Fundamentals snapshot
FCN · NYQ · Industrials · Consulting Services
Current price
$137.76
52-week range
$129.12 - $189.30
Market cap
$3.80B
One-glance verdict
Wall Street consensus: $165.50 (21.0% higher than our fair-value estimate)
1% above our estimate
Balance sheet
Net debt $1.08B. Interest coverage shows how many times profit covers the interest bill.
What stands out
What this company does
FTI Consulting is a team of expert problem-solvers that other businesses hire to handle major challenges like lawsuits, financial trouble, or cyberattacks. The company makes its money by charging for its consultants' advice and services, particularly in areas like corporate restructuring (helping a struggling company reorganize to become healthy again). This matters because FTI's expertise is often in high demand when the economy is uncertain or other companies are in distress, creating a steady need for its specialized help.
FTI Consulting started in 1982 as Forensic Technologies International, a company that provided expert witnesses for court cases. It went public in 1996 and changed its name to FTI Consulting in 1998 as it expanded its services. A key turning point was the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, which prevented accounting firms from also providing consulting services to their audit clients, creating a major opportunity for FTI. The company grew significantly by acquiring the business recovery unit of PricewaterhouseCoopers and the dispute advisory business from KPMG.
Think of FTI Consulting as a team of experts that companies, law firms, and even governments call when they are facing complex problems or big changes. They don't sell physical products; instead, they provide specialized advice and hands-on support for high-stakes situations like financial troubles, legal disputes, or major business transactions. Their clients are often dealing with urgent and complicated issues that require deep expertise in finance, law, and industry-specific knowledge. FTI makes money by billing for their experts' time and knowledge, much like a law firm or a doctor's office.
This is the part of the company that helps businesses with their money-related challenges and opportunities. If a company is in financial trouble and might be facing bankruptcy, this team steps in to help turn things around (a process called restructuring). They also advise on buying or selling other companies, known as mergers and acquisitions (M&A), and help improve a company's overall financial performance. This segment is a significant part of FTI's business, especially when the economy is facing challenges.
This division acts like a detective for businesses and law firms. They investigate financial fraud, provide expert testimony in legal disputes, and help with cybersecurity issues. For example, if a company suspects an employee of stealing money, this team would be called in to uncover the facts. They also have experts in specific industries like construction and healthcare to help with disputes and investigations in those fields.
This segment provides deep economic analysis for legal and regulatory situations. For instance, when two large companies want to merge, this team might be hired to analyze whether the merger would harm competition (an area of law called antitrust). They also provide expert opinions on the financial damages in legal cases and assist in international disputes between companies or even countries. This is a highly specialized business that relies on economists with deep expertise.
In today's world, most business information is digital, and this division helps clients manage and analyze that data, especially for legal and regulatory reasons. A key service is e-discovery, which is the process of finding and presenting electronic data to be used in a lawsuit. They also help companies protect their data, comply with privacy regulations, and investigate cyberattacks. This segment is crucial as the amount of digital information continues to grow.
This part of FTI helps companies manage their reputation and communicate effectively during critical events. For example, if a company is going through a merger, this team helps explain the deal to investors, employees, and the public. They also handle crisis communications (what a company says when something goes wrong), public affairs (interacting with governments), and financial communications (how a company talks to Wall Street).
FTI Consulting's strategy focuses on attracting and retaining top expert talent, as their knowledge is the core of what the company sells. They are also focused on expanding their services in high-growth areas and encouraging their different business segments to work together on complex client problems. The company is also investing in technology, including artificial intelligence, to enhance their services and help clients manage the increasing amount of data in the business world. A key challenge they are managing is ensuring that the growth in their revenue (the money they bring in) also leads to an increase in their profits.
Price history
Earnings history
Click any quarter to read the call summary and what the numbers say.
Is it cheap or expensive?
Wall Street consensus is the average analyst price target: $165.50 (21.0% higher than our fair-value estimate).
Our most-likely fair value is $136.79 a share — about 0.7% away from today's price of $137.76, so the stock currently looks fairly priced.
Is it drowning in debt?
Net debt $1.1B. Interest coverage 19.4x.
FTI Consulting, Inc.'s profit covers its interest bill about 19.4 times over. which is stronger than every peer shown here.
Total debt $1.27B Interest coverage 19.37x This is the baseline the peer rows are being compared against.
Total debt $865.16M Interest coverage 5.49x -72% vs FCN Carries about 3.5x less debt cushion than FCN.
Total debt $4.16B Interest coverage 4.97x -74% vs FCN Carries about 3.9x less debt cushion than FCN.
Total debt $80.72M Interest coverage 12.87x -34% vs FCN Carries about 1.5x less debt cushion than FCN.
Total debt $303.65M Interest coverage 15.51x -20% vs FCN Carries about 1.2x less debt cushion than FCN.
Total debt $564.79M Interest coverage 4.72x -76% vs FCN Carries about 4.1x less debt cushion than FCN.
What you should know
The numbers
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Valuation
Profitability
Health
Growth
Cash flow
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Metric explainer
Debt comparison
What you should know