Why FTD Companies' Stock Slumped 12.5% in September

Image Source: FTD Companies.

What happened

Shares of floral and gifting company FTD Companies (NASDAQ: FTD) slumped 12.5% in September, according to data provided byS&P Global Market Intelligence. The main trigger for the decline was an analyst downgrade on Sept. 16.

An analyst for B. Riley & Co, one of just four firms covering the stock, downgraded FTD to neutral from buy, which sent shares of FTD tumbling.

So what

Prior to the downgrade, FTD had reported year-over-year declines in revenue for two straight quarters. During the latest quarter, revenue was off 7.4% to $338.6 million, driven by weak results in its consumer and provide commerce segments. For the full year, the company expects a 5% to 7% decline in revenue, with net income of just $4 million to $8 million.

Shares of FTD have tumbled since the company went public in 2013, and are now down more than 40% from their peak. The downgrade may have prompted the recent sell-off, but the company's lackluster performance is to blame for the prolonged slump in the stock price.

FTD data by YCharts

Now what

Despite its poor performance in recent quarters, CEO Robert Apatoff says he remains confident in FTD's strategy:

It's usually best for investors to ignore analyst upgrades and downgrades. In this case, the downgrade came only after it was clear that the company was having problems. Going forward, FTD will need to find a way to return to growth in order to win back investors.

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Timothy Green has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends FTD Companies. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.