FTI Consulting continues rapid growth with $2.35 billion in revenues

Global advisory FTI Consulting has recorded another year of bumper growth, boosting its revenues by 16 percent to $2.35 billion.

Pushing on from double-digit growth in 2018 – which saw the firm break the $2 billion revenue barrier for the first time – global advisory FTI Consulting has further accelerated its charge toward the very top echelon of consultancies, posting 2019 revenues of $2.35 billion to be up by a massive 17 percent at constant rates. Excluding the impact of currency fluctuations, this translates to a $350 million-plus bump in revenue over twelve months to the end of December.

“The level of notable growth we have achieved the last couple of years only happens through intense commitment by our people in support of our clients, together with major efforts to attract and support them as they build businesses,” commented FTI Consulting president and CEO Steven H. Gunby on the results. “I therefore want to thank our leadership and teams across the globe for that commitment and congratulate the entire team on the success.”

Highlighting the firm’s rapid recent growth, FTI’s revenues at the beginning of 2018 stood at $1.8 billion, effectively flat from the $1.75 billion recorded in the first year of Gunby’s tenure in 2014 and following a slight contraction in 2017. Since a low point during the middle of that year, FTI’s market cap has all but tripled to recent highs of over $4.6 billion, with the firm also achieving increasing profitability – including a ~$66 million rise in net income last year.

In addition to the firm’s full-year results, FTI’s fourth-quarter business was particularly strong, with higher demand across all segments driving revenues to a shade over $600 million, up by 19.3 percent on the corresponding quarter in 2018. The firm’s headline offering, Corporate Finance & Restructuring, was both the greatest money-spinner and fastest growing practice, up 25 percent in the fourth quarter and altogether generating $720 million over the year.

The firm’s next two largest practices, Forensics & Litigation and Economic consulting, remain just about neck-and-neck, respectively bringing in $578 million and $592 million – compared to figures of $520 million and $534 million the year prior. FTI’s last two major lines, Strategic Communications and Technology, together contributed around $460 million, with the technology offering in particular witnessing strong growth to be up by over $30 million last year.

According to the firm, the growth of its technology line – by nearly 24 percent quarter-on-quarter in Q4 – was primarily down to higher demand for global cross-border and M&A-related ‘second request’ services, while its restructuring & transformation and transactions services business benefited from higher demand, as well as ‘higher success fees’. Growth in Forensics & Litigation fees was meanwhile put down to higher demand for investigations and disputes services.

Elsewhere, and also credited for contributing to the strong results, was a large rise in the firm’s employee numbers – particularly as to its ‘billable’ headcount. Overall, FTI Consulting now has a team of more than 5,500 employees (growing from around 4,700 at the end of 2018), with more than 4,420 of those classified as revenue generating, up from 3,750 last year. Looking forward, the firm is estimating 2020 revenues in the range of $2.45 billion to $2.550 billion.