Appian Corp (NASDAQ: APPN)

Sector: Technology Industry: Software - Infrastructure CIK: 0001441683
Market Cap 2.75 Bn
P/B -56.56
P/E -375.56
P/S 3.97
ROIC (Qtr) -0.15
Div Yield % 0.00
Rev 1y % (Qtr) 21.39
Total Debt (Qtr) 306.60 Mn
Debt/Equity (Qtr) -6.32

About

Appian Corporation, often recognized by its stock symbol APPN, operates in the software industry, specifically focusing on automating business processes and operationalizing artificial intelligence (AI) through low-code design. The company's platform empowers customers to design, automate, and optimize their mission-critical business processes, fostering continuous innovation. Appian's primary business activities involve providing a unified platform that combines AI, data, and process capabilities, designed to be industry-agnostic. This platform...

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Price action

Investment thesis

Bull case

  • Healthy cash reserves of 125.25M provide 4.97x coverage of short-term debt 25.21M, demonstrating strong liquidity position and minimal refinancing risk.
  • Robust free cash flow of 72.65M exceeds capital expenditure of 2.96M by 24.53x, indicating strong organic growth funding capability.
  • Robust tangible asset base of 581.34M provides 8.39x coverage of working capital 69.28M, indicating strong operational backing.
  • Retained earnings of (605.82M) represent substantial 12.48x of equity (48.54M), indicating strong internal capital generation.
  • R&D investment of 157.31M represents healthy 0.55x of deferred revenue 283.77M, indicating strong future innovation pipeline.

Bear case

  • Operating cash flow of 75.61M barely covers its investment activities of (28.55M), with a coverage ratio of -2.65, indicating heavy reliance on external financing for growth which may not be sustainable in a tighter credit environment.
  • Investment activities of (28.55M) provide weak support for R&D spending of 157.31M, which is -0.18x, suggesting potentially insufficient investment in innovation relative to other capital deployment.
  • Operating cash flow of 75.61M provides insufficient coverage of deferred revenue obligations of 283.77M, which is 0.27x, raising concerns about future service delivery capabilities.
  • The company's operating cash flow of 75.61M shows concerning coverage of stock compensation expenses of 40.03M, with a 1.89 ratio indicating potential earnings quality issues.
  • Operating earnings of 18.35M show weak coverage of depreciation charges of 9.96M, with a 1.84 ratio indicating high capital intensity and potential reinvestment needs.

Product and Service Breakdown of Revenue (2024)

Geographical Breakdown of Revenue (2024)

Peer comparison

Companies in the Software - Infrastructure
S.No. Ticker Company Market Cap P/E P/S Total Debt (Qtr)
1 MSFT Microsoft Corp 3,563.59 Bn 33.97 12.13 60.56 Bn
2 ORCL Oracle Corp 561.87 Bn 36.43 9.21 124.39 Bn
3 PLTR Palantir Technologies Inc. 413.65 Bn 377.64 106.17 0.24 Bn
4 PANW Palo Alto Networks Inc 126.45 Bn 113.19 13.23 0.35 Bn
5 CRWD CrowdStrike Holdings, Inc. 116.42 Bn -370.56 25.50 0.82 Bn
6 SNPS Synopsys Inc 86.06 Bn 64.60 12.20 14.29 Bn
7 NET Cloudflare, Inc. 62.78 Bn -609.27 31.18 3.50 Bn
8 FTNT Fortinet, Inc. 60.83 Bn 32.47 9.28 1.00 Bn

Industry comparisons

Current Valuation Value Ind Avg Percentile
EV to Assets EV to Assets 4.81 2.69
EV to Cash from Ops. EV/CFO 38.91 28.91
EV to Debt EV to Debt 9.60 19.83
EV to EBIT EV/EBIT 160.31 -9.95
EV to EBITDA EV/EBITDA 309.29 6.82
EV to Free Cash Flow [EV/FCF] EV/FCF 40.50 26.09
EV to Market Cap EV to Market Cap 1.07 0.36
EV to Revenue EV/Rev 4.26 -9.34
Price to Book Value [P/B] P/B -56.56 3.88
Price to Earnings [P/E] P/E -375.56 -10.66
Dividend Metrics Value Ind Avg Percentile
Dividend Coverage Ratio Dividend Coverage Ratio 0.00 -0.30
Dividend Payout Ratio % Div Payout % (Qtr) 0.00 2.71
Dividend per Basic Share Div per Share (Qtr) 0.00 0.10
FCF Dividend Payout Ratio % FCF Div Payout % (Qtr) 0.00 1.68
Interest Coverage Int. cover (Qtr) 0.85 -14.20
Growth Metrics Value Ind Avg Percentile
Capex Growth (1y) % Capex 1y % (Qtr) 36.25 -408.01
Cash and Equivalents Growth (1y) % Cash & Equiv 1y % (Qtr) 26.27 226.39
Dividend Growth (1y) % Dividend Growth (1y) % 0.00 -0.28
EBIAT Growth (1y) % EBIAT 1y % (Qtr) 163.22 25.27
EBITDA Growth (1y) % EBITDA 1y % (Qtr) 117.24 47.48
EBIT Growth (1y) % EBIT 1y % (Qtr) 128.74 20.13
EBT Growth (1y) % EBT 1y % (Qtr) 96.25 14.16
EPS Growth (1y) % EPS 1y % (Qtr) 92.56 67.50
FCF Growth (1y) % FCF 1y % (Qtr) 465.37 296.60
Gross Profit Growth (1y) % Gross Profit 1y % (Qtr) 17.92 46.75
Liquidity Ratios Value Ind Avg Percentile
Asset Utilization Ratio Asset Util Ratio (Qtr) 1.13 0.67
Cash Payout Ratio Cash Payout (Qtr) 0.00 0.01
Cash Ratio Cash Ratio (Qtr) 0.34 1.22
Current Ratio Curr Ratio (Qtr) 1.19 2.59
Debt to Equity Ratio Debt/Equity (Qtr) -6.32 -0.96
Interest Cover Ratio Int Coverage (Qtr) 0.85 -14.20
Times Interest Earned Times Interest Earned (Qtr) 0.85 -14.20
Profitability Value Ind Avg Percentile
EBITDA Margin % EBITDA Margin % (Qtr) 4.10 -548.16
EBIT Margin % EBIT Margin % (Qtr) 2.66 -199.84
EBT Margin % EBT Margin % (Qtr) -0.47 -607.20
Gross Margin % Gross Margin % (Qtr) 76.30 51.88
Net Profit Margin % Net Margin % (Qtr) -1.10 -610.00