Fresh Off a Surge, Appian Passes Its First Big Test
Coming into its fourth-quarter earnings report, Appian (NASDAQ: APPN) had a lot to prove. The stock had nearly tripled since Nov. 5, the day before its third-quarter earnings report came out, which sparked a blockbuster rally over the subsequent weeks. There was little news out on Appian then, but a combination of strong third-quarter results and a growing awareness of the opportunity in low-code automation -- Appian's focus -- led to the stock's breakout.
Those gains were on the line when Appian reported fourth-quarter earnings Friday, delivering another round of solid results, even as the stock pulled back.
Appian's recent rally hasn't come without skepticism. A number of analysts are still expecting a pullback from here and have called the stock "detached from fundamentals." Indeed, the price-to-sales ratio is now close to 50, making it expensive even by cloud-stock standards, and the company is still unprofitable. However, the market seems to be recognizing the long-term opportunity in low-code software, and management underscored a few of Appian's advantages on the earnings call.
Source Fool.com
