What Happened?
Shares of slot machine and terminal operator Accel Entertainment (NYSE: ACEL) fell 17.3% in the afternoon session after the company reported second-quarter results that showed a significant drop in profit and missed Wall Street's expectations. While the company posted record quarterly revenue of $335.9 million, an 8.6% increase from the prior year, its net income plummeted. Profits fell by over 50% to $7.3 million. This resulted in earnings per share of $0.08, which was less than half of the $0.17 reported in the same quarter last year and well below analysts' forecasts. The company attributed the sharp decline in net income primarily to a loss related to the changing value of contingent earnout shares, a form of common stock, which contrasted with a gain from the same item in the previous year.
The stock market overreacts to news, and big price drops can present good opportunities to buy high-quality stocks. Is now the time to buy Accel Entertainment? Access our full analysis report here, it’s free.
What Is The Market Telling Us
Accel Entertainment’s shares are not very volatile and have only had 4 moves greater than 5% over the last year. Moves this big are rare for Accel Entertainment and indicate this news significantly impacted the market’s perception of the business.
Accel Entertainment is down 1.8% since the beginning of the year, and at $10.38 per share, it is trading 20.1% below its 52-week high of $12.99 from July 2025. Investors who bought $1,000 worth of Accel Entertainment’s shares 5 years ago would now be looking at an investment worth $1,127.
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