一天蒸发300亿！美国金融科技史上罕见“血案”是怎么酿成的

Core Insights - Fiserv experienced a significant stock price drop of approximately 44%, marking the largest single-day decline in nearly 40 years, resulting in a market value loss of about $30 billion [1][3]. Management Issues - The stock collapse was primarily attributed to new CEO Mike Lyons retracting previous earnings guidance, revealing management failures such as poor pricing strategies, overpromising growth, and a sluggish response to customer needs [3]. - Lyons lowered the adjusted EPS forecast for the year from $10.15-$10.30 to $8.50-$8.60, a reduction of over 16%, and cut revenue growth expectations from 10% to 3.5%-4% [3]. - The third-quarter performance was disappointing, with revenue growth of only about 1% to $4.92 billion, falling short of the expected $5.36 billion, and adjusted EPS of $2.04, nearly 23% below the forecast [3][4]. Customer Backlash - Following Lyons' appointment, a customer crisis emerged, with dissatisfaction over high fees associated with the Clover payment terminal leading many merchants to switch to cheaper alternatives like Square or Toast [5]. - Clover, initially a core growth strategy for Fiserv, faced challenges as the company added various "value-added services" fees, which, while boosting short-term revenue, ultimately harmed long-term competitive advantage [5][6]. Financial Performance - The financial solutions division reported a 3% revenue decline in the third quarter, with profit margins dropping to 42.5%, a decrease of about 5 percentage points year-over-year [7]. - Lyons acknowledged that the challenges faced were largely self-inflicted, stemming from short-term focused strategies that compromised product delivery to customers [7]. Analyst Reactions - Analysts reacted swiftly to Fiserv's poor performance, with BTIG describing the financial results as "astonishingly bad" and William Blair stating that the revenue and EPS shortfalls were shocking [8]. - Jefferies and Truist Financial analysts expressed difficulty recalling a similar level of performance shortfall in any covered sub-industry [8]. Strategic Changes - Fiserv announced a series of remedial measures, including reversing pricing changes for Clover, launching a new technology strategy, and implementing significant leadership changes [9]. - Starting in December, Fiserv's COO will co-lead with the former CEO of Optum Financial Services, and a new CFO has been appointed, along with three new board members [9]. Lessons for the Industry - This incident serves as a stark reminder that even industry giants can face catastrophic consequences due to management missteps, especially in a competitive digital payments market with declining investor tolerance [9].