Certified public accounts who hold leadership positions in their companies, such as CFO or controller, are less optimistic about the US economy, according to a survey of 1,440 such accountants by the American Institute of CPAs.

Only 48% of CPAs in leadership positions were optimistic about the US economy over the upcoming 12 months, according to the third-quarter survey. That’s the first time less than 50% of the executives were optomistic since early 2014. The level was also down from 52% in the second-quarter version of the survey and 68% in the first-quarter version.

“Because of economic uncertainty, we’re seeing a more cautious approach to hiring at most companies, particularly the largest ones,” said Arleen Thomas, senior VP of management accounting and global markets at the American Institute of CPAs. “If there’s a silver lining, 61% of executives who work at companies with annual revenue of less than $10 million said they expect their business to expand in the coming year, up from 47% last quarter.”

Fifty-two percent of the executives surveyed reported their company currently has the right staffing. Another 18% said they are looking to hire immediately, down from 21% last quarter. The biggest shift, however, came in companies that need more employees but are hesitant to hire — one-in-five survey takers said their organizations now fall in this category, up six percentage points from last quarter.

Overall, expected headcount growth for the next 12 months fell 0.2 percentage points in the past quarter to 1.3%; it had been as high as 2.1% in the fourth quarter of last year.

Despite the softening employment picture, “availability of skilled personnel” was identified as a Top 3 challenge for businesses for the first time since the fourth quarter last year.

Meanwhile, the CPA outlook index — a gauge of executive sentiment within the survey — fell one point in the third quarter to 71, the third consecutive drop from a post-recession high of 78 in the fourth quarter of 2014. An index rating above 50 indicates a positive outlook.

The survey of AICPA business and industry members was conducted between Aug. 4 and Aug. 24, 2015.