Dresser-Rand Shares Plunged: What You Need to Know

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Energy equipment manufacturer Dresser-Rand (NYSE: DRC  ) saw its shares plummet as much as 17% in early trading today after posting disappointing quarterly results at yesterday's close.

So what: Thanks in large part to continued economic weakness, Dresser-Rand's third-quarter profit sank an ugly 50%. The company has held up relatively well throughout the downturn, but its 21% revenue drop marks the second straight quarter of double-digit top-line declines.

Now what: I think Fools would do well to consider pouncing on this pullback. Dresser-Rand's leading position in the rotating equipment market, strong balance sheet, and cheapish forward P/E make it a solid bet on the long-term demand for oil and gas equipment. For peace of mind, of course, I'd still encourage Fools to make that bet in a basket with bigger foes like National Oilwell (NYSE: NOV  ) , Cameron (NYSE: CAM  ) , and Transocean (NYSE: RIG  ) .

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