Shuffle Master Shares Plunged: What You Need to Know (SHFL)

Shuffle Master 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: Gaming equipment maker Shuffle Master (Nasdaq: SHFL ) fell 10% today after an analyst downgrade.

So what: Research firm Brean Murray downgraded Shuffle Master from buy to hold, and the market agreed by punishing the stock. There are only a handful of analysts following this stock, so when one made a move today, the herd followed.

Now what: Foolish investors won't overreact to an analyst downgrade; instead, they'll look toward the Jan. 13 earnings release to make a judgement about this stock. Shuffle Master has been riding high on increased gambling worldwide, and an analyst downgrade is just taking the wind out of momentum's sails. I'm holding firm today, and I'll look for a more conclusive reason to buy or sell when earnings are released.

Interested in more info on Shuffle Master? Add it to your watchlist.

The Steve Jobs Betrayal
You may already know that in the final year of his life, Jobs revealed a stunning betrayal — and told his biographer, "I will spend my last dying breath... and every penny of Apple's $40 billion in the bank to right this wrong." What was it that made Jobs so irate — and why could it make a few in-the-know investors some major profits over the coming months and years?

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Fool contributor Travis Hoium does not have a position in any company mentioned. You can follow Travis on Twitter at @FlushDrawFool, check out his personal stock holdings, or follow his Motley Fool CAPS picks at TMFFlushDraw.

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