By
Anders Bylund
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More Articles
July 26, 2011
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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: Shares of plastic and metal products manufacturer Mueller Industries (NYSE: MLI ) fell as much as 10.2% overnight on above-average trading volume.
So what: Mueller jumped sky-high three months ago on a terrific earnings report but reversed course today by missing the lone analyst's earnings estimate while blowing right past the revenue guess. Chairman Harvey Karp acknowledged that the construction industry is struggling because of a terrible macroeconomic backdrop. Karp believes this must be the bottom of the negative macro cycle, but then again he said something to that effect in April and January, as well. Time to polish up the old crystal ball, perhaps?
Now what: Mueller's shares overheated in July, rising as much as 23% for no particular reason and leaving sector rivals Alcoa (NYSE: AA ) , Precision Castparts (NYSE: PCP ) , and Sims Metal Management (NYSE: SMS ) far behind. This correction erased that inexplicable lump on Mueller's chart, and the stock has still outperformed all of the peers listed, going back to July 1.
Interested in more info on Mueller Industries? Add it to your watchlist.
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