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 manufacturer Proto Labs
So what: Revenue increased 34% from a year ago to $30 million and net income was $0.24 per share after adding back stock-based compensation. Both results easily beat analysts' expectations, so the move south is a bit mysterious.
Now what: The company doesn't give guidance, so that can't be what investors were focused on, and obviously results weren't disappointing. Sometimes investors can have overexaggerated expectations of new companies on the public market, and that's what it looks like to me today. Shares aren't terribly cheap at 24 times forward earnings estimates, but I would look at the sell-off today as more of an opportunity than a reason to panic-sell. The company is performing well and provides a service to companies that they can't easily fill themselves. I think the sell-off is overdone and the stock can move higher from here.
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