Why SINA's Shares Are Singing

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 Chinese Internet portal SINA (Nasdaq: SINA  ) are bucking the trend of American social-media flops today. The operator of microblogging site Weibo thrashed earnings estimates, clocking in with $0.05 in adjusted EPS against an expected $0.02 loss per share. The stock has been trading at least 10% higher all day, and currently holds an 11% gain.

So what: SINA's revenue came in about 10% higher than the year-ago quarter's result, but its bottom-line beat was the biggest cause for celebration. The market also discounted SINA's third-quarter-revenue guidance, which at best meets the Street's consensus with a range of $145 million-$148 million. Weibo may not produce meaningful results until next year, which also seems to be immaterial today.

Now what: SINA is finally nearing full-year profitability, but its positive earnings were largely the result of a one-time gain on an investment in another Chinese online information portal. Analysts were divided on interpreting these results, as Jefferies downgraded its call to "hold" while Merrill Lynch upgraded its call to "buy." The stock's still significantly lower than its year-ago price, and there may be further to fall before the company can be consistently profitable.