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 commercial real estate advisory company CBRE Group (CBRE), probably better known as CB Richard Ellis, advanced as much as 11% on the day, after reporting better-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings results.
So what: For the quarter, revenue rose nearly 14%, to $2.01 billion, and profit jumped 22%, to $0.55, from the year-ago period. Wall Street had only been expecting CBRE Group to report $1.87 billion in revenue and $0.48 in EPS. Furthermore, CBRE Group's 2013 forecasted EPS of $1.40-$1.45 is well ahead of the $1.36 the Street had been projecting. CBRE's management team is encouraged by the slow progress they're seeing in China, the U.S., and even in Europe, but cautioned that Europe's ongoing debt problems could constrain results.
Now what: I have to admit that I'm pretty stunned how strong these results were, given a very weak Q4 GDP figure in the U.S., and Europe's ongoing problems. I'm still not sold on the commercial real estate market or companies like CBRE Group because I have my doubts that the U.S. and China are turning the corner, but I'd definitely suggest placing CBRE Group on your watchlist for when the global economy is booming again.
Craving more input? Start by adding CBRE Group to your free and personalized Watchlist, so you can keep up on the latest news with the company.
