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 mailing equipment maker Pitney Bowes (PBI -1.19%) jumped as much as 14% today before settling to a 9% gain after reporting earnings.
So what: Third-quarter revenue was down 1% from a year ago, to $939 million, but adjusted earnings per share from continuing operations rose from $0.44 a year ago to $0.49 last quarter. Analysts expected $972.3 million in revenue, so the top line was disappointing, but they only predicted $0.40 in earnings per share, so the clear focus is on the bottom line beat today.
Now what: The earnings beat was the first time in a year the company has hit expectations, so it's not time to call this a trend. I'm more concerned about flat revenue, which isn't a good sign for any company. I like the moves into digital, but I'm just not a fan of the mail business, and it's growth days are in the past, which will keep me out of the stock today.
