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 power equipment manufacturer Generac Holdings (GNRC -2.47%) fell as much as 11% today after reporting first-quarter earnings.
So what: Revenue dropped 8.8% from a year ago to $311.8 million and net income dropped 43% to $19.7 million, or $0.28 per share. Adjusted net income was $0.49 per share, well below the $0.63 Wall Street estimates, and management said sales would be flat for the year versus a mid-single digit gain they estimated previously. EBITDA is also expected to be flat for the year.
Now what: End market demand seems to be weaker than anyone expected, in part because there haven't been many weather or grid related outages recently. That's good for most businesses but not for Generac, so management has some caution going into the rest of the year. A single earnings miss does not alarm me and this is a business that will continue to record profits over time, even if they're lumpy. So, at 13 times trailing earnings, I think today's dip provides a nice entry point for long-term investors.
