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 footwear chain Shoe Carnival (SCVL -0.79%) were getting scuffed up today, falling as much as 15% on a mixed earnings report.
So what: It wasn't all bad for Shoe Carnival. The retailer actually beat EPS by $0.02 with a $0.60 profit on top-line growth of 13.4% and a same-store-sales increase of 6.2%. However, the fourth-quarter guidance was below expectations. Management projected comps would grow by just 2% to 4% with an EPS of $0.19 to $0.23, while analysts had projected $0.27 a share. The company didn't offer an explanation for the lowered guidance but did tout its Black Friday sales.
Now what: This could just be a conservative estimate from Shoe Carnival, in which case the market is overreacting. Investors have a tendency to punish companies for delivering underwhelming guidance after an earnings beat. Regardless, the shoe chain's Q4 outlook still represents a 30% gain in EPS from a year ago, so the drop seems mostly seasonal. Sales should continue increase at a solid clip as the store base expands and same-store-sales move higher. Today's drop looks like it could be a good buying opportunity.
Don't let this company leave you in the dust. Add Shoe Carnival to My Watchlist.
