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 cloud-based software specialist Rally Software Development (NYSE: RALY) plummeted 30% today after its quarterly results and outlook disappointed Wall Street.
So what: The stock has been battered in 2014 on concerns over slowing growth, and today's first-quarter results -- loss of $0.34 per share on a top line of $19.43 million -- coupled with downbeat revenue guidance only reinforce those worries. In fact, gross margin during the quarter fell 500 basis points from the year-ago period to 73%, suggesting that Rally's competitive position is becoming increasingly expensive to maintain.
Now what: Management now expects a 2015 non-generally accepted accounting principles loss of $1.31-$1.36 per share on revenue of $87 million-$90 million, versus its previous view of a $1.61-$1.56 per-share loss and revenue of $91.5 million-$93.5 million. "Fiscal year 2015 is an important year for Rally Software and this quarter, while mixed in performance, sets a foundation for executing in the second half of this year," said Chairman and CEO Tim Miller in a press release. Given Rally's cash-rich balance sheet and severely beaten-down shares -- off about 70% from their 52-week high -- now might even be an opportune time to bet on that turnaround talk.
