Inter Parfums Shares Plunged: What You Need to Know

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 perfume and cologne manufacturer Inter Parfums (NAS: IPAR) were smelling foul to investors today as shares slumped as much as 18% in intraday trading.

So what: The last thing that any company wants to do is announce disappointing quarterly results in this kind of market environment. Unfortunately, though, saying, "You know what? We're going to wait a bit longer before reporting" isn't an option. Total sales for Inter Parfums' second quarter rose 12.3% to $121.1 million and matched analysts' expectations. Earnings per share, however, fell 11% from last year to $0.16 and badly missed Wall Street's $0.22 target.

Now what: If you're looking for a bright side, management at least reaffirmed its full-year guidance. But even that wasn't much help for freaked-out investors since the company's $1.05 estimate for per-share earnings is short of the $1.08 that Wall Street analysts have been projecting. Could the rabid selling be creating a good buying opportunity? That's entirely possible, but with the whole market selling off, there are other stocks that I currently like better than Inter Parfums.

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