STEC Shares Got Crushed: 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 hard-drive maker STEC (NAS: STEC) are getting crushed today, down by as much as 21%, after the company reported quarterly earnings last night.

So what: Third-quarter revenue spun up to $72.5 million, and earnings per share added up to $0.14. While the results beat the market's expectations of $70.7 million in sales and earnings of $0.10 per share, the company issued revenue guidance that came up way short.

Now what: Fourth-quarter revenue is expected in the range of $55 million to $57 million, well below the $72.6 million consensus, which may result in non-GAAP breakeven or a loss of $0.02. STEC attributed the slow adoption of solid-state drives, or SSDs, to the challenging environment, as current prices remain prohibitively expensive. There's no doubt that SSDs will displace spinning-disc hard drives and that the opportunities will be massive once the adoption is in full swing; the only question is how long it will take.

Interested in more info on STEC? Add it to your watchlist byclicking here.

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