Pandora Media 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 Pandora Media (NYS: P) fell as much as 13% today after the company beat earnings expectations. Wait, what?

So what: Yes, both revenue and earnings topped what analysts had expected, but the market was disappointed by guidance, so the stock got rocked. Revenue of $75 million topped the $71.4 million analysts expected, and earnings per share of $0.02 beat expectations of a $0.01 loss. In the fourth quarter, the company expects revenue to be between $80 million and $84 million, while analysts expected $82.3 million in revenue.

Now what: Guidance is always a big deal for companies -- but especially for companies growing as quickly as Pandora. When Pandora blew away earnings this quarter and didn't up guidance to match, the market saw it as a sign of weakness.

Considering the great quarter and the fact that Pandora did raise guidance, I think this is a great buying spot for investors looking to get in. Management may not want to set guidance too high and miss next quarter, so I'm not terribly disappointed with the company's outlook for the fourth quarter.

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

At the time thisarticle was published Fool contributor Travis Hoium does not have a position in any company mentioned. You can follow Travis on Twitter at @FlushDrawFool, check out his personal stock holdings or follow his CAPS picks at TMFFlushDraw.Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Copyright © 1995 - 2011 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.