Valassis Communications Shares Popped Then Dropped: 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 Valassis Communications (NYS: VCI) jumped as much as 12% early in trading today before falling to about flat as of this writing.

So what: The trading pattern is very curious considering that the company announced solid guidance for 2012 this morning. Management is expecting diluted earnings per share to be $3.07 and diluted cash earnings per share of $3.97 in 2012. Analysts expect earnings of $2.99 per share next year.

Now what: The pop made some sense with the company guiding above expectations, but the drop later in trading is a bit puzzling. Shares are trading at just 6.6 times forward diluted earnings per share, a steal for most companies. If you were looking to jump in to shares, this looks like a good opportunity considering the strong guidance for next year.

Interested in more info on Valassis Communications? 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.

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