Unisys 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 information technology service provider Unisys (NYS: UIS) sank 10% on Wednesday after its quarterly results disappointed Wall Street.

So what: While Unisys' fourth-quarter adjusted EPS managed to top expectations, a miss on revenues -- $985.3 million versus the consensus of $1.02 billion -- is triggering fears of a prolonged drop in demand. In fact, the main culprit for the weak top line was a sharp 23% drop in its U.S. federal business, suggesting that the government's budget challenges continue to weigh heavily on Unisys.

Now what: I'd look into this pullback as a possible buying opportunity. "In our U.S. Federal business, while market conditions remain challenging," said CEO Ed Coleman, "we are focused on improving our results in this important market and delivering innovative solutions that help our customers operate more effectively and efficiently." With the stock now off more than 50% from its 52-week highs and trading at a paltry forward P/E of 6, betting on that turnaround might not be such a bad idea.

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At the time thisarticle was published Fool contributor Brian Pacampara owns no position in any of the companies mentioned. 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 Fool's disclosure policy always gets a perfect score.

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