Brinks 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: Security fell asleep on the job this morning and shares of Brinks (NYS: BCO) were robbed, losing 19% of their value.

So what: Revenue grew 13% in the fourth quarter to $997 million, but non-GAAP earnings per share fell to $0.56 from $0.80 a year ago. Analysts had expected earnings of $0.63 per share on $1.05 billion in revenue.

Now what: Higher security costs affected margins leading to the lower-than-expected revenue. The company is hoping that a rapidly growing business in Latin America will help performance in the future. Revenue there grew 34% over last year, driven by an acquisition the company made in Mexico. Shares trade at just 12.7 times adjusted earnings per share for 2011, and considering the company's growth I think that's an attractive value in this business.

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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.Motley Fool newsletter services have recommended buying shares of Brinks. 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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