Why Men's Wearhouse Shares Got Crushed

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 men's clothing retailer Men's Wearhouse (NYS: MW) were looking out of fashion today as investors undressed shares as much as 19% in intraday trading after the company reported first-quarter results.

So what: You don't have to look far to figure out why investors are so upset with the quarterly report. For the first time in over two years, the company's per-share profit fell short of analysts' estimates, clocking in at $0.52 versus the $0.55 expectation. Even worse, the company's outlook was softer than expected, as it said second-quarter earnings per share will likely be between $1.12 and $1.13 rather than the $1.22 that Wall Street was hoping for.

Now what: The company placed the blame for the lackluster quarterly performance and the upcoming quarter's soft guidance in part on slower corporate uniform sales in the U.K. as compared to 2011. It expects that part of its business will look better in the back half of the year.

It really wasn't a great quarter for Men's Wearhouse overall as sales grew a sluggish 1.1% and earnings dropped 3.5% from a year ago. However, the company is still projecting 13%-17% full-year growth in EPS -- to between $2.70 and $2.78 -- and the stock is currently trading at around 10.5 times the midpoint of that forecast. With that in mind, this may be a stock to at least have on your radar.

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