Why U.S. Steel Shares Jumped

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 U.S. Steel (NYS: X) rose 10% in trading today after the company reported better-than-expected earnings.

So what: Results are down from a year ago, but they were still better than analysts had expected. Revenue fell 2% to $5.02 billion and net income fell from $222 million to $101 million, or $0.62 per share. The bar had been set much lower, though, with analysts expecting $0.47 in EPS and $4.99 million in revenue.

Now what: The results may be been better than expected, but they were still down, and the company expects overall results to be worse in the third quarter. Results have been all over the place in recent quarters and analysts have been slashing estimates like crazy in the last three months. I like the earnings beat, but the company's direction doesn't excite me, so I'll sit out the move today.

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The article Why U.S. Steel Shares Jumped originally appeared on Fool.com.

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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