Why World Fuel Services Shares Tanked

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 logistics specialist World Fuel Services (NYS: INT) fell 13% as the company's second-quarter earnings report disappointed.

So what: The company's EPS actually beat estimates by a penny, with a profit of $0.68 per share, but revenue was short of expectations, coming in at $9.6 billion instead of the $10 billion analysts were annoying. EPS were also down slightly from the previous year's total, and investors seemed bothered by a -$105.7 million operating cash flow resulting from $160 million in downward adjustments because of inventory increases and deposits on fuel-related derivatives. A drop in jet-fuel prices also had a negative effect on the quarter, causing gross margins to shrink.

Now what: World Fuel Services benefits when fuel prices are high, so a resurgence in oil could improve its prospects in the rest of the year. Its financials look solid, and growth prospects are decent. I'd say the 13% drop is overdone. Investors looking for a point to get in might want to take advantage of today's sell-off.

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The article Why World Fuel Services Shares Tanked originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributorJeremy Bowmanholds no positions in the companies above. We Fools don't all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

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