Why Textron's Shares Plunged

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 industrial manufacturer Textron (NYS: TXT) fell as much as 11% in trading today after the company released earnings.

So what: For the third quarter, Textron said its revenue grew 7% to $3.0 billion, just short of the $3.06 billion revenue estimate from analysts. Earnings per share were $0.48, falling $0.03 short of estimates, which also has investors concerned about the stock.

Now what: Slow order flow during July and August for the company's Cessna aircraft was the main reason for the miss. Management said orders picked up in September and it expects much better numbers in the fourth quarter. As a result, outlook for full-year earnings per share was raised to a range of $1.95-$2.05, but even this was short of expectations.

I would be cautious after this earnings report. Military spending will likely decline in the future, and there's still a slow flow of corporate jet orders. I'll sit out the drop and wait for improved results before buying in.

Interested in more info on Textron? Add it to your watchlist by clicking here.

The article Why Textron's Shares Plunged originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributor Travis Hoium has no positions in the stocks mentioned above. You can follow Travis on Twitter at @FlushDrawFool, check out his personal stock holdings or follow his CAPS picks at TMFFlushDraw. The Motley Fool owns shares of Textron. 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.

Copyright © 1995 - 2012 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.