Why Tyson Foods' 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 Tyson Foods (NYS: TSN) jumped 10% today after reporting earnings.

So what: Revenue for the fiscal fourth quarter fell slightly to $8.37 billion, also below estimates of $8.48 billion, but profit was far better than expected. Net income nearly doubled to $185 million, or $0.51 per share. After one-time items were taken out earnings per share were $0.55, well ahead of the $0.46 analysts expected.

Now what: For the full year, revenue only grew 3% and the company's profit actually declined to $1.58 per share. Management also said that a major drought in the U.S. may increase cattle and hog costs, which will affect margins. The earnings beat was nice, and with shares trading at just under 10 times trailing earnings, the stock isn't expensive but I'm not a buyer on concern for future profits. There's just no enough growth or earnings upside to buy today.

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The article Why Tyson Foods' Shares Jumped originally appeared on Fool.com.

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