Why CBRE Group Shares Shot Higher

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 commercial real estate advisory company CBRE Group , probably better known as CB Richard Ellis, advanced as much as 11% on the day, after reporting better-than-expected fourth-quarter earnings results.

So what: For the quarter, revenue rose nearly 14%, to $2.01 billion, and profit jumped 22%, to $0.55, from the year-ago period. Wall Street had only been expecting CBRE Group to report $1.87 billion in revenue and $0.48 in EPS. Furthermore, CBRE Group's 2013 forecasted EPS of $1.40-$1.45 is well ahead of the $1.36 the Street had been projecting. CBRE's management team is encouraged by the slow progress they're seeing in China, the U.S., and even in Europe, but cautioned that Europe's ongoing debt problems could constrain results.

Now what: I have to admit that I'm pretty stunned how strong these results were, given a very weak Q4 GDP figure in the U.S., and Europe's ongoing problems. I'm still not sold on the commercial real estate market or companies like CBRE Group because I have my doubts that the U.S. and China are turning the corner, but I'd definitely suggest placing CBRE Group on your watchlist for when the global economy is booming again.

Craving more input? Start by adding CBRE Group to your free and personalized Watchlist, so you can keep up on the latest news with the company.

One company our chief investment officer isn't worried
The Motley Fool's chief investment officer has selected his number one stock for this year. Find out which stock it is in our brand-new free report, "The Motley Fool's Top Stock for 2013." I invite you to take a copy, free for a limited time. Just click here to access the report and find out the name of this under-the-radar company.

The article Why CBRE Group Shares Shot Higher originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributor Sean Williams has no material interest in any companies mentioned in this article. You can follow him on CAPS under the screen name TMFUltraLong, track every pick he makes under the screen name TrackUltraLong, and check him out on Twitter, where he goes by the handle @TMFUltraLong.Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools don't 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 - 2013 The Motley Fool, LLC. All rights reserved. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.