Why Monster Worldwide Investors Got Scared

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 Monster Worldwide plunged today by as much as 14% after the company reported earnings and investors got scared when CEO Sal Iannuzzi said there wasn't much interest from potential buyers.

So what: Revenue in the fourth quarter was $211 million, which resulted in a GAAP net loss per share of $0.05. On an adjusted basis, the company posted earnings per share of $0.08. All of these figures were mostly in line with expectations. The real kicker came on the conference call.

Now what: Iannuzzi said that there weren't very many potential buyers for Monster. The company said it had hired financial advisors to explore a possible sale nearly a year ago as its business was suffering at the hands of professional social networking sites like LinkedIn. Iannuzzi admitted that interest was "slower" than anticipated and that he couldn't guarantee that anything was on the table. Some of its lesser operations in developing markets also don't appeal to suitors.

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

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The article Why Monster Worldwide Investors Got Scared originally appeared on Fool.com.

Fool contributor Evan Niu, CFA, has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool recommends LinkedIn. The Motley Fool owns shares of LinkedIn. 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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