Why Natus Medical Shares Popped

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 Natus Medical , an aptly tickered provider of neurodiagnostic and newborn baby products, surged as much as 10% after reporting its fourth-quarter earnings results.

So what: For the quarter, Natus reported that revenue improved 41% over the previous year to $90.5 million as adjusted EPS advanced to $0.29. While sales came up about $3 million below expectations, EPS surpassed the Street's consensus estimate by $0.03. CEO Jim Hawkins noted that organic revenue grew 2.3% for the year-over-year period, but overall results were hampered by order delays and order weakness in overseas markets. Looking ahead, Natus is forecasting $362 million to $367 million in revenue and EPS of $0.81-$0.84 for fiscal 2013. Current estimates had called for $359 million in revenue and $0.82 in EPS.

Now what: All told, this was a pretty solid quarter for Natus despite the international market weakness. However, I would point out that you shouldn't get too excited about these results because, as Hawkins said, organic growth totaled just 2.3% this quarter. Natus is doing a good job of managing costs to maximize profits, but it'll need market demand abroad to strengthen if it hopes to get much beyond its current valuation.

Craving more input? Start by adding Natus Medical to your free and personalized wtchlist so you can keep up on the latest news with the company.

While you can certainly make huge gains with diagnostic device makers like Natus, the best investing approach is to choose great companies and stick with them for the long term. The Motley Fool's free report "3 Stocks That Will Help You Retire Rich" names stocks that could help you build long-term wealth and retire well, along with some winning wealth-building strategies that every investor should be aware of. Click here now to keep reading.

The article Why Natus Medical Shares Popped 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.Motley Fool newsletter services have recommended buying shares of Natus Medical. 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.