Why Shares of Quanta Services Inc. Popped Yesterday

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 Quanta Services jumped as much as 10% yesterday after the company released fourth-quarter earnings.

So what: Revenue was up 9% to $1.82 billion last quarter, crushing expectations by $112 million. Net income from continuing operations rose 65% to $166.7 million, or $0.50 per share on an adjusted basis, $0.10 ahead of expectations.

Now what: Momentum in the electrical contracting business continues to be strong and Quanta's backlog increased to a record of $8.7 billion. For 2014, management expects adjusted earnings per share from continuing operations in a range of $1.85 to $2.05, up from $1.71 in 2013. The solid results are encouraging, but paying 17 times the top end of forward estimates is a steep price and will keep me out of the stock today.

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The article Why Shares of Quanta Services Inc. Popped Yesterday originally appeared on Fool.com.

Travis Hoium has no position in any stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. 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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