Diamonds and Dogs
5/17/12
Red Robin Gourmet Burgers Inc. (RRGB)Red Robin is leaving a bitter taste in investor's mouths today, down 14.60% at $30.53. Red Robin's top line of their earnings report was a point of concern for analysts and investors. Revenue increased just 4.4% from a year ago and missed Wall Street's estimates. However this number seems to have been driven up solely based on a 4.1% increase in the average consumer check. That being said, there actually was some good news in Red Robin's quarter. On the bottom line, earnings per share grew 22% from the prior year to $0.71, which topped the $0.66 that analysts were estimating. Red Robin CEO Steve Carley said, "Although we began the year with strong sales, we were disappointed by the extent of guest traffic softening in the second half of the quarter."
Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (WMT)
Wal-Mart Stores didn't rollback the price of their stock today, up 4.21% at $61.68. The company's profit and sales surpassed expectations due to more people shopping at its stores and spending more. First quarter profits showed a jump of 10.1%. The huge jump in profits seemed to shadow the ongoing internal and government probes into possible bribery. Walter Stackow, an analyst for Manning & Napier, said, "The turnaround they initiated several quarters ago is starting to show some benefit, it's starting to gain traction. But at the end of the day it is still a very challenging backdrop for them." Wal-Mart shares had a good bounce today, even as the major indices dropped significantly.
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