A humorous look at the companies that caught our eye, for better or worse, this week.
FITBIT (DOG)
Reasons not to own a Fitbit fitness tracker: 1) The last time you exercised was in high-school gym class; 2) You would rather spend your money on Ben & Jerry’s ice cream; 3) Your heart rate never rises above 100 – unless the movie you’re watching has a really awesome car chase. People are apparently finding lots of reasons not to buy Fitbits, judging by the company’s weak fourth-quarter sales forecast that caused the stock to collapse.
FIT (NYSE), $8.71 (U.S.) down $4.78 or 35.4% over week
SLEEP COUNTRY CANADA (STAR)
Some people count sheep to fall asleep. Sleep Country investors are counting something else: money. Citing growing sales of bedding accessories and the impact of advertising campaigns, the mattress retailer’s same-store sales jumped 7.7 per cent in the third quarter – the 13th consecutive year-over-year increase. With Sleep Country’s adjusted earnings per share up 22.4 per cent, shareholders are sleeping very well indeed.
ZZZ (TSX), $28.90 up $1.62 or 5.9% over week
TRONC (DOG)
As if changing Tribune Publishing Co.’s name to Tronc (rhymes with “bonk”) a few months ago wasn’t bad enough, shareholders of the Chicago Tribune and Los Angeles Times publisher received another insult this week: USA Today owner Gannett ended its attempt to buy Tronc (short for Tribune Online Content) after lenders backed away, sending the stock to a big loss. Honk if you lost money on Tronc.
TRNC (Nasdaq), $9.56 (U.S.) down $2 or 17.3% over week
LUMBER LIQUIDATORS (DOG)
Business quiz! Lumber Liquidators plunged after: a) a termite infestation at a U.S. lumber distribution centre led to a $1-billion writeoff; b) the company mistakenly supplied balsa wood to a major home builder, causing scores of houses to fly away during a light wind; c) The company – the subject of a 60 Minutes report last year alleging high levels of formaldehyde in its flooring products – posted a bigger-than-expected quarterly loss. Answer: c.
LL (NYSE), $15.31 (U.S.) down $3.17 or 17.2% over week
AECON GROUP (DOG)
As one of Canada’s largest construction and infrastructure development companies, Aecon builds everything from roads and bridges to power plants and factories. Unfortunately, the only thing it built this week was a lot of investor frustration: Citing pipeline delays, Alberta’s wildfires and slower-than-expected new infrastructure investments, Aecon reported revenue and earnings below expectations. Don’t forget your hard hat, investors.
ARE (TSX), $13.25 down $3.91 or 22.8% over week