For the first time in eight weeks, Asia Equity Exchange Group Inc. (OTCMKTS: AEEX) did not make our list of tech stock* movers of the week.
AEEX fell a modest 5.4% last week, not enough to make the jump to biggest losers. We'll see if this is the end of the stock's volatility.
WebMD Health Corp. (Nasdaq: WBMD) was the big winner after last Monday's announcement that the web-based health information provider would be acquired by Internet Brands for approximately $2.8 billion. Owned by KKR & Co. LP (NYSE: KKR), Internet Brands adds WebMD to a portfolio of sites that includes CarsDirect, ApartmentRatings.com, and Wikitravel. The deal is expected to close in the fourth quarter but is subject to a legal investigation into whether WebMD board members acted to maximize shareholder value. Shareholders will receive $66.50 per share if the deal goes through as is. WBMD shares shot up from $55.19 to $66.10 on Monday, then stayed remarkably flat for the rest of the week. The stock never closed more than $0.10 away from Monday's price.
Last week Baidu Inc. (Nasdaq: BIDU), China's leading Internet search provider, reported a second-quarter earnings per share (EPS) increase of 97% over the same quarter last year. That obliterated analyst expectations by 56%. That sent shares soaring, finishing the week with a 13.9% gain. Baidu also announced a new partnership to link its online payment system with PayPal Holdings Inc. (Nasdaq: PYPL). The move will give each company access to a wider merchant base overseas, just as China's other top payment firms are making similar moves to extend their global reach.
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This earnings season has been dominated by companies beating expectations. So MicroStrategy Inc. (Nasdaq: MSTR) stood out last week when it announced its EPS of $0.96, missing expectations by 38%. Shares tumbled immediately and closed the week down 25.7%. MicroStrategy was one of the poster children of the dot-com bubble but has repaired its image in the 17 years since. It was valued as high as $26 billion before the collapse in 2000. It now sits around $1.6 billion.
Triumph Group Inc. (NYSE: TGI) was another unfortunate standout, missing EPS estimates by a whopping 71%. At $0.24 per share, earnings were down 77% from a year earlier. The stock plunged 18.1% on Wednesday and closed the week down 23.4%. The aviation manufacturer pinned the disappointing figures on the end of two legacy programs.
*Stocks have a primary listing on a U.S. exchange, a market cap greater than $1 billion, and are in either the Technology Services or Electronic Technology sector. Data and analytics provided by FactSet.
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About the Author
Stephen Mack has been writing about economics and finance since 2011. He contributed material for the best-selling books Aftershock and The Aftershock Investor. He lives in Baltimore, Maryland.