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Services Sector's Biggest Movers: Gap and More
On a bad day for the market, the Nasdaq has declined 0.4%, the S&P 500 is down 0.8% and the Dow has fallen 0.8%.
The Services sector (IYC) is down 0.1%, outperforming the market overall. Currently, the biggest movers in the sector are:
Broker Summary: Charles Schwab Online Brokerage
Yelp (NYSE:YELP) rose a significant 23.4% to reach $23.22 per share. At 1.6 million shares, the company's volume so far today is 3.6 times the current daily average. Volume indicates the level of interest that investors have in a company at its current price. Investment valuation ratios can be very useful in estimating whether a stock price is too high, reasonable or a bargain investment opportunity. If the price/book value ratio of a stock is high, it may indicate that the stock is expensive, while a lower ratio may indicate that the stock is a bargain. YELP's P/B ratio of 10.1 shows that its share price is higher than its book value. This implies that investors expect management to create more value from a given set of assets and/or that the market value of the firm's assets is significantly higher than their accounting value. Users need to be careful when applying this ratio though, as it is more useful for industrial companies that have a lot of tangible assets than it is for technology or consumer product companies that may not have much in the way of hard assets. SEE: Using The Price-To-Book Ratio To Evaluate Companies
Portfolio Recovery Associates (Nasdaq:PRAA) has soared 15.6% to reach a current price of $98.40 per share. The company is currently trading a volume of 181,352 shares. Volume is also used as a secondary indicator to help confirm what the price movement is suggesting. Investors can use valuation ratios as tools to estimate what kind of deal a particular investment is. The price/earnings ratio is calculated by taking a stock price and dividing it by the earnings-per-share (EPS). PRAA has a P/E ratio of 14.3, in line with the industry average. To determine the P/E ratio, an investor divides the market price of the stock by the earnings-per-share (EPS) of the stock. SEE: The P/E Ratio: A Good Market-Timing Indicator
After a precipitous drop of 15.3%, Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) is now trading at a share price of $28.83. So far today, the company's volume is 9.6 million shares, 2.8 times its current three-month average. If a stock price makes a big move up or down, volume lets us know the significance of that move. A wide array of ratios can be used by investors to estimate the attractiveness of a potential or existing investment and get an idea of its valuation. The price/earnings to growth (PEG) ratio is calculated by dividing the price/earnings ratio by growth in earnings-per-share; the lower the PEG ratio, the more reasonably valued the security. ANF has a PEG ratio of 1.52, which is consistent with the industry average. Because of the adjustment for earnings growth rate, the PEG ratio is somewhat more useful than many formulas for comparing companies in different industries.
Weight Watchers International (NYSE:WTW) is at a share price of $43.06 after a sharp decline of 11.7%. The company's volume for the day so far is 1.7 million shares. Yesterday, volume was only 1.6 million shares. High volume indicates a lot of investor interest while low volume indicates the opposite. In making a decision about a potential or existing investment, valuation ratios are useful as a basis for seeing whether the stock price is too high, reasonable, or a bargain. For investors primarily interested in the income a stock can generate, the dividend yield is an important determinant of how attractive a stock is. WTW has a low dividend yield of 1.4%. This could indicate that that the stock is overpriced or that future dividends might be higher. To calculate the dividend yield, divide the level of dividends by the stock price; the higher the yield, the more attractive the security. SEE: Dividend Yield For The Downturn
After an increase of 8.7%, Gap (NYSE:GPS) has reached a current price of $31.98. At nine million shares, the company's volume so far today is 1.6 times the average daily volume. Volume is an important indicator in technical analysis as it is used to measure the worth of a market move. If the markets have made a strong price move either up or down the perceived strength of that move depends on the volume for that period. The higher the volume during that price move the more significant the move. Investment valuation ratios can be very useful in determining the value of a stock, but it is very important to keep in mind that while some financial ratios have general rules (or a broad application), in most instances it is a prudent practice to look at a company's historical performance and use peer company/industry comparisons to put any given company's ratio in perspective. The price/sales ratio measures a company's stock market price by its revenues. GPS' P/S ratio of 0.95 is fairly low. Coupled with high relative strength in the previous twelve months, a low P/S ratio is one of the most potent combinations of investment criteria. All things being equal, a low P/S ratio is good news for investors, while a very high one can be a warning sign.
Zumiez (Nasdaq:ZUMZ) has fallen 8% and is currently trading at $33.05 per share. So far today, the company's volume is 833,609 shares. In technical analysis, trading volume is used to determine the strength of a market indicator. It is important for an investor to estimate the value of any potential or existing investment; valuation ratios make this easier. The debt ratio measures the leverage of a company, and a company's leverage is a good way to assess risk. ZUMZ has a low debt ratio of 26%. A low debt ratio means the company has more available cash flow. As with all financial ratios, a company's debt ratio should be compared with the industry average or similar companies.
Guess (NYSE:GES) is trading at $27.92 per share, down 7%. With 712,780 shares changing hands so far today, the company's volume is 0.7 times the average volume over the last three months. Volume is an important indicator because it indicates how significant a price shift is. Valuation ratios like the price to earnings (P/E) ratio, the price to earnings growth (PEG) ratio, the price to sales (P/S) ratio, the price to book (P/B) ratio, and the dividend yield are useful in determining how attractive a potential or existing investment is. The debt-equity (D/E) ratio compares the total liabilities for a company to its total shareholder equity. GES' debt-equity ratio of 1% is on the low end. This shows that the company's assets are financed primarily through equity. This easy-to-calculate ratio provides a general indication of a company's equity-liability relationship and is helpful to investors looking for a quick take on a company's leverage.
The Bottom Line No matter the economic climate, Wall Street will always have stocks that make major moves each week. Daily stock performance should be weighed against historical performance and put in context of the market overall. However, these fundamental metrics must be analyzed with historic data, industry information in addition to firm specific financial statements.
The Services sector (IYC) is down 0.1%, outperforming the market overall. Currently, the biggest movers in the sector are:
| Company | Market Cap | Percentage Change |
| Yelp Inc (NYSE:YELP) | $1.15 billion | +23.4% |
| Portfolio Recovery Associates, Inc. (Nasdaq:PRAA) | $1.46 billion | +15.6% |
| Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE:ANF) | $2.81 billion | -15.3% |
| Weight Watchers International, Inc. (NYSE:WTW) | $2.71 billion | -11.7% |
| Gap (NYSE:GPS) | $14.39 billion | +8.7% |
| Zumiez Inc. (Nasdaq:ZUMZ) | $1.13 billion | -8% |
| Guess?, Inc. (NYSE:GES) | $2.7 billion | -7% |
Yelp (NYSE:YELP) rose a significant 23.4% to reach $23.22 per share. At 1.6 million shares, the company's volume so far today is 3.6 times the current daily average. Volume indicates the level of interest that investors have in a company at its current price. Investment valuation ratios can be very useful in estimating whether a stock price is too high, reasonable or a bargain investment opportunity. If the price/book value ratio of a stock is high, it may indicate that the stock is expensive, while a lower ratio may indicate that the stock is a bargain. YELP's P/B ratio of 10.1 shows that its share price is higher than its book value. This implies that investors expect management to create more value from a given set of assets and/or that the market value of the firm's assets is significantly higher than their accounting value. Users need to be careful when applying this ratio though, as it is more useful for industrial companies that have a lot of tangible assets than it is for technology or consumer product companies that may not have much in the way of hard assets. SEE: Using The Price-To-Book Ratio To Evaluate Companies
Portfolio Recovery Associates (Nasdaq:PRAA) has soared 15.6% to reach a current price of $98.40 per share. The company is currently trading a volume of 181,352 shares. Volume is also used as a secondary indicator to help confirm what the price movement is suggesting. Investors can use valuation ratios as tools to estimate what kind of deal a particular investment is. The price/earnings ratio is calculated by taking a stock price and dividing it by the earnings-per-share (EPS). PRAA has a P/E ratio of 14.3, in line with the industry average. To determine the P/E ratio, an investor divides the market price of the stock by the earnings-per-share (EPS) of the stock. SEE: The P/E Ratio: A Good Market-Timing Indicator
After a precipitous drop of 15.3%, Abercrombie & Fitch (NYSE:ANF) is now trading at a share price of $28.83. So far today, the company's volume is 9.6 million shares, 2.8 times its current three-month average. If a stock price makes a big move up or down, volume lets us know the significance of that move. A wide array of ratios can be used by investors to estimate the attractiveness of a potential or existing investment and get an idea of its valuation. The price/earnings to growth (PEG) ratio is calculated by dividing the price/earnings ratio by growth in earnings-per-share; the lower the PEG ratio, the more reasonably valued the security. ANF has a PEG ratio of 1.52, which is consistent with the industry average. Because of the adjustment for earnings growth rate, the PEG ratio is somewhat more useful than many formulas for comparing companies in different industries.
After an increase of 8.7%, Gap (NYSE:GPS) has reached a current price of $31.98. At nine million shares, the company's volume so far today is 1.6 times the average daily volume. Volume is an important indicator in technical analysis as it is used to measure the worth of a market move. If the markets have made a strong price move either up or down the perceived strength of that move depends on the volume for that period. The higher the volume during that price move the more significant the move. Investment valuation ratios can be very useful in determining the value of a stock, but it is very important to keep in mind that while some financial ratios have general rules (or a broad application), in most instances it is a prudent practice to look at a company's historical performance and use peer company/industry comparisons to put any given company's ratio in perspective. The price/sales ratio measures a company's stock market price by its revenues. GPS' P/S ratio of 0.95 is fairly low. Coupled with high relative strength in the previous twelve months, a low P/S ratio is one of the most potent combinations of investment criteria. All things being equal, a low P/S ratio is good news for investors, while a very high one can be a warning sign.
Zumiez (Nasdaq:ZUMZ) has fallen 8% and is currently trading at $33.05 per share. So far today, the company's volume is 833,609 shares. In technical analysis, trading volume is used to determine the strength of a market indicator. It is important for an investor to estimate the value of any potential or existing investment; valuation ratios make this easier. The debt ratio measures the leverage of a company, and a company's leverage is a good way to assess risk. ZUMZ has a low debt ratio of 26%. A low debt ratio means the company has more available cash flow. As with all financial ratios, a company's debt ratio should be compared with the industry average or similar companies.
Guess (NYSE:GES) is trading at $27.92 per share, down 7%. With 712,780 shares changing hands so far today, the company's volume is 0.7 times the average volume over the last three months. Volume is an important indicator because it indicates how significant a price shift is. Valuation ratios like the price to earnings (P/E) ratio, the price to earnings growth (PEG) ratio, the price to sales (P/S) ratio, the price to book (P/B) ratio, and the dividend yield are useful in determining how attractive a potential or existing investment is. The debt-equity (D/E) ratio compares the total liabilities for a company to its total shareholder equity. GES' debt-equity ratio of 1% is on the low end. This shows that the company's assets are financed primarily through equity. This easy-to-calculate ratio provides a general indication of a company's equity-liability relationship and is helpful to investors looking for a quick take on a company's leverage.
The Bottom Line No matter the economic climate, Wall Street will always have stocks that make major moves each week. Daily stock performance should be weighed against historical performance and put in context of the market overall. However, these fundamental metrics must be analyzed with historic data, industry information in addition to firm specific financial statements.
by
Investopedia Staff
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