Earnings Implosions: Lumber Liquidators Holdings Inc and Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc

LL and ZBH are two of the worst NYSE stocks today, following poorly received earnings reports

Oct 31, 2016 at 10:31 AM
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A busy week for corporate earnings is off to a mixed start. While some stocks are sharply higher, others -- such as Lumber Liquidators Holdings Inc (NYSE:LL) and Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc (NYSE:ZBH) -- are tanking. Below, we'll take a closer look at how earnings have impacted shares of LL and ZBH.

LL reported a sharper-than-forecast quarterly loss, despite revenue increasing for the first time in six quarters and same-store sales unexpectedly rising. The shares are reacting negatively, to say the least -- down 10.6% at $16.53, and on the short-sale restricted (SSR) list. What's more, the retail stock has plunged into negative year-to-date territory, down about 5%.

This is a welcome development for many on Wall Street. For instance, over 35% of Lumber Liquidators Holdings Inc's float is sold short. At the stock's average trading volume, it would take nearly three weeks to buy back these bearish bets. What's more, all nine analysts tracking LL rate it either a "hold" or a "strong sell."

Even worse off this morning is ZBH, which was last seen sitting on a 14.6% deficit at $104.66 -- and also SSR. In fact, the stock is headed for its lowest settlement price since late March. Triggering today's bear gap were weaker-than-expected third-quarter sales and lackluster guidance -- though earnings were in line with estimates.

From the looks of it, plenty of bulls are getting burned by Zimmer Biomet Holdings Inc. During the past two weeks at the International Securities Exchange (ISE), Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE), and NASDAQ OMX PHLX (PHLX), traders have bought to open twice as many calls as puts. The resultant call/put volume ratio of 2.22 ranks in the top quartile of its annual range. Similarly, 16 of 23 analysts rate ZBH a "buy" or better, compared to seven "hold" opinions and not a single "sell."

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