United soaring, Potbelly dragged down, Lumber Liquidators getting hammered

Time for your daily dose of trending tickers, the stocks that you're tracking as measured by Yahoo finance ticker searches. Making the list today:

United Airlines (UAL) is up more than seven percent today on June numbers that beat estimates. Per seat revenue rose three and a half percent in the three months ending June 30th. In short it means that you paid more for your spring vacations but at least if you're a shareholder you're reaping the benefits now. As an industry airlines traffic in human misery. The less pleasant your trip the more money the carrier is making. Those of you watching while jammed in a back-row middle seat should go ahead and take this moment to appreciate the perversity of semi-regulated capitalism.

Potbelly (PBPB) sandwich shop chain is down close to 25% today after reporting falling comp store sales. Those sales dipped by one point six percent in Q2 compared to a three percent increase for the same quarter last year. Chairman and CEO Aylwin Levis hopes new product like flat bread sandwiches and increased marketing efforts will get those sales moving again. Maybe the folks in marketing can run some numbers on the wisdom of selling food under a name that intentionally reminds Americans how fat we are.

Lumber Liquidators (LL) getting liquidated to the tune of 22 percent today after whiffing on Q2 earnings. The company blamed the weather for weak sales of hardwood floors. Here's the problem with that: there's always weather. Good, bad or foggy weather is a constant. If investors want to be long a company with results that depend entirely on nice weather they should get long umbrellas and theme parks. Good companies take advantage of unusual conditions. Bad companies use them as an excuse.

Those are your trending tickers today -- tell us what stocks you're watching on Twitter using the hashtag #TrendingTickers

More from Yahoo Finance:
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3 sectors full of success this earnings season and one to avoid

 

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