Why Investors Who Focus On The Big Picture For This Stock Will 'Fly On Wings'

Cleveland-Cliffs Inc CLF preannounced its quarterly results three times and still beat its preannouncement.

What Happened: Cleveland-Cliffs reported second-quarter earnings of $1.46 per share, which came in below the estimate of $1.55 per share. The company reported quarterly revenue of $5 billion, which came in below the estimate of $5.09 billion.

Lebenthal's Take: Following the company's preannouncements, expectations soared, which led to a worse-than-expected report, Cerity Partners' Jim Lebenthal said Thursday on CNBC's "Fast Money Halftime Report."

The company expects free cash flow in the coming quarter to total $1.4 billion, which is above the estimate for $1 billion.

In the next week or two, analysts are going to upgrade their numbers and expectations for the stock, Lebenthal said.

See Also: PreMarket Prep Stock Of The Day: Cleveland-Cliffs

Next year, the company expects to have zero debt, he said, adding that the company will then be able to return cash back to shareholders.

Don't get caught up in one quarter and miss the big picture, Lebenthal added: investors who hang around will receive cash and "fly on wings."

Cleveland-Cliffs is his biggest holding.

CLF Price Action: Cleveland-Cliffs has traded as high as $24.77 and as low as $5.16 over a 52-week period.

The stock closed at $21.07