Plexus (NASDAQ:PLXS) Hits New 12-Month High After Strong Earnings

Plexus Corp. (NASDAQ:PLXS)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday following a stronger than expected earnings report. The company traded as high as $153.60 and last traded at $148.25, with a volume of 31643 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $135.57.

The technology company reported $1.85 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.55 by $0.30. The firm had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.01 billion. Plexus had a return on equity of 9.64% and a net margin of 2.82%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.44 EPS.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on PLXS. Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on shares of Plexus from $144.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. KeyCorp initiated coverage on shares of Plexus in a research note on Tuesday. They set a “sector weight” rating for the company. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $150.00 price objective on shares of Plexus in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Plexus has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $129.75.

Insider Activity at Plexus

In other news, Director Karen Marie Rapp sold 500 shares of Plexus stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.02, for a total transaction of $64,010.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 9,586 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,227,199.72. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Steven J. Frisch sold 6,565 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.11, for a total transaction of $841,042.15. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 36,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,627,076.98. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Karen Marie Rapp sold 500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.02, for a total transaction of $64,010.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 9,586 shares in the company, valued at $1,227,199.72. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 20,113 shares of company stock worth $2,541,394 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 2.39% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Plexus

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in Plexus by 204.3% in the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 158,032 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $16,306,000 after purchasing an additional 106,103 shares during the period. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. boosted its position in shares of Plexus by 8.8% during the second quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 1,079,340 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $111,366,000 after buying an additional 87,574 shares during the period. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP raised its position in Plexus by 28.8% in the 1st quarter. Westfield Capital Management Co. LP now owns 384,248 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $36,434,000 after buying an additional 85,986 shares during the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Plexus by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,515,866 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $333,374,000 after buying an additional 74,988 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in Plexus by 158.0% in the 3rd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 82,575 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $11,289,000 after acquiring an additional 50,564 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.45% of the company’s stock.

Plexus Trading Down 2.6 %

The stock has a market cap of $3.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.56 and a beta of 0.89. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $130.82 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $116.13. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 1.47.

About Plexus

Plexus Corp. provides electronic manufacturing services in the United States and internationally. It offers design, develop, supply chain, new product introduction, and manufacturing solutions, as well as sustaining services to companies in the healthcare/life sciences, industrial/commercial, aerospace/defense, and communications market sectors.