Plexus (NASDAQ:PLXS) Shares Gap Down After Earnings Miss

Plexus Corp. (NASDAQ:PLXS)’s stock price gapped down before the market opened on Thursday following a weaker than expected earnings announcement. The stock had previously closed at $170.49, but opened at $150.50. Plexus shares last traded at $159.00, with a volume of 31,678 shares trading hands.

The technology company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.59 by ($0.10). Plexus had a return on equity of 9.51% and a net margin of 2.82%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PLXS has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. KeyCorp started coverage on Plexus in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued a “sector weight” rating on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus increased their target price on Plexus from $136.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $165.00 target price on shares of Plexus in a research report on Wednesday. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on Plexus from $144.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Plexus from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Plexus presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $159.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Plexus

In other Plexus news, COO Oliver K. Mihm sold 5,691 shares of Plexus stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.06, for a total value of $950,738.46. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now owns 19,585 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,271,870.10. The trade was a 22.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Todd P. Kelsey sold 1,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.39, for a total transaction of $234,585.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 74,271 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,615,241.69. This represents a 1.98 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 34,091 shares of company stock valued at $5,377,960. Company insiders own 1.76% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Plexus

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Pacer Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Plexus in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $107,489,000. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN grew its stake in shares of Plexus by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN now owns 2,168,512 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $296,457,000 after acquiring an additional 59,465 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its holdings in shares of Plexus by 158.0% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 82,575 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $11,289,000 after purchasing an additional 50,564 shares during the last quarter. Algert Global LLC lifted its position in shares of Plexus by 1,546.5% in the third quarter. Algert Global LLC now owns 45,790 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $6,260,000 after purchasing an additional 43,009 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in Plexus by 139.4% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 48,786 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $6,669,000 after purchasing an additional 28,406 shares during the last quarter. 94.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Plexus Trading Down 7.4 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a current ratio of 1.51 and a quick ratio of 0.71. The business’s 50-day moving average is $162.30 and its two-hundred day moving average is $141.25. The firm has a market cap of $4.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.35 and a beta of 0.91.

Plexus Company Profile

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.