Plexus (NASDAQ:PLXS) Downgraded to “Buy” Rating by Wall Street Zen

Plexus (NASDAQ:PLXS) was downgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Saturday.

Other equities analysts have also issued research reports about the company. Sidoti raised Plexus from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $135.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $140.00 price target on Plexus in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Needham & Company LLC decreased their price target on Plexus from $162.00 to $158.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $160.00 price target on shares of Plexus in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Plexus currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $152.00.

Plexus Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of NASDAQ PLXS opened at $130.97 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $132.64 and a 200 day moving average of $130.49. The stock has a market cap of $3.53 billion, a PE ratio of 22.31 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a current ratio of 1.58, a quick ratio of 0.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. Plexus has a 12-month low of $103.43 and a 12-month high of $172.89.

Plexus (NASDAQ:PLXS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 23rd. The technology company reported $1.90 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.71 by $0.19. The company had revenue of $1.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.02 billion. Plexus had a return on equity of 12.33% and a net margin of 4.04%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.45 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Plexus will post 5.9 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Plexus

In related news, Director Karen Marie Rapp sold 500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.77, for a total value of $65,385.00. Following the sale, the director owned 9,365 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,224,661.05. The trade was a 5.07% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Todd P. Kelsey sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.63, for a total value of $188,445.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer owned 72,214 shares in the company, valued at $9,072,244.82. This represents a 2.03% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 11,382 shares of company stock worth $1,482,171. 1.76% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Plexus

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of PLXS. LPL Financial LLC increased its holdings in Plexus by 170.5% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 8,508 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $1,331,000 after purchasing an additional 5,363 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Plexus by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 57,182 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $8,948,000 after purchasing an additional 459 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Plexus during the 4th quarter worth about $15,892,000. Barclays PLC increased its holdings in Plexus by 11.6% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 54,425 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $8,515,000 after purchasing an additional 5,639 shares during the period. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased a new stake in Plexus during the 4th quarter worth about $1,596,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.45% of the company’s stock.

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.