Plexus Corp. (NASDAQ:PLXS) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Plexus Corp. (NASDAQ:PLXS) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest in the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totalling 517,400 shares, a growth of 21.9% from the August 31st total of 424,300 shares. Approximately 1.9% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 148,100 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.5 days.

Plexus Trading Up 0.3 %

NASDAQ:PLXS traded up $0.44 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $136.44. 125,420 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 148,980. The company’s 50 day moving average is $124.65 and its two-hundred day moving average is $110.38. The company has a market capitalization of $3.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.69 and a beta of 0.89. Plexus has a twelve month low of $87.21 and a twelve month high of $138.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07.

Plexus (NASDAQ:PLXS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 24th. The technology company reported $1.45 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.28 by $0.17. Plexus had a return on equity of 9.64% and a net margin of 2.82%. The business had revenue of $960.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $981.32 million. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.32 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 6.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Plexus will post 3.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PLXS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Benchmark boosted their price objective on Plexus from $120.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on shares of Plexus from $114.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $124.00.

Insider Buying and Selling at Plexus

In other news, Director Karen Marie Rapp sold 500 shares of Plexus stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $128.02, for a total transaction of $64,010.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 9,586 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,227,199.72. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Plexus news, CEO Todd P. Kelsey sold 1,656 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.00, for a total transaction of $190,440.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 96,682 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,118,430. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Karen Marie Rapp sold 500 shares of the business’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 value of $64,010.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 9,586 shares in the company, valued at $1,227,199.72. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 21,769 shares of company stock valued at $2,731,834 in the last 90 days. 2.39% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Plexus

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Plexus by 72.3% during the 4th quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 348 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 146 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Plexus by 36,700.0% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 368 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 367 shares during the period. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Plexus in the 2nd quarter worth $51,000. EntryPoint Capital LLC lifted its stake in Plexus by 56.2% in the first quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 976 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $93,000 after buying an additional 351 shares during the period. Finally, Signaturefd LLC grew its holdings in shares of Plexus by 12.0% in the 2nd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,705 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $176,000 after buying an additional 183 shares during the period. 94.45% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.