Plexus (NASDAQ:PLXS) Raised to “Buy” at StockNews.com

Plexus (NASDAQ:PLXS) was upgraded by equities researchers at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Benchmark boosted their price target on shares of Plexus from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. Needham & Company LLC boosted their target price on Plexus from $144.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, October 25th. Finally, KeyCorp initiated coverage on Plexus in a research note on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “sector weight” rating for the company. Three equities research 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 has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $133.50.

Plexus Stock Performance

Shares of Plexus stock opened at $146.58 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $3.99 billion, a PE ratio of 36.27 and a beta of 0.89. Plexus has a 12 month low of $90.18 and a 12 month high of $153.60. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $131.60 and a 200-day simple moving average of $117.08.

Plexus (NASDAQ:PLXS) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The technology company reported $1.85 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.55 by $0.30. Plexus had a return on equity of 9.51% and a net margin of 2.82%. The company had revenue of $1.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.01 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.44 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Plexus will post 5.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, 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 value of $64,010.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 9,586 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,227,199.72. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Plexus news, insider Steven J. Frisch sold 6,048 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.99, for a total transaction of $749,891.52. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 30,070 shares in the company, valued at $3,728,379.30. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Karen Marie Rapp sold 500 shares of Plexus stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 9,586 shares in the company, valued at $1,227,199.72. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 15,593 shares of company stock valued at $2,037,242 over the last quarter. Insiders own 2.39% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Plexus

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Quest Partners LLC raised its stake in Plexus by 36,700.0% during 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 last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Plexus by 89.4% during the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 464 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $63,000 after buying an additional 219 shares during the last quarter. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Plexus in the second quarter valued at about $51,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Plexus by 190.1% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 760 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $104,000 after buying an additional 498 shares in the last quarter. Finally, EntryPoint Capital LLC increased its stake in Plexus by 56.2% during the first quarter. EntryPoint Capital LLC now owns 976 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $93,000 after acquiring an additional 351 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.45% of the company’s stock.

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.