Benchmark Reiterates Buy Rating for Plexus (NASDAQ:PLXS)

Plexus (NASDAQ:PLXS)‘s stock had its “buy” rating restated by equities research analysts at Benchmark in a research note issued to investors on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They presently have a $165.00 price target on the technology company’s stock. Benchmark’s target price suggests a potential downside of 3.22% from the company’s current price.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Stifel Nicolaus increased their price target on shares of Plexus from $136.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. StockNews.com raised shares of Plexus from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. Needham & Company LLC upped their price target on shares of Plexus from $144.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, KeyCorp began coverage on Plexus in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They issued a “sector weight” rating on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $159.00.

Plexus Stock Performance

Shares of PLXS stock opened at $170.49 on Wednesday. Plexus has a 12 month low of $90.18 and a 12 month high of $172.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $4.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 42.52 and a beta of 0.91. The company has a current ratio of 1.51, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $162.30 and its 200 day moving average is $141.25.

Plexus (NASDAQ:PLXS) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The technology company reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.59 by ($0.10). Plexus had a net margin of 2.82% and a return on equity of 9.51%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Plexus will post 6.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Plexus

In other news, CFO Patrick John Jermain sold 5,045 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $143.13, for a total value of $722,090.85. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 24,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,521,284.26. This represents a 17.02 % 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, CEO Todd P. Kelsey sold 1,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.39, for a total value of $234,585.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 74,271 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,615,241.69. This represents a 1.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 34,091 shares of company stock valued at $5,377,960 in the last quarter. Insiders own 1.76% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Plexus

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. R Squared Ltd bought a new stake in Plexus in the fourth quarter worth $45,000. Pacer Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Plexus in the fourth quarter worth about $107,489,000. KBC Group NV increased its holdings in shares of Plexus by 59.9% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,180 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $185,000 after buying an additional 442 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Plexus by 12.1% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 776 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $121,000 after acquiring an additional 84 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Plexus by 59.0% during the 4th quarter. Hennion & Walsh Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,445 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $539,000 after acquiring an additional 1,278 shares during the period. 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.