Plexus’ (PLXS) Buy Rating Reaffirmed at Benchmark

Benchmark reiterated their buy rating on shares of Plexus (NASDAQ:PLXS) in a report published on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. Benchmark currently has a $165.00 price target on the technology company’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also weighed in on PLXS. StockNews.com raised shares of Plexus from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Needham & Company LLC upped their target price on Plexus from $144.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 25th. KeyCorp began coverage on Plexus in a research report on Tuesday, October 22nd. They set a “sector weight” rating on the stock. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Plexus from $136.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $159.00.

Plexus Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PLXS opened at $170.49 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $162.30 and a 200-day simple moving average of $141.25. 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 company has a market cap of $4.62 billion, a PE ratio of 42.52 and a beta of 0.91. Plexus has a 12-month low of $90.18 and a 12-month high of $172.89.

Plexus (NASDAQ:PLXS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The technology company reported $1.49 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by ($0.10). Plexus had a net margin of 2.82% and a return on equity of 9.51%. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Plexus will post 6.13 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Plexus

In other Plexus news, CEO Todd P. Kelsey sold 1,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 74,271 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,615,241.69. The trade was a 1.98 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Angelo Michael Ninivaggi, Jr. sold 3,113 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.19, for a total transaction of $448,863.47. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now owns 35,323 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,093,223.37. The trade was a 8.10 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 34,091 shares of company stock valued at $5,377,960. Corporate insiders own 1.76% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Plexus

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in PLXS. Quarry LP increased its stake in Plexus by 573.5% in the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 229 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 195 shares during the period. R Squared Ltd purchased a new position in Plexus in the fourth quarter valued at about $45,000. Point72 DIFC Ltd acquired a new position in Plexus in the 3rd quarter worth about $51,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Plexus during the 3rd quarter worth about $55,000. Finally, USA Financial Formulas acquired a new stake in shares of Plexus during the 4th quarter valued at about $56,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.