Blue Trust Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Plexus Corp. (NASDAQ:PLXS)

Blue Trust Inc. decreased its holdings in Plexus Corp. (NASDAQ:PLXS) by 18.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 567 shares of the technology company’s stock after selling 125 shares during the quarter. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Plexus were worth $89,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of PLXS. Quarry LP increased its position in shares of Plexus by 573.5% during the 3rd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 229 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 195 shares during the last quarter. R Squared Ltd bought a new position in Plexus in the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. Point72 DIFC Ltd bought a new position in Plexus in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $51,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. bought a new position in Plexus in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $55,000. Finally, USA Financial Formulas bought a new position in shares of Plexus during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $56,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.45% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Todd P. Kelsey sold 1,500 shares of the firm’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 of the company’s stock, valued at $11,615,241.69. This trade represents a 1.98 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CFO Patrick John Jermain sold 3,361 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.57, for a total value of $485,899.77. Following the sale, the chief financial officer now directly owns 20,745 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,999,104.65. The trade was a 13.94 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 18,208 shares of company stock worth $2,613,240. Company insiders own 1.76% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PLXS has been the subject of a number of research reports. StockNews.com upgraded Plexus from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. Needham & Company LLC increased their target price on Plexus from $162.00 to $172.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Stifel Nicolaus assumed coverage on Plexus in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $152.00 price target for the company. Finally, Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and issued a $165.00 price target on shares of Plexus in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $163.00.

Plexus Stock Performance

PLXS stock opened at $137.34 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $153.12 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $145.05. Plexus Corp. has a twelve month low of $90.18 and a twelve month high of $172.89. The firm has a market cap of $3.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.87 and a beta of 0.89.

Plexus (NASDAQ:PLXS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The technology company reported $1.49 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.59 by ($0.10). Plexus had a return on equity of 10.36% and a net margin of 3.03%. Analysts predict that Plexus Corp. will post 5.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Plexus 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.