Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. Makes New $2.24 Million Investment in Flex Ltd. $FLEX

Key Points

• Atlas Capital Advisors opened a new position in Flex Ltd., buying 37,063 shares valued at about $2.24 million in the fourth quarter.
• Institutional ownership remains very high, with 94.3% of Flex’s shares held by institutions; several large investors, including Vanguard and State Street, also increased their stakes.
• Analyst sentiment is positive overall, with Flex carrying a Moderate Buy rating and an average target price of $115.70, while some firms have recently raised price targets and upgraded the stock.

Atlas Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Flex Ltd. (NASDAQ:FLEX - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund purchased 37,063 shares of the technology company's stock, valued at approximately $2,239,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Flex by 196.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 38,746,330 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $2,341,053,000 after buying an additional 25,662,586 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its stake in Flex by 17.8% in the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 14,055,533 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $849,235,000 after buying an additional 2,126,440 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Flex by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,605,802 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $459,829,000 after buying an additional 181,266 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Flex in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $319,756,000. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised its stake in Flex by 19.9% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 2,946,427 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $178,023,000 after buying an additional 488,538 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.30% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on FLEX. Zacks Research upgraded Flex from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on Flex from $75.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Wall Street Zen lowered Flex from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Sunday, March 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Flex from $84.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Robert W. Baird set a $165.00 price objective on Flex in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Flex has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $115.70.

Insider Activity at Flex

In related news, CEO Revathi Advaithi sold 114,090 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.37, for a total transaction of $16,242,993.30. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 689,022 shares of the company's stock, valued at $98,096,062.14. This represents a 14.21% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, EVP David Scott Offer sold 33,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.91, for a total value of $5,079,030.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 73,471 shares in the company, valued at $11,307,921.61. This represents a 30.99% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold 345,012 shares of company stock valued at $48,508,103 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.57% of the company's stock.

Flex Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ FLEX opened at $149.71 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $54.85 billion, a P/E ratio of 64.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.64. The company has a current ratio of 1.36, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73. Flex Ltd. has a 1-year low of $42.83 and a 1-year high of $166.86. The business's 50 day moving average is $115.87 and its 200-day moving average is $81.91.

Flex (NASDAQ:FLEX - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The technology company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of $7.48 billion for the quarter. Flex had a return on equity of 22.12% and a net margin of 3.15%. Equities research analysts predict that Flex Ltd. will post 4.15 earnings per share for the current year.

About Flex

Flex NASDAQ: FLEX, formerly known as Flextronics, is a global provider of electronics manufacturing services (EMS) and original design manufacturing (ODM). The company offers end-to-end product lifecycle solutions including product design and engineering, prototyping, volume manufacturing, testing, and aftermarket services. Its offerings extend into supply chain management, component sourcing, logistics and distribution, and advanced manufacturing capabilities such as automation and digital manufacturing to support customers from concept through end-of-life.

Flex serves a broad range of industries, including automotive, healthcare, industrial, communications, and consumer electronics, working with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and technology companies to accelerate time to market and manage complex supply chains.

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