Flex Ltd. $FLEX Shares Sold by Brandes Investment Partners LP

Key Points

• Brandes Investment Partners LP cut its Flex stake by 14.7% in the fourth quarter, selling 138,001 shares and ending with 801,904 shares valued at about $48.5 million. Even so, institutional investors still own a large majority of the stock at 94.3%.
• Wall Street analysts remain bullish on Flex: several firms recently raised price targets, and the consensus rating is Moderate Buy with an average target of $115.70. Barclays, in particular, lifted its target to $203 and kept an Overweight rating, citing AI-related strength.
• Flex is getting a boost from major company news, including its upcoming addition to the S&P 500 on June 22. The company’s stock also has seen notable insider selling, including CEO Revathi Advaithi and COO Kwang Hooi Tan transactions under pre-arranged trading plans.

Brandes Investment Partners LP decreased its holdings in Flex Ltd. (NASDAQ:FLEX - Free Report) by 14.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 801,904 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 138,001 shares during the quarter. Brandes Investment Partners LP owned 0.22% of Flex worth $48,451,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. USA Financial Formulas acquired a new position in Flex in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Flex during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. CENTRAL TRUST Co raised its holdings in shares of Flex by 238.3% during the third quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co now owns 504 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $29,000 after acquiring an additional 355 shares during the last quarter. Gables Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Flex during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Flex during the third quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.30% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on FLEX. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Flex from $84.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. KeyCorp increased their target price on Flex from $75.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Robert W. Baird set a $165.00 target price on Flex in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Zacks Research raised Flex from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Flex from $75.00 to $84.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. One 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 company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $115.70.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Revathi Advaithi sold 83,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $132.87, for a total value of $11,094,645.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 605,522 shares in the company, valued at approximately $80,455,708.14. This represents a 12.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, COO Kwang Hooi Tan sold 17,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.93, for a total value of $2,378,775.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 238,543 shares of the company's stock, valued at $32,425,149.99. The trade was a 6.83% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 345,012 shares of company stock valued at $48,508,103. Insiders own 0.57% of the company's stock.

Flex Price Performance

FLEX stock opened at $147.21 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 0.87. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $110.93 and a 200-day simple moving average of $80.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.93 billion, a PE ratio of 63.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.64. Flex Ltd. has a 1 year low of $42.83 and a 1 year high of $166.86.

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

Key Flex News

Here are the key news stories impacting Flex this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Flex announced it will join the S&P 500 effective before the open on June 22, a major milestone that should boost visibility, broaden institutional ownership, and increase demand from index-tracking funds. Flex to Join S&P 500 Index
• Positive Sentiment: Barclays raised its price target on Flex to $203 from $174 and kept an Overweight rating, citing strength in the company’s AI-related businesses and other segments. Barclays Lifts PT on Flex Ltd. (FLEX), Cites AI and Business Segments
• Positive Sentiment: Investors are also reacting to bullish commentary that Flex is being re-rated as an AI infrastructure beneficiary, with its CPI segment and planned spin-off seen as potential value drivers. The AI Kingdom Expands As Flex Joins The S&P 500
• Neutral Sentiment: Short-interest data showed no meaningful change, so it does not appear to be a major driver of the move today.

Flex Company Profile

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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