Plexus Corp. (NASDAQ:PLXS) Shares Sold by Pacer Advisors Inc.

Key Points

• Pacer Advisors Inc. significantly reduced its stake in Plexus Corp. by 65.3%, selling 448,747 shares and leaving them with approximately 0.88% of the company's stock valued at $30.5 million at the end of the first quarter.
• Multiple institutional investors raised their holdings in Plexus, with Aquatic Capital Management LLC leading with a 134.0% increase in the fourth quarter.
• Plexus reported earnings of $1.90 EPS for the latest quarter, exceeding estimates by $0.19, and had a revenue of $1.02 billion.

Pacer Advisors Inc. lowered its position in Plexus Corp. (NASDAQ:PLXS - Free Report) by 65.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 238,169 shares of the technology company's stock after selling 448,747 shares during the quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. owned 0.88% of Plexus worth $30,517,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Aquatic Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Plexus by 134.0% in the 4th quarter. Aquatic Capital Management LLC now owns 234 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Plexus by 45.5% in the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 320 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $50,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Plexus by 1,000.0% in the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 473 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $61,000 after purchasing an additional 430 shares in the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its stake in shares of Plexus by 185.6% in the 1st quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 514 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 334 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its stake in shares of Plexus by 49.2% in the 1st quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 846 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $108,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.45% of the company's stock.

Plexus Stock Performance

NASDAQ PLXS traded down $0.37 on Wednesday, hitting $128.15. The stock had a trading volume of 21,839 shares, compared to its average volume of 182,188. Plexus Corp. has a one year low of $103.43 and a one year high of $172.89. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The stock has a market cap of $3.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.83 and a beta of 0.80. The company's 50-day moving average is $133.01 and its two-hundred day moving average is $133.08.

Plexus (NASDAQ:PLXS - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The technology company reported $1.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $0.19. The firm had revenue of $1.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.02 billion. Plexus had a net margin of 4.04% and a return on equity of 12.33%. Plexus's quarterly revenue was up 6.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.45 EPS. On average, analysts expect that Plexus Corp. will post 5.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PLXS has been the topic of several research reports. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $160.00 price objective on shares of Plexus in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $140.00 price objective on shares of Plexus in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Plexus from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, June 30th. Needham & Company LLC dropped their price objective on shares of Plexus from $162.00 to $158.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Sidoti upgraded shares of Plexus from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $135.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Friday, July 25th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Plexus currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $152.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Karen Marie Rapp sold 500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $130.77, for a total value of $65,385.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 9,365 shares in the company, valued at $1,224,661.05. This trade represents a 5.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, CEO Todd P. Kelsey sold 2,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.68, for a total transaction of $263,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 76,714 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,101,699.52. This trade represents a 2.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 12,032 shares of company stock valued at $1,582,222. 1.76% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.