Principal Financial Group Inc. Purchases 2,603 Shares of Plexus Corp. (NASDAQ:PLXS)

Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Plexus Corp. (NASDAQ:PLXS - Free Report) by 1.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 140,970 shares of the technology company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,603 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.52% of Plexus worth $18,062,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Plexus by 49.6% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,333 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $171,000 after buying an additional 442 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Plexus during the 1st quarter valued at about $917,000. Ritholtz Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Plexus in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $285,000. Franklin Resources Inc. acquired a new stake in Plexus in the 4th quarter worth approximately $928,000. Finally, LPL Financial LLC boosted its position in Plexus by 170.5% during the fourth quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 8,508 shares of the technology company's stock worth $1,331,000 after purchasing an additional 5,363 shares during the period. 94.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Plexus

In other Plexus news, Director Karen Marie Rapp sold 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.77, for a total transaction of $65,385.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 9,365 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,224,661.05. This trade represents a 5.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CAO Angelo Michael Ninivaggi, Jr. sold 2,058 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $132.22, for a total transaction of $272,108.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer owned 26,133 shares in the company, valued at $3,455,305.26. This represents a 7.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 12,032 shares of company stock valued at $1,582,222. Insiders own 1.76% of the company's stock.

Plexus Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PLXS traded down $0.82 on Monday, hitting $133.11. 109,591 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 170,326. The company's 50 day moving average price is $132.65 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $135.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.90 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 1.53. Plexus Corp. has a one year low of $103.43 and a one year high of $172.89.

Plexus (NASDAQ:PLXS - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The technology company reported $1.66 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $980.17 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $980.07 million. Plexus had a net margin of 3.60% and a return on equity of 11.17%. The business's revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.94 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Plexus Corp. will post 5.9 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Plexus from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Monday, June 30th. Benchmark reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $160.00 target price on shares of Plexus in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Needham & Company LLC restated a "buy" rating and set a $162.00 price target (down from $172.00) on shares of Plexus in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $145.00 price target on Plexus in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $155.67.

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.