Plexus (NASDAQ:PLXS) Shares Down 8.9% - Should You Sell?

Key Points

• Plexus reported strong fiscal 2026 results: Fourth-quarter adjusted EPS of $2.84 and revenue of $1.427 billion surpassed estimates, while full-year revenue rose 23% to a record $4.965 billion. Management also raised its long-term margin target and authorized a new $100 million share-repurchase program.
• Shares fell about 9% as investors focused on near-term headwinds: Fiscal Q1 2027 guidance implies lower adjusted EPS and operating margins, while full-year free cash flow was negative $28.9 million and customer concentration increased.
• Wall Street remains broadly positive but insider selling adds caution: Analysts maintain a consensus “Buy” rating with an average price target of $276.86, although executives and directors have recently sold shares, including a 1,500-share sale by the CEO.

Plexus Corp. (NASDAQ:PLXS - Get Free Report) shares were down 8.9% during trading on Thursday. The company traded as low as $223.70 and last traded at $217.9980. 72,950 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 77% from the average session volume of 311,615 shares. The stock had previously closed at $239.34.

Plexus News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Plexus this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Fiscal Q4 adjusted EPS was $2.84, above the roughly $2.55–$2.57 analyst consensus, while revenue of $1.427 billion exceeded expectations near $1.36 billion. Revenue increased 34.9% year over year, and adjusted operating margin reached 6.7%. Plexus Q4 Earnings and Revenues Surpass Estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Fiscal 2026 revenue reached a record $4.965 billion, up 23% from the prior year, while adjusted EPS rose to $8.97 from $7.43. Plexus also won 36 manufacturing programs representing $290 million in annualized revenue when fully ramped and expanded its qualified opportunity pipeline to $4.9 billion. Plexus Fiscal 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Management introduced a higher long-term non-GAAP operating-margin goal of 6.5% to 7.0%, expects at least $100 million of fiscal 2027 free cash flow, and has authorized a new $100 million share-repurchase program.
• Neutral Sentiment: Technical momentum had been improving: PLXS shares recently crossed above their 200-day moving average, a signal that can attract technical buyers. Plexus Stock Crosses Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average
• Negative Sentiment: Fiscal Q1 2027 guidance implies a sequential slowdown in adjusted EPS, with a midpoint of approximately $2.54 versus $2.84 in Q4. Adjusted operating-margin guidance of 6.0%–6.4% is also below the latest 6.7% result, potentially disappointing investors expecting continued near-term acceleration.
• Negative Sentiment: Full-year free cash flow was negative $28.9 million because of heavy capital investment and working-capital needs. Customer concentration also increased, with the top 10 customers accounting for 56% of Q4 revenue.
• Negative Sentiment: Reported insider activity has been heavily weighted toward selling, including multiple sales by Chief Executive Officer Todd Kelsey, which may add to investor caution after the stock’s substantial advance.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Plexus from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Wall Street Zen downgraded Plexus from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, October 24th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Plexus from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Plexus from a "sector weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and set a $300.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 21st. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $310.00 price target on shares of Plexus in a research report on Friday, August 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $276.86.

Plexus Stock Down 8.5%

The stock has a market cap of $5.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.20 and a beta of 0.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 1.49 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $247.99 and a 200-day simple moving average of $238.91.

Plexus (NASDAQ:PLXS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 28th. The technology company reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.55 by $0.29. The business had revenue of $1.43 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.36 billion. Plexus had a net margin of 4.03% and a return on equity of 12.46%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 34.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.14 earnings per share. Analysts expect that Plexus Corp. will post 7.13 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Plexus news, CEO Todd Kelsey sold 1,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.16, for a total value of $358,740.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 62,888 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $15,040,294.08. The trade was a 2.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, Director Michael V. Schrock sold 4,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $275.00, for a total transaction of $1,100,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 40,329 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,090,475. This represents a 9.02% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Insiders have sold a total of 9,000 shares of company stock worth $2,319,260 in the last three months. Insiders own 1.78% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Plexus

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vise Technologies Inc. increased its position in Plexus by 45.1% during the third quarter. Vise Technologies Inc. now owns 1,598 shares of the technology company's stock worth $417,000 after acquiring an additional 497 shares during the period. VestGen Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Plexus in the 3rd quarter valued at $378,000. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Plexus by 4.1% in the third quarter. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC now owns 15,834 shares of the technology company's stock worth $4,132,000 after acquiring an additional 629 shares during the last quarter. Smith Group Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Plexus by 1.6% in the third quarter. Smith Group Asset Management LLC now owns 4,536 shares of the technology company's stock valued at $1,184,000 after buying an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC increased its holdings in Plexus by 6.1% in the 3rd quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,765 shares of the technology company's stock worth $461,000 after purchasing an additional 101 shares in the last quarter. 94.45% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Plexus

Plexus Corp. is an electronics manufacturing services company that helps customers design, develop, manufacture and service complex electronic products. The company provides an integrated product-realization process spanning engineering and design, supply-chain management, manufacturing, testing, logistics and aftermarket services.

Plexus supports original equipment manufacturers in industries including healthcare and life sciences, industrial and commercial, aerospace and defense, and communications.

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