Plexus (PLXS) Q4 Earnings Top Estimates, Revenues Fall Y/Y
Plexus Corp PLXS reported fourth-quarter fiscal 2023 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $1.44, which decreased 19.1% year over year. The Zacks Consensus Estimate was pegged at $1.26 per share.
Revenues of $1.02 billion decreased 8.9% year over year. The top-line performance was affected mainly from weakness in the Healthcare/Life Sciences and Industrial sectors. Revenues surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.4%.
In the reported quarter, revenues from Asia-Pacific declined 19.2%. Revenues from Europe, the Middle East and Africa and the Americas rose 27.1% and 2.4%, respectively.
Plexus Corp. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Plexus Corp. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Plexus Corp. Quote
In the fiscal fourth quarter, Plexus won 30 manufacturing contracts worth $192 million in annualized revenues when fully ramped into production. Trailing four-quarter manufacturing wins totaled more than $946 million in annualized revenues. Plexus also noted that a funnel of qualified manufacturing opportunities now amounted to $3.7 billion, down $307 million from the fiscal third quarter.
Market Sector Details
Industrial revenues were down 19.8% year over year to $417 million, contributing 41% to total revenues.
Healthcare/Life Sciences’ revenues declined 3.8% from the year-ago quarter’s levels to $449 million, contributing 44% to total revenues.
Revenues from Aerospace/Defense increased 15.3% year over year to $158 million, contributing 15% to total revenues.
The top 10 customers of the company accounted for 48% of net revenues for the fiscal fourth quarter.
Operating Details
Gross profit on a GAAP basis decreased 9.7% year over year to $96.7 million.
Gross margin contracted 10 basis points (bps) to 9.4%.
Selling and administrative expenses decreased 3.1% from the year-ago quarter to $43.4 million.
PLXS reported an adjusted operating income of $53.3 million, down 14.4% year over year. Adjusted operating margin contracted 30 bps to 5.2%.
Balance Sheet & Cash Flow
As of Sep 30, 2023, Plexus had cash & cash equivalents worth $256.2 million compared with $252.9 million as of Jul 1, 2023.
As of Sep 30, 2023, PLXS had long-term debt and finance lease obligations, net of the current portion of $190.8 million compared with $187.5 million as of Jul 1, 2023.
In the quarter under review, the cash flow from operations was $89.8 million. Plexus reported a free cash flow of $65.6 million.
PLXS repurchased shares worth $3.4 million at an average price of $98.91 per share in the fiscal fourth quarter. It has shares worth $5.7 million left under its existing $50 million share repurchase authorization.
Guidance
For first-quarter fiscal 2024, revenues are projected to be between $990 million and $1.03 billion.
GAAP operating margin is expected to be between 4.8% and 5.3%. GAAP diluted EPS is expected to be in the range of $1.15-$1.33.
Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider
Plexus currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold).
Some better-ranked stocks in the broader technology space are Asure Software ASUR, Synopsys SNPS and Wix.com WIX. Each stock presently sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Asure Software’s 2023 EPS has increased 5.9% in the past 60 days to 54 cents.
Asure Software’s earnings beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate in all the last four quarters, the average being 676.4%. Shares of ASUR have surged 55.9% in the past year.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Synopsys’ 2023 EPS has gained 2.5% in the past 60 days to $11.09. SNPS’ long-term earnings growth rate is 16.4%. Shares of SNPS have surged 62.7% in the past year.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Wix’s 2023 EPS has remained unchanged in the past 60 days to $3.35.
Wix’s earnings beat estimates in all the trailing four quarters, delivering an average surprise of 319.3%. Shares of WIX have rallied 5.3% in the past year.
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