Plexus Corp PLXS reported first-quarter fiscal 2025 adjusted earnings per share (EPS) of $1.73, up 40.7% year over year. The figure outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.59 per share.
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Revenues of $976.1 billion declined 0.7% year over year and missed the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.8%. Management expected revenues to be between $960 million and $1 billion.
Plexus Corp. Price, Consensus and EPS Surprise
Plexus Corp. price-consensus-eps-surprise-chart | Plexus Corp. Quote
The top-line performance was affected by weakness in Healthcare/Life Sciences and Aerospace/Defense sectors.
In the reported quarter, revenues from the Americas and Europe, the Middle East and Africa declined 11.6% and 16.5%, respectively. Revenues from Asia-Pacific jumped 9.8% to $607 million.
In the fiscal first quarter, Plexus won 30 manufacturing programs, which are estimated to contribute $212 million in annualized revenues once fully ramped into production.
Following the announcement, shares lost 6.2% in the premarket trading session today. In the past year, shares have gained 72.9% compared with sub-industry’s growth of 76.2%.
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Market Sector Details of PLXS
Industrial sector’s revenues rose 1.6% year over year to $442 million, mainly due to higher near-term demand with various customers. This contributed 46% to total revenues. However, management also noted that demand instability across broader industrial sectors is offsetting gains in the semiconductor capital equipment vertical.
Owing to demand softness, Healthcare/Life Sciences’ revenues declined 1.8% from the year-ago quarter’s levels to $374 million. This contributed 38% to total revenues.
Revenues from Aerospace/Defense declined 4.2% year over year to $160 million. This contributed 16% to total revenues. Reductions in commercial-aerospace production rates and defense-program ramp delays were major headwinds, affecting segmental performance.
The company’s top 10 customers accounted for 51% of net revenues in the fiscal first quarter.
Plexus’ Operating Details
Gross profit on a GAAP basis increased 14.2% year over year to $100.7 million. Gross margin was 10.3% from 9% year over year.
Selling and administrative expenses increased 14.2% from the year-ago quarter’s actuals to $49.1 million.
Adjusted operating margin expanded 90 basis points to 6%.
Balance Sheet & Cash Flow of Plexus
As of Dec. 28, 2024, Plexus had cash & cash equivalents worth $317.2 million compared with $345.1 million as of Sept. 28.
As of Dec. 28, 2024, PLXS had long-term debt and finance lease obligations, net of the current portion of $88.7 million compared with $90 million as of Sept. 28.
For the quarter under review, cash flows from operations came in at $53.6 million. Plexus reported a free cash flow of $27 million.
The company repurchased $12.8 million of its shares at an average price of $151.19 per share under PLXS’ repurchase program. Plexus has $37.2 million available under its existing $50 million buyback authorization.
Plexus’ Q2 Outlook
For second-quarter fiscal 2025, revenues are anticipated to be between $960 million and $1 billion.
Non-GAAP operating margin is expected to be between 5.3% and 5.7%. Non-GAAP EPS is expected to be in the band of $1.46-$1.61.
Zacks Rank of PLXS
Plexus currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.
Recent Performance of Other Companies in Tech Space
BlackBerry BB reported third-quarter fiscal 2025 non-GAAP EPS of 2 cents. The figure was better than the company’s estimate of a loss of 1 cent to EPS of 1 cent. In the year-ago quarter, it reported a non-GAAP EPS of 1 cent. The Zacks Consensus Estimate was pegged at a loss of 2 cents per share. Cost discipline aided the bottom-line performance. Quarterly revenues (including Cylance business, reclassified as held for sale as of Nov. 30, 2024) of $162 million declined 7.4% year over year.
CACI International Inc CACI reported EPS of $5.95 for the second quarter of fiscal 2025, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 15.1%. Quarterly net sales were $2099.8 million, up 5.8% from the year-ago quarter. This uptick resulted from strong growth across the board.
Seagate Technology Holdings plc STX reported second-quarter fiscal 2025 non-GAAP earnings of $2.03 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 7.98%. The figure was toward the high end of management’s guidance of $1.85 per share (+/- 20 cents). Non-GAAP revenues of $2.325 billion beat the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 0.64%. The figure increased 49.5% year over year and 7.2% sequentially. This upside resulted from strong momentum in the nearline cloud segment and significant improvements in the enterprise markets.
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