Kesler Norman & Wride LLC Buys 9,251 Shares of Flex Ltd. $FLEX

Kesler Norman & Wride LLC boosted its stake in Flex Ltd. (NASDAQ:FLEX) by 68.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 22,713 shares of the technology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,251 shares during the period. Kesler Norman & Wride LLC’s holdings in Flex were worth $1,372,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in Flex by 196.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 38,746,330 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $2,341,053,000 after purchasing an additional 25,662,586 shares during the period. State Street Corp grew its position in Flex by 38.0% in the 2nd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 12,259,554 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $611,997,000 after purchasing an additional 3,377,669 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Flex by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 7,605,802 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $459,829,000 after purchasing an additional 181,266 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new stake in Flex in the 4th quarter worth approximately $319,756,000. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its position in Flex by 118.1% in the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 2,811,248 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $162,968,000 after purchasing an additional 1,522,308 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.30% of the company’s stock.

Flex Trading Up 7.7%

Shares of Flex stock opened at $159.43 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $100.23 and its 200-day simple moving average is $76.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.41 billion, a PE ratio of 68.43, a P/E/G ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.64. Flex Ltd. has a 1-year low of $42.31 and a 1-year high of $159.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.36 and a quick ratio of 0.87.

Flex (NASDAQ:FLEX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The technology company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter. Flex had a net margin of 3.15% and a return on equity of 22.12%. The business had revenue of $7.48 billion for the quarter. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Flex Ltd. will post 4.15 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity at Flex

In related news, COO Kwang Hooi Tan sold 26,175 shares of Flex stock in a transaction on Monday, May 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.37, for a total transaction of $3,726,534.75. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 256,043 shares in the company, valued at approximately $36,452,841.91. The trade was a 9.27% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, Director Charles K. Stevens III sold 15,000 shares of Flex stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.14, for a total transaction of $2,072,100.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 45,426 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,275,147.64. This trade represents a 24.82% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 329,512 shares of company stock worth $44,459,298 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.57% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on shares of Flex from $75.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Flex from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Raymond James Financial set a $80.00 price target on shares of Flex and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Flex from $84.00 to $177.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of Flex from $72.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $112.80.

Flex Profile

Flex (NASDAQ: FLEX), formerly known as Flextronics, is a global provider of electronics manufacturing services (EMS) and original design manufacturing (ODM). The company offers end-to-end product lifecycle solutions including product design and engineering, prototyping, volume manufacturing, testing, and aftermarket services. Its offerings extend into supply chain management, component sourcing, logistics and distribution, and advanced manufacturing capabilities such as automation and digital manufacturing to support customers from concept through end-of-life.

Flex serves a broad range of industries, including automotive, healthcare, industrial, communications, and consumer electronics, working with original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and technology companies to accelerate time to market and manage complex supply chains.