The Week

Flex finished the week down 0.9% at $109.51, versus $110.50 the prior Friday. That compared with a 0.09% gain for the S&P 500, meaning the stock underperformed the benchmark by roughly 0.99 percentage points. The week was volatile: after opening Monday at $110.35, Flex drifted lower through Thursday, touching a week low of $102.25, before bouncing Friday to an intraday high of $111.63 and closing at $109.51. The weekly range was 8.5%.

Key Events

The main corporate news was the 9 September 4 announcement that Flex is buying EPC Power for $4.4 billion, along with $4.4 billion in bridge financing. The deal was read as strengthening Flex’s CPI-related growth ahead of a planned spin-out. The share price lifted from around $105 on the day of the announcement, closing at $107.89. Earlier in the week, Goldman Sachs reaffirmed its buy rating on 31 August, and the average brokerage rating remained ‘moderate buy’. The company also confirmed on 3 September that it would take part in an upcoming investor conference. Three DEFA14A filings landed on 4 September, timing that lined up with the M&A and financing news.

Analyst Ratings

Eleven brokers cover Flex. Of these, 8 rate it buy and 3 rate it outperform, with no hold, underperform or sell ratings. The consensus rating is strong buy, and the consensus target price is $160.50, about 46.6% above the latest close of $109.51. Individual targets range from $142 to $180, a fairly wide spread. Within the electronic equipment and services industry, Flex ranks 10th out of 68 companies.

The Week Ahead

The macro calendar brings the US NFIB small business optimism index on 8 September, last at 99.8. On 10 September there is a cluster of US data, including initial jobless claims, final demand PPI, core PPI, existing home sales and the 10-year Treasury auction. Initial claims printed 206 in the prior reading and are expected at 205, while PPI forecasts point higher than the previous print. These releases will update the growth and inflation picture and are the main items to watch.

In Short

This week’s story for Flex centred on the $4.4 billion acquisition of EPC Power. The shares bounced from their weekly low on announcement day, though the stock still closed the week 0.9% lower. The sell-side skew is positive: all 11 covering brokers rate it buy or outperform, and the consensus target sits about 46.6% above the latest close. On valuation, the trailing P/E is around 41.6x, which is not obviously cheap. Going forward, the focus shifts to next week’s US macro data and whether the financing and deal execution feed further into the price.

This article is generated by LongbridgeAI from market data, for information only and not investment advice.