Celestica (NYSE:CLS) Shares Gap Up After Strong Earnings

Celestica Inc. (NYSE:CLS) (TSE:CLS)’s stock price gapped up prior to trading on Thursday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $57.47, but opened at $62.70. Celestica shares last traded at $66.46, with a volume of 2,195,729 shares traded.

The technology company reported $1.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.11. Celestica had a return on equity of 19.96% and a net margin of 4.16%. The company had revenue of $2.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.41 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.65 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 24.8% compared to the same quarter last year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently commented on CLS shares. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Celestica from $65.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday. TD Cowen upped their price target on Celestica from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. TD Securities upped their price target on Celestica from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday. Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Celestica from $58.00 to $70.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Celestica from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $66.67.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Optimum Investment Advisors raised its stake in Celestica by 66.7% during the third quarter. Optimum Investment Advisors now owns 500 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. acquired a new position in Celestica during the third quarter worth $30,000. UMB Bank n.a. acquired a new position in Celestica during the third quarter worth $34,000. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC raised its stake in Celestica by 32.1% during the second quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 700 shares of the technology company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Global Trust Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in Celestica during the third quarter worth $51,000. 67.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Celestica Stock Up 18.2 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.47 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $52.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $52.13. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.34 and a beta of 2.28.

About Celestica

Celestica Inc provides supply chain solutions in North America, Europe, and Asia. It operates through two segments: Advanced Technology Solutions, and Connectivity & Cloud Solutions. The company offers a range of product manufacturing and related supply chain services, including design and development, new product introduction, engineering services, component sourcing, electronics manufacturing and assembly, testing, complex mechanical assembly, systems integration, precision machining, order fulfillment, logistics, asset management, product licensing, and after-market repair and return services.