Summary
Flex Ltd. (FLEX) reported its first-quarter fiscal year 2017 results, showing a notable increase in net sales to $5.88 billion, up 5.6% year-over-year, driven by growth in its Communications & Enterprise Compute (CEC), High Reliability Solutions (HRS), and Industrial & Emerging Industries (IEI) segments. This top-line growth was partially offset by a decline in the Consumer Technologies Group (CTG) segment, largely due to reduced demand from a major customer in the smartphone business. The company also demonstrated improved profitability, with gross profit increasing to $406.0 million and a gross margin of 6.9%, up from 6.3% in the prior year. This improvement was attributed to a richer business mix, with a greater concentration of higher-margin HRS and IEI businesses, alongside enhanced operational efficiencies. Despite an increase in SG&A expenses due to acquisitions and investments, the company's net income for the quarter was $105.7 million, resulting in diluted earnings per share of $0.19.
Financial Highlights
50 data points| Revenue | $5.88B |
| Cost of Revenue | $5.69B |
| Gross Profit | $406.00M |
| SG&A Expenses | $243.94M |
| Interest Expense | $26.50M |
| Net Income | $105.73M |
| EPS (Basic) | $0.19 |
| EPS (Diluted) | $0.19 |
| Shares Outstanding (Basic) | 544.05M |
| Shares Outstanding (Diluted) | 544.05M |
Key Highlights
- 1Net sales increased by 5.6% to $5.88 billion for the three-month period ended July 1, 2016, compared to $5.57 billion for the same period in the prior year.
- 2Gross profit increased by $53.7 million to $406.0 million, with gross margin improving by 60 basis points to 6.9%, driven by a more favorable business mix and operational efficiencies.
- 3The High Reliability Solutions (HRS) segment showed strong performance with an 160 basis point increase in margin to 8.2%, driven by new program launches and higher value-added engagements.
- 4Selling, General, and Administrative (SG&A) expenses increased by $30.1 million to $239.5 million, primarily due to costs associated with recent acquisitions (MCi and NEXTracker) and increased investments in design and engineering.
- 5The company repurchased $91.0 million worth of its ordinary shares during the quarter, continuing its share repurchase program.
- 6Cash provided by operating activities was $263.9 million, though free cash flow decreased to $120.6 million from $225.4 million in the prior year's comparable period due to higher capital expenditures.
- 7Total assets grew slightly to $12.51 billion as of July 1, 2016, from $12.38 billion as of March 31, 2016, with a significant portion of assets held by foreign subsidiaries.