Corporate Webpages Plantronics Corporation
Plantronics, Inc. deals in electronic communication equipment,
with main emphasis on headsets. It gained some notoriety for
its products used in early NASA space flights. The company is
the subject from one of the largest collection of lawyers
getting in on a class action lawsuit at the present time blaming
directors for misleading investors just before writing off a lot
of obsolete inventory. It seemed the company just wasn't
developing new products fast enough to keep up with the market.
A large number of management changes ensued. Shakeups appear
still to be going on. The company made a large acquisition (or
merger) of Poly Corp. and changed its name for a time to
Plantronics - Poly Corporation hoping Poly would add to
revenues. Eventually the name was changed back again to
Plantronics, with little explanation as to why or what was going
on. Throughout it all, the ticker symbol PLT was maintained (or
we wouldn't be reviewing it.)
The company has a good website aimed primarily at investors.
Descriptions of its products are also supported along with a CEO
Letter. We were not too thrilled with management's use of
charts in SEC reporting rather than data tables.
The financials of this corporation look terrible to us. The
company has an unacceptable Zenith Index and a string of losses
in recent quarters. However projected earnings by analysts are substantial.
Researchers remain overwhelming negative on the stock.
Institutionals are net sellers but mutual funds buyers.
The stock chart shows little sign of turning around after a
substantial drop, mostly reflecting dismal guidance being
offered at times. The main culprit tanking shares was the
writedown of a huge amount of inventory that they couldn't sell.
An exception to the negativity is the acquisition of shares by
one director amd a couple of managers making overall insider trends
positive, a rarity in American stocks today. Normally, we would
consider this very significant, but company share performance
has been too erratic. There is a lot of uncertainty whether or
not new managers can turn the company around.
Sage stock market chart advice says gaps are often filled, which on
the present chart suggests a quantum leap upward could result in a short
squeeze upon anyi significant earnings improvement.
12/16/2019: Plantronics Corporation (PLT): Huge Investory Write-Down
(WAIT FOR PAGE TO LOAD COMPLETELY BEFORE LINKS WORK.)
Company Profile
Company History
News
Comparison with Peers
Bond Issue
Zenith Index
Financial Statements
Avg. P/E to Current P/E
Financial Ratios
Intrinsic Value (Disc. CashFlow)
Fair Value Estimator
Projected Earnings
Research Reports
Analysts' Opinions
Insider Activity
Institutional Activity
Sentiment
Short Interest
Standard & Poor's
Management's Discussion
Channel Potential
MACD Histogram
Intraday Chart
Val Idea
Stock Consultant
Point & Figure Chart
Wall Street Analyzer
Marketspace Chart
Time Series Forecast
Neural Network Prediction
Stock Options
Ultimate Trading Systems
Recommendation
Corporate Wepages
Company Profile |
Company History |
The screen below shows news items around November 6th in an attempt to account for a November 6th quantum gap down in stock share price. It appears to be associated with the release of a quarterly earnings report.on November 5th. Whatever was in there was unanticipated, probably related to the writedown on excessive inventory of obsolete products.
News |
Comparison |
Similar Companies Performance:
Bond Issue |
Zenith Index |
Under current market conditions, a Zenith Index Score of 1.20 or above is required for a positive rating on this factor. 1.21 -1.30 is considered acceptable, 1.30-1.40 is considered strong and
> 1.40 is considered exceptionally strong. Accounting statements in this section often contain mistakes, especially in earlier years' totals, but data is deemed sufficient for us to give a rating. More accurate financial statements follow in the next section.
Plantronics, Inc. (PLT) Exchange: NYSE
345 Encinal Street
Santa Cruz, CA 95060 Sector: Technology
United States Industry: Communication Equipment
Plantronics, Inc. designs, manufactures, and markets various integrated
communications and collaborations solutions for corporate customers,
small businesses, and individuals worldwide. Its principal product
categories include enterprise headsets, which comprise corded and
cordless communication headsets; consumer headsets, such as Bluetooth
and corded products for mobile device applications, personal computer,
and gaming; voice, video, and content sharing solutions that include
Open SIP desktop and conference room phones, and video endpoints
designed to work with a range of unified communication and
collaboration, unified communication as a service, and video as a
service environments, including RealPresence collaboration solutions of
infrastructure to endpoints that allows people to connect and
collaborate; and support services. The company sells its products
through a sales team, as well as through value-added resellers,
integrators, direct marketing resellers, service providers, resellers,
retailer, office supply distributors, wireless carriers, catalog and
mail order companies, and mass merchants under the Poly, Plantronics,
and Polycom brands, as well as RIG sub-brand. Plantronics, Inc. was
founded in 1961 and is headquartered in Santa Cruz, California.
Last Trade: 24.01 52-Week Range: 53.92 - 22.80
Employees: 7,490 Avg.Volume: 644,507 Shares
Corporate Governance:
Pillar scores are Audit: 1; Board: 5; Shareholder Rights: 3; Compensation: 5.
(A lower number means less governance risk.)
EPS: -3.42 Dividend Amount: $ 0.60 Yield: 2.50%
Ex-Dividend Date: Nov 18, 2019 Payout Ratio: 0.00
Key Statistics:
Trailing P/E: 0.00 Forward P/E (est.): 6.15
Target Price: 40.33
Qrtly Stock Price Growth (yoy): -32.29% Beta: 1.40
Qrtly S&P Index Growth (yoy): -4.40% Short Ratio: 3.24%
Qrtly Revenue Growth (yoy): 52.00% Shares Out: 39920000
Qrtly Earnings Growth (yoy): 0.00%
Book Value: 17.21 Debt/Equity: 254.83%
Price/Book Value: 1.39 Operating Profit Margin: 3.66%
Price/Sales: 0.51 Profit Margin: -7.14%
Market Cap: 958,000,000 Return on Equity: -18.51%
Enterprise Value: 2,400,000,000 Return on Assets: 1.33%
Operating Cash Flow: 116,048
Free Cash Flow: -2,398,623
Annual Income Statement: (All numbers in thousands)
Period Ending 3/30/2019 3/30/2018 3/30/2017
Total Revenue 1,674,534 856,903 881,176
Cost of Revenue 980,395 417,788 439,806
Gross Profit 694,140 439,115 441,370
Operating Expenses:
Research & Development 201,886 84,193 88,318
Selling, General & Administrative 567,878 229,390 223,830
Total Operating Expenses 769,764 313,583 312,148
Operating Income or Loss -75,624 125,532 129,222
Income from Continuing Operations:
Total Other Income/Expenses Net -27,068 3,992 1,673
Interest Expense 0 0 29,230
Income Before Taxes -185,692 100,227 101,665
Income Tax Expense -50,131 101,096 19,066
Net Income from Continuing Op.s -135,561 -869 82,599
Non-recurring Events:
Extraordinary Items 0 0 0
Net Income -135,561 -869 82,599
Net Income Avail to Common Shares -135,561 -869 82,599
Annual Cash Flow Statement: (All numbers in thousands)
Period Ending 3/30/2019 3/30/2018 3/30/2017
Net Income -135,561 -869 82,599
Operating Activities:
Depreciation 201,369 21,178 20,977
Changes in Accounts Recv'bls -10,307 -12,238 -13,894
Changes in Liabilities 89,251 108,680 114,795
Changes in Inventories -7,182 -13,309 -3,791
Changes in other Oper'g Acts 5,339 55,351 2,143
Total Cash Flow f Operations 116,048 121,148 137,971
Investing Activities:
Capital Exenditures -26,797 -12,468 -23,176
Investments -1,642,241 0 0
Other Cash Flows fr Investing 0 0 0
Total Cash Flows from Investing -1,407,543 23,489 -22,452
Financing Activities:
Dividends Paid -22,880 -19,996 -19,959
Sale of Purchase of Stock -13,177 10,750 2,025
Other Cash Flows fr Financing -14,070 -11,429 0
Total Cash Flows from Financing 1,107,128 -60,446 -46,552
Change in Cash & Cash Equiv. -188,152 88,691 66,704
Annual Balance Sheets: (All Numbers in Thousands)
Period Ending 3/30/2019 3/30/2018 3/30/2017
Current Assets:
Cash & Cash Equivalents 390,661 301,970 235,266
Short Term Investments 269,313 178,179 160,051
Net Receivables 152,888 141,177 128,219
Inventory 68,276 55,456 53,162
Other Current Assets 18,588 22,195 20,297
Total Current Assets 899,726 698,977 596,995
Long-Term Investments 300,743 294,509 293,185
Property, Plant & Equipt 142,129 150,307 149,735
Goodwill 0 0 15,500
Intangible Assets 0 15,577 15,827
Other Assets 1,661 25,122 25,257
Total Assets 1,076,887 1,017,159 933,437
Current Liabilities:
Accounts Payable 45,417 42,885 39,133
Current Portion LT Debt 80,097 74,285 70,034
Other Current Liabilities 2,947 0 0
Total Current Liabilities 125,514 117,170 109,167
Long Term Debt 492,509 491,059 489,609
Other Liabilities 18,566 15,045 10,294
Total Liabilities 723,917 635,003 621,038
Stockholder Equity:
Common Stock 816 804 793
Retained Earnings 299,066 319,931 257,291
Capital Surplus 2,870 4,694 3,759
Total Stockholder Equity 352,970 382,156 312,399
Plantronics, Inc. (PLT) [Indices near +3.0, near zero,
or < zero bear special attention.]
P/E Ratio Tests:
P/E Ratio < 28? 0.0000 P/E Ratio > 5? 0.0000
P/E Ratio Vs Growth Rate: 0.0000 Forward P/E Ratio < 28? 3.0000
Price/Sales Ratio < 2.3? 3.0000 Inventory/Sales < 5%? 1.2263
Sales < $1 Billion? 0.5972 Operating Margin < 7.5%? 2.0492
Balance Sheet Tests:
Debt/Equity < 0.40? 0.1570 Long-Term Debt Service: 0.7167
LTD Being Reduced? -3.0000 Short-Term Debt Service: 3.0000
Current Ratio > 2? 3.0000 Working Capital >= 1.5? 0.2120
Leverage Ratio < 20%? 0.3654 Debt/Assets < 1? 2.1865
Quick Ratio > 1? 3.0000 Inventory Turnover > 1? 0.0887
Share Equity Increase: 2.1469 Market Cap.< 1.5 Billion? 1.5658
Intangibles < 3% Assets? 3.0000
Income Tests:
Profit Margin < 7.5%? -0.9520 EPS Annual Growth > 10%? 0.0006
Dividend Yield > 2.0%? 0.8000 EPS 3-yr Growth > 15? -0.0914
Enterprise Value/Revenue 0.5722 EPS Growth Consistent? -2.0000
Enterprise Value/EBITDA: -3.0000 Collection < 45 days? 1.3503
EPS Qrtly Growth > 10%? 0.0000 Gross Pft/Cur. LTD > 1? 3.0000
Borrowing Int. Rate < 6%? 3.0000
Stock Performance Tests:
Volatility > 25%? 2.3086 % Held by Insiders < 5%? 3.0000
Beta > 1.25? 1.1200 % Held by Institut. < 50? 0.5063
50 Da MA > 200 Da MA? -0.7209 % Held by Institut. > 30? 3.0000
52-Wk Change vs. S&P 500: -0.6210 Short Ratio > 5? 0.6480
Price/Book Value < 3? 3.0000 Short % of Float > 20? 0.6670
Return on Assets > 17%? 0.0782 Average Volume > 100,000? 3.0000
Cash Flow Tests:
Oper. C.F. > Lever'd C.F: -0.0484 Positive Free Cash Flow? -1.0000
Positive Oper. Cash Flow? 3.0000 Price to C.F.Ratio < 14?: 3.0000
Cash Flow / Assets > 10%? 3.0000
PLT Plantronics, Inc. Overall Zenith Index: 1.0795
Financial Statements |
PLANTRONICS INC (PLT) INCOME STATEMENT Fiscal year ends in March. USD in thousands 2015-03 2016-03 2017-03 2018-03 2019-03 TTM Revenue 865,010 856,907 881,176 856,903 1,674,535 1,879,633 Cost of revenue 403,391 422,233 439,806 417,788 980,396 1,029,249 Gross profit 461,619 434,674 441,370 439,115 694,139 850,384 Operating expenses Research and development 91,627 90,408 88,318 84,193 201,886 238,077 Sales, General and administrative 229,569 221,299 223,830 229,390 567,879 641,406 Restructuring, merger and acquisition 0 16,160 -109 2,451 32,694 49,485 Other operating expenses 0 -16,160 109 -2,451 -32,694 -49,485 Total operating expenses 321,196 311,707 312,148 313,583 769,765 879,483 Operating income 140,423 122,967 129,222 125,532 -75,626 -29,099 Other income (expense) 4,828 -40,791 -27,557 -25,305 -110,066 -146,132 Income before taxes 145,251 82,176 101,665 100,227 -185,692 -175,231 Provision for income taxes 32,950 13,784 19,066 101,096 -50,131 -41,127 Net income from continuing operations 112,301 68,392 82,599 -869 -135,561 -134,104 Net income 112,301 68,392 82,599 -869 -135,561 -134,104 Net income available to common shareholders 112,301 68,392 82,599 -869 -135,561 -134,104 Earnings per share Basic 2.69 2.00 2.56 -0.03 -3.61 -3.40 Diluted 2.63 1.96 2.51 -0.03 -3.61 -3.40 Weighted average shares outstanding Basic 41,723 34,127 32,279 32,345 37,569 39,306 Diluted 42,643 34,938 32,963 32,345 37,569 39,306 ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ PLANTRONICS INC (PLT) BALANCE SHEET Fiscal year ends in March. USD in thousands 2015-03 2016-03 2017-03 2018-03 2019-03 Assets Current assets Cash Short-term investments 97,859 160,051 178,179 269,313 13,332 Total cash 374,709 395,317 480,149 659,974 215,841 Receivables 136,581 128,219 141,177 152,888 337,671 Inventories 56,676 53,162 55,456 68,276 177,146 Deferred income taxes 6,564 0 0 0 0 Other current assets 28,124 20,297 22,195 18,588 50,488 Total current assets 602,654 596,995 698,977 899,726 781,146 Non-current assets Property, plant and equipment Gross property, plant and equipment 271,990 293,185 294,509 300,743 394,828 Accumulated Depreciation -132,577 -143,450 -144,202 -158,614 -190,002 Net property, plant and equipment 139,413 149,735 150,307 142,129 204,826 Equity and other investments 107,590 145,623 127,176 0 0 Goodwill 0 0 0 0 1,278,380 Intangible assets 16,077 15,827 15,577 15,498 825,675 Deferred income taxes 0 0 0 0 26,508 Other long-term assets 10,308 25,257 25,122 19,534 0 Total non-current assets 273,388 336,442 318,182 177,161 2,335,389 Total assets 876,042 933,437 1,017,159 1,076,887 3,116,535 Liabilities and stockholders' equity Liabilities Current liabilities Accounts payable 32,781 39,133 42,885 45,417 129,514 Taxes payable 4,749 4,894 5,433 5,353 17,496 Accrued liabilities 25,404 42,185 32,437 43,198 78,967 Deferred revenues 0 0 0 0 133,200 Other current liabilities 31,888 22,955 36,415 31,546 169,052 Total current liabilities 94,822 109,167 117,170 125,514 528,229 Non-current liabilities Long-term debt 34,500 489,609 491,059 492,509 1,640,801 Other long-term liabilities 19,323 22,262 26,774 105,894 225,818 Total non-current liabilities 53,823 511,871 517,833 598,403 1,866,619 Total liabilities 148,645 621,038 635,003 723,917 2,394,848 Stockholders' equity Common stock 783 793 804 816 884 Additional paid-in capital 717,848 769,489 818,777 876,645 1,431,607 Retained earnings 209,960 257,291 319,931 299,066 143,344 Treasury stock -211,314 -718,933 -762,050 -826,427 -853,673 Accumulated other comprehensive income 10,120 3,759 4,694 2,870 -475 Total stockholders' equity 727,397 312,399 382,156 352,970 721,687 Total liabilities and stockholders' equity 876,042 933,437 1,017,159 1,076,887 3,116,535 ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ PLANTRONICS INC (PLT) Statement of CASH FLOW Fiscal year ends in March. USD in thousands 2015-03 2016-03 2017-03 2018-03 2019-03 TTM Cash Flows From Operating Activities Net income 112,301 68,392 82,599 -869 -135,561 -134,104 Depreciation & amortization 18,711 20,142 20,977 21,178 201,369 228,797 Deferred income taxes -980 -8,291 -657 7,464 -49,932 -80,678 Stock based compensation 28,594 33,265 33,539 33,959 41,934 50,541 Change in working capital -411 19,808 681 55,306 33,387 -15,213 Accounts receivable 4,272 8,445 -13,894 -12,238 -10,307 17,334 Inventory 128 1,357 -3,791 -13,309 -7,182 -79,146 Accounts payable -62 5,407 4,377 2,884 3,658 17,941 Accrued liabilities 500 4,998 13,260 -4,164 61,593 -7,528 Other working capital -5,249 -399 729 82,133 -14,375 36,186 Other non-cash items -3,777 13,553 832 4,110 24,850 27,720 Net cash provided by operating activities 154,438 146,869 137,971 121,148 116,047 77,063 Cash Flows From Investing Activities Investments in property, plant, and equipmen -21,962 -30,661 -23,176 -12,468 -26,797 -28,522 Acquisitions, net -150 0 0 0 -1,642,241 8,001 Purchases of investments -216,013 -300,620 -300,434 -373,281 -822 -1,092 Sales/Maturities of investments 216,559 199,681 301,158 409,238 262,317 6,830 Other investing activities 0 0 0 0 0 2,142 Net cash used for investing activities -21,566 -131,600 -22,452 23,489 -1,407,543 -12,641 Cash Flows From Financing Activities Debt issued 34,500 644,150 0 8,000 1,244,713 0 Debt repayment 0 -190,249 0 -8,000 -103,188 -128,188 Common stock repurchased -112,939 -497,393 -34,236 -52,948 -13,177 0 Excess tax benefit from stock based compe 3,520 3,540 1,416 0 0 0 Dividend paid -25,730 -21,061 -19,959 -19,996 -22,880 -23,820 Other financing activities 15,431 4,316 6,227 12,498 1,660 -15,712 Net cash provided by (used for) financing -85,218 -56,697 -46,552 -60,446 1,107,128 -167,720 Effect of exchange rate changes -3,508 -156 -2,263 4,500 -3,784 -1,346 Net change in cash 44,146 -41,584 66,704 88,691 -188,152 -104,644 Cash at beginning of period 232,704 276,850 235,266 301,970 390,661 291,086 Cash at end of period 276,850 235,266 301,970 390,661 202,509 186,442 Free Cash Flow Operating cash flow 154,438 146,869 137,971 121,148 116,047 77,063 Capital expenditure -21,962 -30,661 -23,176 -12,468 -26,797 -28,522 Free cash flow 132,476 116,208 114,795 108,680 89,250 48,541 ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Average to Current P/E Ratios |
(PLT) Plantronics Inc.
2014 2015 2016 2017 2018
Annual Earnings: 2.63 1.96 2.51 -0.03 -3.61
Average Price During Year: 45.91 53.07 45.10 51.11 62.26
P/E Ratio: 17.46 27.08 17.97 1703.53 17.25
Average 5-Year P/E Ratio = 356.66
Current Price = 24
Previous 5 Quarter Earnings: -2.21 -1.06 -0.55 -1.14 -0.65
Current Annualized (Last Four Quarters) Earnings = -2.34
________
Average PE / Current PE = -34.77
--------
...a number above 1.00 is good
1.00 or below is bad
Financial Ratios |
. . . . . . . . . . . . Lowest to Highest, Compared to Industry
Intrinsic Value (DCF) |
Intrinsic Value by Discounted Cash Flow Method:
Fair Value Estimator |
Fair Value Estimate:
Projected Earnings |
Research Reports |
Analysts' Opinions |
Insider Activity |
Institutional Activity |
Institutional Ownership:
Sentiment |
Zenith uses the "sentiment" score above or below 50 to award a positive or negative point in the Decision Matrix.
Short Interest Ratio |
As the short interest rises as a percentage of average daily share volume (Days to Cover), this is considered a measure of negative sentiment. Similarly, a decrease in that percentage is considered positive sentiment.
Standard & Poor's |
Management's Discussion of Results of Operations Excerpts |
Channeling Potential |
The summary below includes a value for `Degree,' which refers on a
scale of 1 to 10 the range of a channel in the period under consi-
deration compared to the total range of price movement. It also looks
for the last closing price to be within the channel, otherwise zeroed.
The `Index' is the `Degree' weighted for volatility. Generally, the
the higher the index, the more suitable is the stock for trading as
a `rolling stock' between channel high and low points.
Results for PLANTRONICS INC.:
Symbol? PLT
Total Months Available: 25
Months in Cycle? 4
Months Covered by Periods: 12
Period 1 Period 2 Period 3
H1 L1 H2 L2 H3 L3
53.15 30.90 53.92 26.84 42.44 22.80
RANGE = 53.92 TO 22.80 Close = 24.01
CHANNEL = 42.44 TO 30.90 Degree = 4
Volatility = 48.06% Index = 19
MACD Histogram Divergence |
The theory is that connecting the two most recent peaks or valleys of the MACD histogram will signal the direction of the next major move.
Intraday Chart |
2 Days:
Val Idea |
2 out of 12 favorable, (negative opinion.)
Stock Consultant |
Point & Figure Chart |
Wall Street Analyzer |
Marketspace Chart |
Time Series Forecast |
Neural Network Prediction |
"Neurostock" can only track long trades. Therefore its performance, as tracked by itself on stocks which are consistently falling, may not appear as good as it could if each "sell" signal were a "short sale."
Ultimate Trading Systems |
2 out of 3 of the ultimate systems favor an upmove.
System Below:
Short term outlook: Positive: Bright Green, Negative: Bright Red
Long term outlook: Postive: Dark Green, Negative: Dark Red.
Recommendation |
| Factors | Weighted Points |
|---|---|
| News | - 1 |
| Comparison | + 1 |
| Industry | + 1 |
| Bond Issue | + 1 |
| Zenith Index | - 1 |
| Non-GAAP vs. GAAP Earnings | + 1 |
| Cash Flow | - 1 |
| Average to Current P/E | - 1 |
| Ratios | - 1 |
| Intrinsic Value DCF | + 1 |
| Fair Value Estimator | - 1 |
| Projected Earnings | + 1 |
| Research Reports | - 1 |
| Analysts | + 1 |
| Executive Perquisites | - 1 |
| Insider Activity | + 1 |
| Institutional Activity | - 1 |
| Management Reporting | + 1 |
| Short Interest | - 1 |
| Sentiment | - 1 |
| Standard & Poor's | - 1 |
| MACD Histogram Divergence | + 1 |
| Val Idea | - 1 |
| Stock Consultant | + 1 |
| Point & Figure | - 1 |
| Wall Street Analyzer | - 1 |
| Marketspace Chart | - 1 |
| Time Series Chart | + 1 |
| Neural Network | + 1 |
| Stock Options | + 1 |
| Ultimate Trading Systems | + 1 |
| Total | - 1 |
Place 1,250 shares of Plantronics, Inc. (PLT) on the Active List.
