What happened
Shares of Plantronics (POLY) have skyrocketed today, up by 20% as of 12:45 p.m. EDT, after getting an upgrade from Wall Street. The company, which goes by the name Poly, is expected to benefit from the remote work trend.
So what
Northland Capital Markets has boosted its rating on the stock from market perform (equivalent to neutral) to outperform (equivalent to buy), while analyst Michael Latimore maintained a price target of $24, which represents nearly 65% potential upside from Friday's closing price.
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Poly is enjoying a "strong headset and video tailwind," Latimore wrote in a research note to investors, as many companies have transitioned to remote work models this year during the COVID-19 pandemic. The tech company's headsets and video-conferencing offerings are instrumental in helping employees maintain productivity and collaboration remotely.
Now what
Poly said in July that it was struggling to meet "elevated headset demand" due to supply chain challenges and ended the quarter with a backlog of 5 weeks. The company named Dave Shull as its new CEO in August after former CEO Joe Burton agreed earlier this year to step down as part of a management shake-up.
Poly is scheduled to report fiscal second-quarter results on Oct. 29. The company's outlook calls for adjusted revenue of $350 million to $390 million, which should result in adjusted earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) of $45 million to $65 million and adjusted earnings per share of $0.25 to $0.65. Analysts are expecting $372.7 million in sales and adjusted earnings per share of $0.44.
