Technology stocks have been hammered brutally on the market, but contract electronics manufacturer Jabil (JBL +0.50%) has held its ground so far thanks to the strength of its business and its attractive valuation.
While the tech-laden Nasdaq-100 Technology Sector index has lost 16.4% of its value in the past three months, Jabil stock has remained relatively flat (down 2%). What's more, shares of the Apple (AAPL 1.03%) supplier have been in recovery mode of late despite the absence of any company-specific information.
NYSE: JBL
Key Data Points
With Jabil set to release its fiscal 2022 third-quarter earnings report on Thursday, June 16, it won't be surprising to see this tech stock get a nice shot in the arm. Let's take a peek at what Jabil's quarterly numbers could look like and see why the stock can go on a bull run.
Jabil's growth has picked up the pace in recent quarters
Jabil has delivered consistently strong results this fiscal year thanks to the healthy demand for its services from different verticals such as 5G, automotive, healthcare, networking, connected devices, and healthcare. As it turns out, the company has raised its guidance for fiscal 2022 twice already and expects fiscal third-quarter revenue to land at $8.2 billion at the midpoint of its guidance range.
That would translate into a nice year-over-year increase of 14%. The company has guided for non-GAAP earnings of $1.60 per share at the midpoint, which would be a 23% jump over the year-ago quarter's figure of $1.30 per share. Analysts, however, have raised their expectations from Jabil. Wall Street is looking for $1.62 per share in earnings from Jabil on revenue of $8.22 billion.
The good part is that Jabil is witnessing solid momentum across its multiple end markets that could help it beat Wall Street's expectations. CFO Mike Dastoor had said on the March earnings conference call that Jabil is "expecting double-digit growth from the healthcare, automotive retail, industrial and semi-cap, and 5G wireless and cloud end markets."
The electric vehicle market is going to be a key growth driver for Jabil. The company points out that acceleration in the adoption of electric vehicles is expected to drive 50%-plus growth in automotive revenue this year. Jabil provides critical applications for electric vehicles such as battery management systems. This secular growth opportunity is driving impressive growth in the automotive business, and it should be a long-term tailwind for Jabil, as the global battery management systems market is expected to clock nearly 20% annual growth over the next decade, according to market researcher Fact.MR.
Jabil's biggest customer, Apple, which accounted for 22% of the company's top line in fiscal 2021, is another reason the company's results and guidance could turn out to be better than expected. While the overall smartphone market was down in the first quarter of 2022, Apple defied expectations with an increase in iPhone sales. That's because the company has been able to negotiate the supply chain challenges and is on track to produce 250 million iPhones in 2022, per third-party estimates.
Other estimates suggest that Apple could produce 300 million iPhones this year, though that seems a tad aggressive amid the supply chain constraints plaguing the industry and macroeconomic headwinds. Still, Apple's iPhone shipments are expected to head higher in 2022. Apple shipped an estimated 236 million iPhones last year, so the growth in shipments of its largest customer should rub off positively on Jabil, as it supplies aluminum casings used in iPhones and iPads.
The stock is an enticing buy
Jabil looks well placed to deliver another quarter of impressive growth, and it could back its numbers up with robust guidance. Jabil stock is now trading at just 10 times earnings, compared to its five-year average earnings multiple of 38. The forward earnings multiple of 7.7 is even more attractive and points toward an improvement in the company's bottom line.
That's why investors looking to buy a value stock may want to take a closer look at Jabil before it releases its earnings, as a solid showing could send its shares soaring and make the stock relatively more expensive.
