Flex Ltd shares tumbled 6.43% in pre-market trading on Wednesday, even as the company reported fiscal first-quarter results that handily beat analyst expectations. The sharp decline came after the company also announced the leadership teams for both Flex and its planned Cloud and Power Infrastructure spin-off, a move that includes the departure of its current CFO to the new entity.
For the first quarter, Flex posted adjusted earnings per share of $1.00, surpassing the consensus estimate of $0.91. Revenue came in at $7.93 billion, also above the $7.56 billion analysts had forecast. The company issued full-year guidance for adjusted EPS of $4.42 to $4.74, compared to the $4.45 estimate, and revenue of $33.7 billion to $35.2 billion, exceeding the $33.37 billion consensus. The second-quarter outlook also topped expectations, with adjusted EPS seen between $1.00 and $1.07 and revenue of $7.95 billion to $8.25 billion.
Investors appeared to focus instead on the announced leadership changes tied to the upcoming spin-off. Current CEO Revathi Advaithi will lead the new SpinCo, while Michael Hartung will take over as Flex CEO. Crucially, current CFO Kevin Krumm is set to become SpinCo’s CFO, forcing Flex to launch a search for a new finance chief. The displacement of key executives from the parent company likely fueled uncertainty about Flex’s post-spin-off stability, overshadowing the otherwise upbeat quarterly report.