Preformed Line Products Co (PLPC)

Price$398.45Cached quoteAs of 2026-09-05 16:30 UTC

AI: Overvalued

Price checkCurrent valuation already assumes strong growth and sustained margin gains.

Preformed Line Products Company, listed on Nasdaq as PLPC, looks expensive despite exceptional recent execution. Market data show a trailing P/E near 47 times, forward P/E near 30 times, and price-to-free-cash-flow near 58 times. Those multiples are far above its 2025 levels and leave little room for growth or margins to normalize. The valuation therefore assumes that the recent surge in power-grid and communications demand remains unusually strong.

Big pictureEarnings are accelerating, but cash conversion is less impressive and end-market spending remains cyclical.

First-half 2026 sales rose 22% and net income rose 32%, led by U.S. energy demand, but operating cash flow was roughly flat year over year because working capital absorbed cash. After $17.0 million of capital spending, free cash flow was positive but modest relative to the market value. Liquidity is healthy: June cash was $76.2 million versus $42.8 million of total debt, with $53.3 million available on the main credit facility. Demand still depends on utility and communications capital budgets.

Business strengthBacklog, customer diversity, margins, and modest buybacks support quality, though reinvestment needs remain meaningful.

PLPC benefits from a diversified global manufacturing footprint, no dependence on a single customer, and a 2025 year-end backlog of $232.8 million that was expected largely to ship in 2026. Q2 gross margin reached 34.3% and operating margin 13.1%, showing strong pricing, mix and fixed-cost leverage. Management is reinvesting in capacity and acquisitions while paying a dividend and buying back shares. Outstanding shares have declined modestly, so recent capital allocation has been mildly anti-dilutive rather than dilutive.

What could change the storyThe stock needs unusually strong demand and margins; slower growth could quickly reset valuation multiples.

Bull case: grid modernization, data-center power needs and fiber investment keep energy and communications volumes growing at double digits, Q2-style margins prove durable, and recent capacity investments and Delta Star add profitable sales without much more debt. Bear case: utility or telecom capital spending slows, tariff and material costs rise, currency turns unfavorable, or margins retreat toward older norms; at today’s elevated earnings and free-cash-flow multiples, even solid results could trigger multiple compression. Faster cash conversion would make the valuation easier to defend.

AI: News

Record second quarterRecord second-quarter sales and profit showed powerful energy demand and sharply better operating leverage.

On July 29, PLPC reported record second-quarter 2026 net sales of $212.7 million, up 25% year over year, and net income of $21.5 million. Gross margin improved to 34.3% as higher volumes, favorable mix, prior pricing and fixed-cost leverage outweighed tariff and personnel costs. U.S. sales rose 32%, led by energy demand, while every international segment also grew. The quarter materially strengthened the earnings side of the bull case.

Canada capacity expansionA Canadian facility purchase expands capacity while partially replacing cash with new floating-rate debt.

PLP Canada bought a manufacturing facility and related land on July 21 for about $16.7 million, initially using cash on hand. The company disclosed the purchase on July 27 as a capacity expansion for future growth. A July 28 term loan of about $10.7 million then refinanced part of that cash investment, introducing additional floating-rate debt maturing in 2029. The move supports growth but also reduces some of the balance-sheet cushion.

Delta Star acquiredDelta Star broadens substation exposure, but future integration and returns still need to justify the purchase premium.

On May 5, PLPC acquired Brazil-based Delta Star, a maker of high- and extra-high-voltage substation connectors. The June 10-Q later disclosed an approximately $11.1 million purchase price, 2025 sales of about $8.0 million and preliminary goodwill of $6.3 million. Delta Star expands PLPC’s substation offering in South America and supports the growing U.S. substation business. The strategic fit is clear, but investors still need evidence that acquisition returns justify the premium paid.

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Financial statements

	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021	2020	2019	2018	2017	2016	2015	2014	2013	2012	2011	2010	2009
Revenue	$669.3M	$593.7M	$669.7M	$637.0M	$517.4M	$466.4M	$444.9M	$420.9M	$378.2M	$336.6M	$354.7M	$388.2M	$409.8M	$439.2M	$424.4M	$338.3M	$257.2M
Gross profit	$208.5M	$189.8M	$234.8M	$215.2M	$166.2M	$154.0M	$140.6M	$132.2M	$118.6M	$109.4M	$103.5M	$120.9M	$130.9M	$144.4M	$140.8M	$108.2M	$84.8M
Gross margin	31.16%	31.97%	35.07%	33.78%	32.13%	33.02%	31.60%	31.42%	31.37%	32.50%	29.17%	31.16%	31.94%	32.89%	33.19%	31.99%	32.96%
Research & development	$23.7M	$21.9M	$5.2M	$4.5M	$3.3M	$2.8M	$3.0M	$2.4M	$2.1M	$2.7M	$2.9M	$2.7M	$2.3M	$2.1M	$2.4M	$1.7M	$9.2M
Operating expenses	$153.4M	$139.1M	$150.7M	$145.8M	$118.7M	$113.8M	$108.0M	$99.3M	$92.5M	$87.9M	$91.1M	$99.7M	$99.8M	$100.3M	$95.5M	$79.7M	$65.3M
Operating income	$55.1M	$50.8M	$84.2M	$69.4M	$47.5M	$40.2M	$32.6M	$32.9M	$26.1M	$21.5M	$12.3M	$21.2M	$31.1M	$44.1M	$45.4M	$28.5M	$19.5M
Operating margin	8.24%	8.55%	12.57%	10.89%	9.19%	8.62%	7.33%	7.83%	6.90%	6.38%	3.48%	5.47%	7.60%	10.05%	10.69%	8.42%	7.57%
EBITDA	$78.2M	$71.6M	$103.1M	$85.8M	$63.1M	$54.0M	$46.4M	$45.4M	$38.9M	$33.5M	$23.9M	$34.1M	$43.2M	$55.7M	$55.9M	$37.9M	$26.7M
EBITDA margin	11.68%	12.06%	15.39%	13.47%	12.20%	11.59%	10.42%	10.78%	10.28%	9.94%	6.73%	8.78%	10.55%	12.68%	13.17%	11.20%	10.38%
Net income	$35.3M	$37.1M	$63.3M	$54.4M	$35.7M	$29.8M	$23.3M	$26.6M	$12.7M	$15.3M	$6.7M	$12.9M	$20.6M	$29.3M	$31.0M	$23.1M	$23.4M
Net profit margin	5.27%	6.25%	9.46%	8.54%	6.91%	6.39%	5.24%	6.32%	3.35%	4.53%	1.88%	3.31%	5.02%	6.67%	7.30%	6.83%	9.08%
Basic EPSper basic share	$7.17	$7.56	$12.87	$11.03	$7.28	$6.05	$4.63	$5.28	$2.48	$2.95	$1.25	$2.39	$3.84	$5.50	$5.89	$4.41	$4.46
Diluted EPSper diluted share	$7.14	$7.50	$12.68	$10.88	$7.19	$5.98	$4.58	$5.21	$2.47	$2.95	$1.24	$2.39	$3.77	$5.45	$5.78	$4.33	$4.35

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Owners

Reported shareholders

Reference date Jun 30, 2026

20.79%of listed shares

HighTower Advisors, LLC1.01M shares · Jun 30, 2026

View holders

Top 20 reported holders of PLPC
Holder	% owned
HighTower Advisors, LLC	20.79%1.01M shares
WASATCH ADVISORS LP	7.73%377.37K shares
BlackRock, Inc.	4.65%227.11K shares
DIMENSIONAL FUND ADVISORS LP	4.47%218.38K shares
MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd.	3.34%162.86K shares
VANGUARD CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LLC	2.25%109.88K shares
GEODE CAPITAL MANAGEMENT, LLC	1.72%83.74K shares
FMR LLC	1.55%75.81K shares
ROYCE & ASSOCIATES LP	1.43%69.57K shares
VANGUARD PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT LLC	1.36%66.24K shares
STATE STREET CORP	1.23%60.04K shares
Point72 Asset Management, L.P.	1.04%50.84K shares
Tributary Capital Management, LLC	0.78%38.26K shares
Invesco Ltd.	0.76%37.32K shares
RENAISSANCE TECHNOLOGIES LLC	0.75%36.46K shares
Qube Research & Technologies Ltd	0.66%32.09K shares
FIRST TRUST ADVISORS LP	0.61%29.87K shares
MORGAN STANLEY	0.60%29.41K shares
PNC Financial Services Group, Inc.	0.54%26.58K shares
GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INC	0.52%25.26K shares