Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) Upgraded to “Strong-Buy” at Freedom Capital

Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Thursday morning,Zacks.com reports.

PLAB has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Zacks Research lowered Photronics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Craig Hallum reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Photronics in a report on Friday, May 29th. Lake Street Capital reissued a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Photronics in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen downgraded Photronics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, June 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Photronics from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $49.33.

Photronics Stock Performance

NASDAQ PLAB opened at $28.86 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $1.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.53 and a beta of 1.37. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $40.85 and a 200-day simple moving average of $38.45. Photronics has a one year low of $18.61 and a one year high of $56.00.

Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The semiconductor company reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.11). The business had revenue of $209.94 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $216.47 million. Photronics had a return on equity of 7.69% and a net margin of 18.47%.Photronics’s quarterly revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.40 earnings per share. Photronics has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.390-0.450 EPS.

Insider Buying and Selling at Photronics

In other Photronics news, CFO Eric Rivera sold 1,000 shares of Photronics stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.77, for a total transaction of $44,770.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 136,173 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,096,465.21. The trade was a 0.73% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Constantine S. Macricostas sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.35, for a total value of $2,267,500.00. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last quarter, insiders sold 306,144 shares of company stock worth $13,469,859. 3.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Photronics

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Torren Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Photronics in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Photronics during the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. First Horizon Corp purchased a new stake in Photronics in the first quarter valued at $33,000. Quarry LP lifted its position in Photronics by 569.8% in the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,353 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 1,151 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC boosted its stake in Photronics by 723.8% in the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,417 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 1,245 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.38% of the company’s stock.

About Photronics

Photronics, Inc is a leading global supplier of photomask products used in the manufacture of integrated circuits, flat panel displays, microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), and advanced packaging applications. Photomasks, also known as reticles, are critical templates that carry the precise circuit patterns required for semiconductor lithography processes. The company offers a comprehensive range of mask solutions, including binary masks, attenuated phase-shift masks, reticles for micro-optics, and specialized products for high‐resolution applications.

Founded in 1969 and headquartered in Brookfield, Connecticut, Photronics has grown through organic expansion and strategic investments in high‐end lithography technology.