Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) Stock Price Up 4.7% – Here’s Why

Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB) shares were up 4.7% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $92.74 and last traded at $93.3450. 95,993 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 51% from the average daily volume of 195,896 shares. The stock had previously closed at $89.13.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on PRLB. Zacks Research raised Proto Labs from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Benchmark upped their target price on shares of Proto Labs from $70.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Proto Labs from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, September 18th. Needham & Company LLC raised Proto Labs from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $87.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut Proto Labs from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and three have issued a Buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $89.00.

Proto Labs Trading Up 5.4%

The company has a market capitalization of $2.25 billion, a PE ratio of 75.04 and a beta of 1.42. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $82.17 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $73.29.

Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The industrial products company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.53 by $0.07. Proto Labs had a return on equity of 4.80% and a net margin of 5.44%.The business had revenue of $149.34 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $144.53 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.41 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.5% compared to the same quarter last year. Proto Labs has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.560-0.640 EPS. Research analysts expect that Proto Labs, Inc. will post 1.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, CFO Daniel Schumacher sold 4,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.21, for a total transaction of $417,529.00. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 40,019 shares in the company, valued at $3,410,018.99. The trade was a 10.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Proto Labs

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Proto Labs during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $317,581,000. American Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Proto Labs during the 2nd quarter worth $50,524,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its stake in shares of Proto Labs by 5.4% during the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 520,251 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $29,665,000 after purchasing an additional 26,700 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its stake in shares of Proto Labs by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 463,780 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,445,000 after purchasing an additional 3,162 shares during the period. Finally, S Squared Technology LLC purchased a new position in shares of Proto Labs in the 2nd quarter valued at about $23,484,661. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.54% of the company’s stock.

About Proto Labs

Proto Labs, Inc (NYSE: PRLB), doing business as Protolabs, is a digital manufacturing company that provides rapid prototyping and on-demand production services. Its platform enables engineers and product developers to upload three-dimensional computer-aided design files, receive automated design analyses and quotes, and order custom parts through a streamlined online process.

The company offers computer numerical control machining, injection molding, 3D printing and sheet-metal fabrication.