Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a report published on Wednesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

PLAB has been the topic of a number of other reports. Craig Hallum boosted their target price on Photronics from $36.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Photronics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, September 13th. DA Davidson increased their price objective on shares of Photronics from $30.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Photronics in a report on Monday. Finally, Singular Research raised shares of Photronics to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Photronics has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.50.

Photronics Price Performance

Shares of PLAB opened at $33.09 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $24.98 and a 200-day moving average of $22.36. Photronics has a one year low of $16.46 and a one year high of $39.80. The company has a market cap of $1.95 billion, a PE ratio of 14.45 and a beta of 1.54.

Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, December 10th. The semiconductor company reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.13. Photronics had a net margin of 16.06% and a return on equity of 7.87%. The company had revenue of $215.77 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $204.54 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.59 EPS. Photronics’s quarterly revenue was down 3.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Photronics has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.510-0.590 EPS. Analysts expect that Photronics will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Photronics news, Director Mitchell G. Tyson sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.17, for a total value of $180,850.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 46,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,697,349.59. The trade was a 9.63% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Kang Jyh Lee sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $36.45, for a total transaction of $729,000.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 493,350 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,982,607.50. The trade was a 3.90% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 151,500 shares of company stock worth $4,727,013. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Photronics

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Photronics by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 5,907,219 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $122,634,000 after acquiring an additional 38,330 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management raised its stake in Photronics by 17.2% in the second quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 2,607,874 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $49,106,000 after purchasing an additional 383,355 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its position in Photronics by 4.6% during the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,412,245 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $55,361,000 after purchasing an additional 106,069 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Photronics by 699.0% during the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,305,610 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $52,914,000 after buying an additional 2,017,052 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Photronics by 1.4% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,888,042 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $35,555,000 after buying an additional 26,507 shares during the period. 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.