Photronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLAB) Given Average Recommendation of “Buy” by Analysts

Photronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLAB) has been given an average recommendation of “Buy” by the five ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, two have assigned a buy recommendation and two have given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $43.50.

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. DA Davidson upped their target price 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. Singular Research raised Photronics to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 4th. Craig Hallum raised their price objective on Photronics from $36.00 to $42.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Photronics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, September 13th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Photronics in a research report on Monday.

Insider Buying and Selling at Photronics

In related news, Director Mary Paladino sold 42,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.00, for a total transaction of $1,026,000.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 33,798 shares in the company, valued at approximately $811,152. This represents a 55.85% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Christopher J. Progler sold 25,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.78, for a total transaction of $894,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 165,591 shares in the company, valued at $5,924,845.98. This trade represents a 13.12% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 160,250 shares of company stock valued at $5,027,225. Insiders own 3.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of PLAB. Boston Partners grew its position in shares of Photronics by 2.9% during the 2nd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 826,718 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $15,706,000 after buying an additional 23,037 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management lifted 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 worth $49,106,000 after acquiring an additional 383,355 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC grew its holdings in Photronics by 201.3% during the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 62,556 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,436,000 after acquiring an additional 41,791 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio bought a new position in Photronics during the 1st quarter worth about $648,000. Finally, Voya Investment Management LLC increased its position in Photronics by 16.1% during the 1st quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 204,238 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $4,240,000 after purchasing an additional 28,345 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.38% of the company’s stock.

Photronics Price Performance

NASDAQ:PLAB opened at $33.70 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $1.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.72 and a beta of 1.54. Photronics has a 1 year low of $16.46 and a 1 year high of $39.80. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $26.42 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $23.18.

Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, December 10th. The semiconductor company reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.13. Photronics had a return on equity of 7.87% and a net margin of 16.06%.The firm had revenue of $215.77 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $204.54 million. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.59 EPS. The company’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. As a group, analysts anticipate that Photronics will post 2.3 EPS for the current year.

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.