Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) Upgraded at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a research note published on Wednesday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently commented on PRLB. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Proto Labs in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Benchmark increased their price target on Proto Labs from $45.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, November 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $53.33.

Proto Labs Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of NYSE PRLB opened at $67.45 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.60 billion, a PE ratio of 76.64 and a beta of 1.24. Proto Labs has a twelve month low of $29.58 and a twelve month high of $68.91. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $54.67 and a 200 day simple moving average of $51.32.

Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 6th. The industrial products company reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.35 by $0.09. Proto Labs had a net margin of 3.98% and a return on equity of 3.20%. The business had revenue of $136.49 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $129.07 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.38 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Proto Labs has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.360-0.440 EPS. As a group, equities analysts expect that Proto Labs will post 0.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Proto Labs

In other news, insider Michael R. Kenison sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total transaction of $150,000.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 34,526 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,071,560. This represents a 6.75% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Proto Labs

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Amalgamated Bank raised its holdings in Proto Labs by 3.4% during the third quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 7,071 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $354,000 after buying an additional 235 shares during the last quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS raised its holdings in shares of Proto Labs by 4.1% in the 2nd quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 6,103 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $244,000 after acquiring an additional 238 shares during the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC raised its holdings in shares of Proto Labs by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 21,419 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,072,000 after acquiring an additional 349 shares during the last quarter. Horizon Investments LLC lifted its position in Proto Labs by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. Horizon Investments LLC now owns 11,886 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $601,000 after acquiring an additional 395 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Diversified Trust Co. boosted its stake in Proto Labs by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Diversified Trust Co. now owns 10,495 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $531,000 after purchasing an additional 467 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.54% of the company’s stock.

About Proto Labs

Proto Labs, Inc is a digital manufacturing company that offers on-demand production services for custom parts and prototypes. Utilizing technologies such as 3D printing (additive manufacturing), CNC machining and injection molding, the company transforms digital CAD designs into functional parts on accelerated timelines. Its platform-driven process combines automated quoting, rapid tool generation and manufacturing execution to serve product developers, engineers and small- to medium-sized production runs.

Founded in 1999 by Larry Lukis, Proto Labs has championed the application of digital workflows to traditional manufacturing methods.