Wall Street Zen Upgrades Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) to Strong-Buy

Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) was upgraded by equities researchers at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report released on Saturday.

Other analysts also recently issued reports about the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Proto Labs from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Proto Labs in a report on Thursday. Finally, Weiss Ratings lowered Proto Labs from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $53.33.

Proto Labs Trading Up 0.2%

Proto Labs stock opened at $76.53 on Friday. Proto Labs has a 12-month low of $38.48 and a 12-month high of $83.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 72.20 and a beta of 1.38. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $73.87 and a 200 day moving average of $63.38.

Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.14. The business had revenue of $139.34 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $135.31 million. Proto Labs had a net margin of 4.71% and a return on equity of 4.15%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.33 earnings per share. Proto Labs has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.500-0.580 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Proto Labs will post 1.37 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Sven Wehrwein sold 2,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $77.28, for a total value of $154,560.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 32,505 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,511,986.40. The trade was a 5.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Michael R. Kenison sold 16,030 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.49, for a total transaction of $1,113,924.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 18,683 shares in the company, valued at $1,298,281.67. This trade represents a 46.18% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 25,663 shares of company stock valued at $1,804,727. Insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Proto Labs

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Group One Trading LLC purchased a new stake in Proto Labs in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Proto Labs by 7,380.0% during the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 748 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 738 shares in the last quarter. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Proto Labs during the fourth quarter valued at about $46,000. Modus Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Proto Labs during the fourth quarter valued at about $57,000. Finally, Aquatic Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Proto Labs in the third quarter worth about $64,000. 84.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Proto Labs Company Profile

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.