Insider Buying: Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) CEO Acquires $52,140.00 in Stock

Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB) CEO Suresh Krishna purchased 750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 2nd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $69.52 per share, for a total transaction of $52,140.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer owned 30,897 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,147,959.44. This represents a 2.49% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link.

Proto Labs Trading Down 3.6%

Shares of NYSE PRLB traded down $2.46 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $66.64. The company had a trading volume of 312,480 shares, compared to its average volume of 205,119. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $85.89 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $73.22. Proto Labs, Inc. has a one year low of $46.07 and a one year high of $99.96. The company has a market capitalization of $1.59 billion, a PE ratio of 46.60 and a beta of 1.52.

Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 29th. The industrial products company reported $0.63 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $154.32 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $149.31 million. Proto Labs had a net margin of 6.04% and a return on equity of 5.40%. Proto Labs’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.47 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Proto Labs, Inc. will post 1.46 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Proto Labs

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Balance Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Proto Labs in the third quarter valued at $36,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC purchased a new position in shares of Proto Labs during the 3rd quarter valued at $40,000. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in Proto Labs in the 2nd quarter worth about $37,000. Signaturefd LLC increased its position in shares of Proto Labs by 240.0% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 527 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 372 shares during the last quarter. Finally, USA Financial Formulas purchased a new stake in shares of Proto Labs during the 1st quarter valued at $52,000. Institutional investors own 84.54% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have issued reports on PRLB. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Proto Labs from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 18th. Zacks Research cut shares of Proto Labs from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Proto Labs in a report on Tuesday, October 27th. Needham & Company LLC increased their price target on Proto Labs from $87.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of Proto Labs from a “buy (b)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $100.50.

About Proto Labs

Proto Labs, Inc (NYSE: PRLB), operating as Protolabs, is a digital manufacturing company that provides rapid prototyping and on-demand production services. The company uses automated quoting and manufacturing systems to help engineers and product developers produce custom parts without relying on traditional, lengthy tooling and procurement processes.

Protolabs offers computer numerical control (CNC) machining, injection molding, 3D printing and sheet-metal fabrication. Its services support the development and production of components in a range of materials and are used across industries including automotive, aerospace, medical, electronics and consumer products.

Founded in 1999 by entrepreneur Larry Lukis, the company has expanded its reach beyond its original U.S.