Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) Given “Overweight” Rating at Cantor Fitzgerald

Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated their overweight rating on shares of Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) in a research note released on Monday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $40.00 price objective on the industrial products company’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also commented on the company. StockNews.com lowered Proto Labs from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Proto Labs in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $40.33.

Proto Labs Stock Down 2.1 %

Shares of Proto Labs stock opened at $38.61 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $971.04 million, a PE ratio of 41.07 and a beta of 1.32. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $29.50 and a 200-day moving average price of $30.60. Proto Labs has a 52 week low of $25.75 and a 52 week high of $41.87.

Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The industrial products company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by $0.15. Proto Labs had a net margin of 4.76% and a return on equity of 3.49%. The company had revenue of $125.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $121.38 million. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.31 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Proto Labs will post 0.7 EPS for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Robert Bodor purchased 3,480 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $28.68 per share, with a total value of $99,806.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 80,878 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,319,581.04. This represents a 0.00 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Proto Labs

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PRLB. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new stake in Proto Labs during the 2nd quarter valued at $7,535,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP boosted its stake in Proto Labs by 13.3% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,110,566 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $34,305,000 after purchasing an additional 130,670 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC grew its holdings in Proto Labs by 32.3% during the 2nd quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 435,823 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $13,463,000 after buying an additional 106,423 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. increased its position in shares of Proto Labs by 89.3% during the first quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 147,011 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,256,000 after buying an additional 69,347 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Proto Labs by 2.0% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,980,157 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $106,541,000 after buying an additional 57,894 shares in the last quarter. 84.54% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Proto Labs

Proto Labs, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a digital manufacturer of custom parts in the United States and Europe. The company offers injection molding; computer numerical control machining; three-dimensional printing; and sheet metal fabrication products. It serves developers and engineers, who use 3D computer-aided design software to design products across a range of end-markets.