Photronics, Inc. (PLAB) - What Are Investment Firms Saying About This Stock?

Key Points

• Analysts are moderately bullish on Photronics: Six analysts give the stock a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating, with three buys, one strong buy and two holds. The average 12-month price target is $49.33.
• Photronics exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $0.50 EPS versus the $0.40 estimate and $216.05 million in revenue, up 2.7% year over year. Management guided for fourth-quarter EPS of $0.40–$0.56.
• Institutional ownership is substantial at 88.38%, including a new $308.6 million BlackRock position, while insiders have sold 37,000 shares worth approximately $1.1 million over the past three months.

Shares of Photronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLAB - Get Free Report) have received a consensus recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the six analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, three have given a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $49.33.

A number of analysts recently weighed in on PLAB shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Photronics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, October 17th. Freedom Capital raised Photronics to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Photronics to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Photronics from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 22nd.

Photronics Stock Performance

Shares of PLAB stock opened at $27.87 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.64 billion, a PE ratio of 9.81 and a beta of 1.32. Photronics has a 52-week low of $20.05 and a 52-week high of $56.00. The business's fifty day moving average is $29.50 and its 200 day moving average is $35.40.

Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 26th. The semiconductor company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.10. Photronics had a net margin of 19.05% and a return on equity of 7.45%. The firm had revenue of $216.05 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $208.75 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.51 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Photronics has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 0.400-0.560 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Photronics will post 1.90 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Photronics

In related news, Director Kang Lee sold 10,000 shares of Photronics stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $29.70, for a total transaction of $297,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 354,850 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,539,045. This trade represents a 2.74% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, SVP Han Park sold 9,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.37, for a total transaction of $288,515.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president directly owned 66,000 shares in the company, valued at $2,004,420. The trade was a 12.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 37,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,114,265. 3.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Photronics

Several large investors have recently made changes to their positions in PLAB. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Photronics in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $308,586,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new position in Photronics during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $12,374,000. Heartland Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Photronics during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $12,355,000. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in Photronics during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $8,843,000. Finally, Meros Investment Management LP purchased a new position in Photronics during the second quarter valued at $7,728,055. 88.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Photronics Company Profile

Photronics, Inc NASDAQ: PLAB is a manufacturer of photomasks, also known as photolithography masks, used in the production of semiconductors and flat-panel displays. Its products contain the patterns that are transferred onto silicon wafers or display substrates during the manufacturing process.

The company supplies photomasks for integrated circuits, including products used in advanced logic, memory, and other semiconductor applications. It also produces photomasks for flat-panel displays used in products such as televisions, monitors, smartphones, and other electronic devices.

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