Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. Acquires 19,441 Shares of Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB)

Key Points

• Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. increased its holdings in Proto Labs, Inc. by 14.6%, owning 153,042 shares worth approximately $5.36 million after acquiring an additional 19,441 shares.
• Proto Labs recently reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, exceeding analyst expectations, and saw revenue of $135.06 million, a 7.6% increase year-over-year.
• Several research firms upgraded Proto Labs, with Craig Hallum raising its rating from "hold" to "buy" and setting a target price of $54.00.

Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. raised its stake in Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB - Free Report) by 14.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 153,042 shares of the industrial products company's stock after acquiring an additional 19,441 shares during the period. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. owned approximately 0.64% of Proto Labs worth $5,363,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in Proto Labs by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,300,864 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $50,851,000 after acquiring an additional 68,006 shares in the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Proto Labs by 71.9% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 738,576 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $28,871,000 after buying an additional 308,970 shares in the last quarter. S Squared Technology LLC raised its holdings in shares of Proto Labs by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. S Squared Technology LLC now owns 307,003 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $12,001,000 after buying an additional 15,000 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of Proto Labs by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 281,639 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $11,009,000 after buying an additional 9,314 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Proto Labs by 9,033.1% during the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 148,595 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,207,000 after buying an additional 146,968 shares in the last quarter. 84.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Craig Hallum raised Proto Labs from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $54.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, August 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price target on Proto Labs from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Proto Labs from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd.

Proto Labs Trading Up 0.5%

PRLB traded up $0.24 on Friday, reaching $48.09. The stock had a trading volume of 187,451 shares, compared to its average volume of 206,085. Proto Labs, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $26.34 and a fifty-two week high of $49.39. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $41.07 and a 200-day moving average of $39.04. The company has a market capitalization of $1.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 80.15 and a beta of 1.33.

Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The industrial products company reported $0.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.33 by $0.08. Proto Labs had a return on equity of 2.22% and a net margin of 2.91%. The business had revenue of $135.06 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $128.05 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.38 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Proto Labs, Inc. will post 0.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Proto Labs

In other news, CEO Suresh Krishna bought 1,725 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 4th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $43.51 per share, with a total value of $75,054.75. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer directly owned 18,021 shares in the company, valued at approximately $784,093.71. This trade represents a 10.59% increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.70% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.