Meros Investment Management LP Has $10.08 Million Stake in Photronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLAB)

Key Points

• Meros Investment Management LP boosted its stake in Photronics by 7.2% in Q1, now holding approximately $10.08 million in shares.
• Photronics' quarterly earnings report revealed an EPS of $0.40, missing estimates, with a revenue of $210.99 million, down from the previous year.
• Institutional investors own a significant portion of the company, with 88.38% of the stock held by such entities.

Meros Investment Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Photronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLAB - Free Report) by 7.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 485,516 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after purchasing an additional 32,545 shares during the period. Photronics accounts for approximately 5.9% of Meros Investment Management LP's holdings, making the stock its 2nd largest position. Meros Investment Management LP owned about 0.76% of Photronics worth $10,079,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of PLAB. Federated Hermes Inc. acquired a new stake in Photronics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $47,000. Menard Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Photronics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $66,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in Photronics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $101,000. Heck Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Photronics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $110,000. Finally, CWM LLC raised its position in shares of Photronics by 36.1% in the first quarter. CWM LLC now owns 6,755 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $140,000 after buying an additional 1,793 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 88.38% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PLAB has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Craig Hallum initiated coverage on shares of Photronics in a research report on Wednesday, June 11th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $32.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Photronics from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Finally, DA Davidson dropped their price target on shares of Photronics from $35.00 to $30.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 29th.

Photronics Trading Down 3.0%

NASDAQ PLAB opened at $20.71 on Friday. Photronics, Inc. has a 1-year low of $16.46 and a 1-year high of $31.60. The company has a market cap of $1.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.79 and a beta of 1.40. The company has a 50 day moving average of $19.56 and a 200-day moving average of $19.90.

Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 28th. The semiconductor company reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.48 by ($0.08). Photronics had a net margin of 14.00% and a return on equity of 8.54%. The firm had revenue of $210.99 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $212.00 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.46 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Photronics, Inc. will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director David A. Garcia acquired 2,650 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, June 27th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $19.00 per share, for a total transaction of $50,350.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 10,198 shares in the company, valued at approximately $193,762. This trade represents a 35.11% increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Constantine S. Macricostas sold 29,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $20.20, for a total transaction of $595,900.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 459,623 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,284,384.60. This represents a 6.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 49,382 shares of company stock valued at $985,035 in the last three months. Company insiders own 3.20% of the company's stock.

Photronics Profile

Photronics, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of photomask products and services in the United States, Taiwan, China, Korea, Europe, and internationally. It offers photomasks that are used in the manufacture of integrated circuits and flat panel displays (FPDs); and to transfer circuit patterns onto semiconductor wafers, and FDP substrates.

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