Photronics, Inc. $PLAB Shares Bought by Denali Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Denali Advisors LLC increased its stake in Photronics by 33.2% in the fourth quarter, ending with 313,404 shares valued at about $10.0 million. Photronics now ranks as Denali’s 8th largest holding.
• Photronics shares were trading up 6.5% to $53.64, near their 52-week high of $53.92, after the company reported strong quarterly results with EPS of $0.61 versus $0.54 expected and revenue of $225.07 million versus $220.09 million estimated.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on PLAB, with a consensus Buy rating and average price target of $49.33. Recent reports include buy or strong-buy ratings from several firms, though insiders sold 346,144 shares over the last 90 days.

Denali Advisors LLC grew its position in Photronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLAB - Free Report) by 33.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 313,404 shares of the semiconductor company's stock after buying an additional 78,166 shares during the quarter. Photronics accounts for about 1.1% of Denali Advisors LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest holding. Denali Advisors LLC owned about 0.53% of Photronics worth $10,029,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in PLAB. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Photronics by 699.0% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,305,610 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $52,914,000 after purchasing an additional 2,017,052 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership bought a new position in Photronics in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $8,416,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd lifted its stake in Photronics by 123.8% in the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 233,498 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $5,359,000 after purchasing an additional 129,152 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. lifted its stake in Photronics by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,412,245 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $55,361,000 after purchasing an additional 106,069 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC increased its position in Photronics by 21.4% in the 3rd quarter. Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC now owns 597,819 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $13,720,000 after acquiring an additional 105,389 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 88.38% of the company's stock.

Photronics Trading Up 6.5%

Shares of NASDAQ:PLAB opened at $53.64 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $41.92 and a 200 day moving average of $34.39. The stock has a market cap of $3.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.83 and a beta of 1.51. Photronics, Inc. has a 12 month low of $16.59 and a 12 month high of $53.92.

Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The semiconductor company reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.54 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $225.07 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $220.09 million. Photronics had a net margin of 15.83% and a return on equity of 7.88%. Photronics's revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.52 earnings per share. Photronics has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.490-0.550 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Photronics, Inc. will post 2.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Photronics

In related news, CAO Rui Zhang sold 4,556 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.70, for a total transaction of $212,765.20. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer directly owned 27,079 shares in the company, valued at $1,264,589.30. This represents a 14.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Constantine S. Macricostas sold 50,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.35, for a total transaction of $2,267,500.00. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 346,144 shares of company stock worth $15,061,759 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 3.30% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on PLAB shares. Lake Street Capital reissued a "buy" rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Photronics in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Photronics from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 14th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Photronics from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Craig Hallum reissued a "buy" rating and set a $48.00 price target on shares of Photronics in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Zacks Research raised shares of Photronics from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $49.33.

About Photronics

Photronics, Inc is a leading global supplier of photomask products used in the manufacture of integrated circuits, flat panel displays, microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), and advanced packaging applications. Photomasks, also known as reticles, are critical templates that carry the precise circuit patterns required for semiconductor lithography processes. The company offers a comprehensive range of mask solutions, including binary masks, attenuated phase-shift masks, reticles for micro-optics, and specialized products for high‐resolution applications.

Founded in 1969 and headquartered in Brookfield, Connecticut, Photronics has grown through organic expansion and strategic investments in high‐end lithography technology.

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