Proto Labs, Inc. $PRLB Shares Bought by Public Sector Pension Investment Board

Key Points

• The Public Sector Pension Investment Board increased its stake in Proto Labs, Inc. by 27.2%, acquiring an additional 16,598 shares to own a total of 77,679 shares valued at approximately $2,722,000.
• Several hedge funds have recently shown increased interest in Proto Labs, with First Trust Advisors LP raising its position by 71.9% and Pacer Advisors Inc. increasing its stake by an astonishing 9,033.1%.
• Analysts are optimistic about Proto Labs, with Wall Street Zen upgrading their rating from "buy" to "strong-buy" and a consensus price target of $52.50 reflecting positive growth expectations.

Public Sector Pension Investment Board raised its holdings in shares of Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB - Free Report) by 27.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 77,679 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 16,598 shares during the quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board owned about 0.33% of Proto Labs worth $2,722,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of PRLB. First Trust Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Proto Labs by 71.9% during the fourth 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. Pacer Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Proto Labs by 9,033.1% during the first 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. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Proto Labs during the first quarter worth $2,458,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in shares of Proto Labs by 5.5% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,300,864 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $50,851,000 after buying an additional 68,006 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SG Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Proto Labs during the fourth quarter worth $1,950,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.54% of the company's stock.

Proto Labs Price Performance

Shares of NYSE PRLB traded up $2.5330 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $50.7930. The company's stock had a trading volume of 250,139 shares, compared to its average volume of 194,623. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $42.07 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $39.29. Proto Labs, Inc. has a 1 year low of $26.34 and a 1 year high of $51.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.21 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 84.66 and a beta of 1.33.

Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 31st. The industrial products company reported $0.41 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.33 by $0.08. Proto Labs had a net margin of 2.91% and a return on equity of 2.22%. The business had revenue of $135.06 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $128.05 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.38 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Proto Labs has set its Q3 2025 guidance at 0.350-0.430 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Proto Labs, Inc. will post 0.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Proto Labs

In other Proto Labs news, CEO Suresh Krishna acquired 1,725 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer owned 18,021 shares in the company, valued at $784,093.71. This trade represents a 10.59% increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 1.70% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PRLB has been the topic of several recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their price target on shares of Proto Labs from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Craig Hallum raised shares of Proto Labs from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $54.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Proto Labs from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, August 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $52.50.

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.