Two Sigma Advisers LP Has $1.04 Million Position in Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB)

Two Sigma Advisers LP lowered its position in shares of Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB - Free Report) by 48.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 26,500 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 25,300 shares during the quarter. Two Sigma Advisers LP owned approximately 0.11% of Proto Labs worth $1,036,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its position in Proto Labs by 6.0% in the 4th quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 20,164 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $788,000 after acquiring an additional 1,147 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its stake in shares of Proto Labs by 544.3% in the fourth quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 95,359 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,728,000 after acquiring an additional 80,558 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers raised its stake in shares of Proto Labs by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 78,783 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $3,080,000 after acquiring an additional 303 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Proto Labs by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 118,889 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $4,647,000 after acquiring an additional 299 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Rice Hall James & Associates LLC bought a new position in shares of Proto Labs in the fourth quarter worth about $5,972,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.54% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their target price on shares of Proto Labs from $40.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "hold" rating on shares of Proto Labs in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of Proto Labs from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th.

Proto Labs Trading Down 1.5%

Shares of NYSE:PRLB traded down $0.57 during trading on Thursday, hitting $37.28. 330,562 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 239,859. Proto Labs, Inc. has a 1-year low of $25.76 and a 1-year high of $46.73. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $36.45 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $38.82. The firm has a market cap of $886.09 million, a P/E ratio of 57.35 and a beta of 1.37.

Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 2nd. The industrial products company reported $0.33 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.04. Proto Labs had a net margin of 3.31% and a return on equity of 2.44%. The company had revenue of $126.21 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $123.71 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.40 EPS. Proto Labs's revenue was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Proto Labs, Inc. will post 0.81 EPS for the current year.

Proto Labs declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Friday, February 7th that permits the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization permits the industrial products company to reacquire up to 9.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Proto Labs Profile

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.