Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH Purchases Shares of 38,123 Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB)

Key Points

• Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH has invested approximately $1.34 million in Proto Labs by acquiring 38,123 shares, amounting to about 0.16% of the company.
• Proto Labs reported a quarterly earnings per share of $0.33, exceeding estimates, although its revenue declined 1.3% year-over-year to $126.21 million.
• Wall Street Zen upgraded Proto Labs from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating, indicating increased optimism about the company's prospects.

Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new stake in Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor purchased 38,123 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $1,336,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH owned 0.16% of Proto Labs at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Proto Labs by 764.1% in the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 795 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 703 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake in shares of Proto Labs by 249.4% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 926 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 661 shares during the period. Quarry LP grew its stake in shares of Proto Labs by 175.7% in the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,585 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 1,010 shares during the period. CWM LLC grew its stake in shares of Proto Labs by 50.4% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,840 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $64,000 after buying an additional 617 shares during the period. Finally, KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new stake in shares of Proto Labs in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $192,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.54% of the company's stock.

Proto Labs Trading Up 0.3%

Proto Labs stock traded up $0.15 during trading on Friday, hitting $43.27. The company had a trading volume of 360,735 shares, compared to its average volume of 171,804. Proto Labs, Inc. has a 1-year low of $25.75 and a 1-year high of $46.73. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $39.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $38.59. The stock has a market cap of $1.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 72.12 and a beta of 1.33.

Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The industrial products company reported $0.41 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $135.06 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $128.05 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.38 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Proto Labs, Inc. will post 0.81 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on PRLB. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price target on shares of Proto Labs from $50.00 to $51.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Craig Hallum upgraded shares of Proto Labs from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $54.00 target price for the company in a report on Friday. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Proto Labs from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th.

Proto Labs Company 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.