Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) Share Price Crosses Above 50 Day Moving Average - Here's Why

Key Points

• Photronics shares crossed above their 50-day moving average, reaching $29.79 before closing at $29.34, compared with a 50-day average of $29.25.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $49.33. Recent quarterly results also exceeded expectations, with EPS of $0.50 versus the $0.40 consensus and revenue of $216.05 million.
• Institutional investors own 88.38% of the company, while insiders sold 37,000 shares worth $1.11 million over the past three months. Photronics has a $1.73 billion market capitalization and reported 2.7% year-over-year quarterly revenue growth.

Photronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLAB - Get Free Report)'s share price crossed above its 50 day moving average during trading on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $29.25 and traded as high as $29.79. Photronics shares last traded at $29.34, with a volume of 551,069 shares traded.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently commented on PLAB shares. Freedom Capital raised Photronics to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Photronics from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, October 17th. Zacks Research upgraded Photronics to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Photronics from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a report on Tuesday, September 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $49.33.

Photronics Price Performance

The company's 50-day moving average price is $29.25 and its 200-day moving average price is $35.32. The company has a market cap of $1.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.33 and a beta of 1.32.

Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 26th. The semiconductor company reported $0.50 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.10. The business had revenue of $216.05 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $208.75 million. Photronics had a net margin of 19.05% and a return on equity of 7.45%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.51 earnings per share. Photronics has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 0.400-0.560 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Photronics, Inc. will post 1.90 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, SVP Han Park sold 9,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.37, for a total transaction of $288,515.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 66,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,004,420. This represents a 12.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Kang Lee sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.75, for a total value of $307,500.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 337,350 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,373,512.50. The trade was a 2.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 37,000 shares of company stock worth $1,114,265 in the last three months. Company insiders own 3.30% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Photronics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al raised its stake in shares of Photronics by 71.2% during the 3rd quarter. VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al now owns 19,963 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $614,000 after purchasing an additional 8,300 shares in the last quarter. BOKF NA boosted its holdings in shares of Photronics by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. BOKF NA now owns 25,012 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $770,000 after buying an additional 1,144 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in shares of Photronics by 150.4% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 2,259 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $70,000 after buying an additional 1,357 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Photronics by 4.3% in the third quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 14,185 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $437,000 after buying an additional 580 shares in the last quarter. Finally, James Investment Research Inc. grew its stake in shares of Photronics by 3.8% in the third quarter. James Investment Research Inc. now owns 43,170 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $1,329,000 after buying an additional 1,584 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.38% of the company's stock.

About Photronics

Photronics, Inc NASDAQ: PLAB is a manufacturer of photomasks, also known as photolithography masks, used in the production of semiconductors and flat-panel displays. Its products contain the patterns that are transferred onto silicon wafers or display substrates during the manufacturing process.

The company supplies photomasks for integrated circuits, including products used in advanced logic, memory, and other semiconductor applications. It also produces photomasks for flat-panel displays used in products such as televisions, monitors, smartphones, and other electronic devices.

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