SG Capital Management LLC Acquires Shares of 49,875 Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB)

SG Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 49,875 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $1,950,000. SG Capital Management LLC owned 0.20% of Proto Labs as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in shares of Proto Labs by 71.9% during the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 738,576 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $28,871,000 after purchasing an additional 308,970 shares during the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership raised its stake in Proto Labs by 348.1% in the 4th quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 212,914 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $8,323,000 after purchasing an additional 165,396 shares during the last quarter. Rice Hall James & Associates LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Proto Labs during the fourth quarter worth $5,972,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its holdings in Proto Labs by 544.3% in the 4th quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 95,359 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,728,000 after acquiring an additional 80,558 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in Proto Labs by 5.5% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,300,864 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $50,851,000 after purchasing an additional 68,006 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.54% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have issued reports on PRLB shares. Needham & Company LLC reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Proto Labs in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald lifted their target price on Proto Labs from $40.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Proto Labs from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $43.67.

Proto Labs Price Performance

Proto Labs stock traded down $1.15 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $39.73. The company had a trading volume of 41,472 shares, compared to its average volume of 233,900. Proto Labs, Inc. has a 1 year low of $25.76 and a 1 year high of $46.73. The company has a market capitalization of $944.30 million, a P/E ratio of 61.12 and a beta of 1.37. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $36.19 and its 200-day simple moving average is $38.85.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $126.21 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $123.71 million. Proto Labs had a net margin of 3.31% and a return on equity of 2.44%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.40 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts forecast that Proto Labs, Inc. will post 0.81 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Proto Labs announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Friday, February 7th that allows the company to buyback $100.00 million in shares. This buyback authorization allows 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 of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.