Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) Trading 3.5% Higher After Insider Buying Activity

Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB) traded up 3.5% on Tuesday following insider buying activity. The company traded as high as $29.00 and last traded at $28.91. 19,106 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 89% from the average session volume of 174,335 shares. The stock had previously closed at $27.94.

Specifically, CEO Robert Bodor purchased 3,480 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, September 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $28.68 per share, with a total value of $99,806.40. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 80,878 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,319,581.04. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on PRLB shares. Benchmark reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $45.00 price objective on shares of Proto Labs in a report on Wednesday, May 29th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Proto Labs in a report on Monday, August 5th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Proto Labs from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $44.00 target price on shares of Proto Labs in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Proto Labs has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $41.00.

Proto Labs Stock Up 3.5 %

The stock has a market cap of $727.09 million, a PE ratio of 36.31 and a beta of 1.32. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $30.89 and a 200 day moving average price of $32.11.

Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 2nd. The industrial products company reported $0.38 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $125.60 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $126.25 million. Proto Labs had a return on equity of 3.60% and a net margin of 4.86%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted ($0.01) EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Proto Labs, Inc. will post 0.7 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Proto Labs

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PRLB. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in Proto Labs in the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Proto Labs during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Headlands Technologies LLC grew its stake in Proto Labs by 224.0% in the 1st quarter. Headlands Technologies LLC now owns 1,873 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $67,000 after acquiring an additional 1,295 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Proto Labs in the 2nd quarter worth $80,000. Finally, Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in Proto Labs in the 1st quarter worth $110,000. 84.54% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.