Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a report released on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Separately, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Proto Labs from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $53.33.

Proto Labs Stock Performance

NYSE PRLB opened at $70.98 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.69 billion, a PE ratio of 66.96 and a beta of 1.36. The business’s fifty day moving average is $61.02 and its 200 day moving average is $56.63. Proto Labs has a fifty-two week low of $36.15 and a fifty-two week high of $71.55.

Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) last released its earnings results on Friday, May 1st. The industrial products company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.14. Proto Labs had a return on equity of 4.15% and a net margin of 4.71%.The company had revenue of $139.34 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $135.31 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.33 earnings per share. Proto Labs’s quarterly revenue was up 10.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Proto Labs has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.500-0.580 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Proto Labs will post 1.37 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Proto Labs

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Summit Global Investments raised its position in Proto Labs by 36.0% during the first quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 12,720 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $725,000 after purchasing an additional 3,370 shares during the period. Angeles Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Proto Labs during the first quarter valued at approximately $256,000. Independent Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Proto Labs during the first quarter valued at approximately $226,000. Bastion Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Proto Labs during the first quarter valued at approximately $1,605,000. Finally, Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund raised its position in Proto Labs by 2.4% during the first quarter. Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund now owns 12,871 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $734,000 after purchasing an additional 300 shares during the period. 84.54% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Proto Labs

Proto Labs, Inc is a digital manufacturing company that offers on-demand production services for custom parts and prototypes. Utilizing technologies such as 3D printing (additive manufacturing), CNC machining and injection molding, the company transforms digital CAD designs into functional parts on accelerated timelines. Its platform-driven process combines automated quoting, rapid tool generation and manufacturing execution to serve product developers, engineers and small- to medium-sized production runs.

Founded in 1999 by Larry Lukis, Proto Labs has championed the application of digital workflows to traditional manufacturing methods.