Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB) Sees Large Drop in Short Interest

Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB) was the recipient of a significant decrease in short interest in the month of November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 711,000 shares, a decrease of 29.6% from the October 31st total of 1,010,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 278,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.6 days. Currently, 2.9% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Robert Bodor acquired 3,480 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, September 6th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $28.68 per share, with a total value of $99,806.40. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 80,878 shares in the company, valued at $2,319,581.04. This trade represents a 4.50 % increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 1.20% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Proto Labs

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PRLB. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of Proto Labs by 2.0% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,980,157 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $106,541,000 after buying an additional 57,894 shares in the last quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. raised its stake in Proto Labs by 12.5% during the 2nd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 32,644 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,008,000 after purchasing an additional 3,624 shares during the period. Diversified Trust Co raised its stake in Proto Labs by 9.2% during the 2nd quarter. Diversified Trust Co now owns 8,431 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $260,000 after purchasing an additional 707 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. bought a new stake in Proto Labs during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $7,535,000. Finally, Bailard Inc. bought a new stake in Proto Labs during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $405,000. 84.54% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Craig Hallum upped their target price on Proto Labs from $30.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 4th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a “hold” rating on shares of Proto Labs in a report on Friday, November 1st. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $40.00 price objective on shares of Proto Labs in a report on Monday, November 4th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Proto Labs from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $40.33.

Proto Labs Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:PRLB traded up $0.39 on Friday, hitting $41.19. 135,110 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 201,713. Proto Labs has a 52 week low of $25.75 and a 52 week high of $42.66. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $32.51 and a 200-day simple moving average of $31.43. The company has a market cap of $1.01 billion, a PE ratio of 43.40 and a beta of 1.32.

Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, November 1st. The industrial products company reported $0.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.15. Proto Labs had a return on equity of 3.49% and a net margin of 4.76%. The firm had revenue of $125.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $121.38 million. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.31 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 3.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Proto Labs will post 0.84 earnings per share for the current year.

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.