Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) Upgraded at Freedom Capital

Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) was upgraded by research analysts at Freedom Capital to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

PLAB has been the topic of several other reports. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Photronics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 13th. Craig Hallum reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Photronics in a report on Friday, May 29th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Photronics from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Lake Street Capital reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $55.00 price target on shares of Photronics in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Photronics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $49.33.

Photronics Trading Down 4.8%

Shares of NASDAQ PLAB opened at $28.86 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $1.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.53 and a beta of 1.37. Photronics has a 12 month low of $18.61 and a 12 month high of $56.00. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $40.85 and a 200-day moving average of $38.45.

Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The semiconductor company reported $0.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by ($0.11). Photronics had a net margin of 18.47% and a return on equity of 7.69%. The business had revenue of $209.94 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $216.47 million. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.40 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. Photronics has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.390-0.450 EPS.

Insider Transactions at Photronics

In other news, COO Hsueh-Chun Wang sold 19,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.30, for a total value of $872,025.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer owned 113,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,144,268. The trade was a 14.49% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Kang Jyh Lee sold 20,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.92, for a total transaction of $918,400.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 355,850 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,340,632. This represents a 5.32% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 306,144 shares of company stock worth $13,469,859. 3.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Torren Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Photronics during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Larson Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Photronics in the third quarter valued at approximately $28,000. First Horizon Corp acquired a new stake in Photronics during the first quarter worth approximately $33,000. Quarry LP grew its position in Photronics by 569.8% during the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,353 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 1,151 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its stake in Photronics by 723.8% during the 4th quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 1,417 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 1,245 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.38% of the company’s stock.

About Photronics

Photronics, Inc is a leading global supplier of photomask products used in the manufacture of integrated circuits, flat panel displays, microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), and advanced packaging applications. Photomasks, also known as reticles, are critical templates that carry the precise circuit patterns required for semiconductor lithography processes. The company offers a comprehensive range of mask solutions, including binary masks, attenuated phase-shift masks, reticles for micro-optics, and specialized products for high‐resolution applications.

Founded in 1969 and headquartered in Brookfield, Connecticut, Photronics has grown through organic expansion and strategic investments in high‐end lithography technology.