Captrust Financial Advisors Raises Holdings in Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB)

Captrust Financial Advisors raised its holdings in shares of Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB) by 40.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 20,010 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 5,797 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors’ holdings in Proto Labs were worth $782,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Principal Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Proto Labs by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 118,889 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,647,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares during the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its stake in Proto Labs by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 78,783 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,080,000 after purchasing an additional 303 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its stake in Proto Labs by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 52,579 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,055,000 after purchasing an additional 404 shares during the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Proto Labs by 764.1% during the 4th quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 795 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 703 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in Proto Labs by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 115,724 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,524,000 after purchasing an additional 900 shares during the last quarter. 84.54% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have commented on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Proto Labs from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their target price on Proto Labs from $40.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Proto Labs in a report on Friday, February 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on 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

NYSE PRLB opened at $41.10 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $36.02 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $977.04 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 63.23 and a beta of 1.37. Proto Labs, Inc. has a 1-year low of $25.76 and a 1-year high of $46.73.

Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, May 2nd. The industrial products company reported $0.33 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.04. Proto Labs had a return on equity of 2.44% and a net margin of 3.31%. The firm had revenue of $126.21 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $123.71 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.40 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Proto Labs, Inc. will post 0.81 EPS for the current year.

Proto Labs declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Friday, February 7th that authorizes the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the industrial products company to repurchase up to 9.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Proto Labs 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.