Principal Financial Group Inc. Sells 6,321 Shares of Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB)

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB) by 5.1% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 118,590 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 6,321 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.48% of Proto Labs worth $3,483,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new position in shares of Proto Labs in the 2nd quarter valued at $37,000. KBC Group NV raised its position in Proto Labs by 69.3% in the third quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,541 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 631 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Proto Labs during the second quarter valued at about $80,000. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Proto Labs by 40.6% during the third quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. now owns 4,108 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $121,000 after purchasing an additional 1,186 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Paloma Partners Management Co acquired a new position in shares of Proto Labs in the third quarter valued at approximately $201,000. Institutional investors own 84.54% of the company’s stock.

Proto Labs Stock Performance

NYSE:PRLB opened at $38.75 on Friday. Proto Labs, Inc. has a 52 week low of $25.75 and a 52 week high of $45.15. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $39.01 and its 200-day moving average is $33.16. The firm has a market cap of $949.76 million, a P/E ratio of 41.22 and a beta of 1.45.

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on PRLB shares. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $40.00 target price on shares of Proto Labs in a research report on Monday, November 4th. Craig Hallum boosted their price objective on shares of Proto Labs from $30.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 4th. Finally, Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Proto Labs in a report on Friday, November 1st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Proto Labs presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $40.33.

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.