Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS Makes New $205,000 Investment in Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB)

Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS bought a new stake in shares of Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 5,233 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $205,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. boosted its position in Proto Labs by 95.3% during the 4th quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 133,601 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,222,000 after acquiring an additional 65,198 shares in the last quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of Proto Labs by 6.9% in the 4th quarter. Jupiter Asset Management Ltd. now owns 187,911 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $7,345,000 after purchasing an additional 12,146 shares during the period. Versor Investments LP bought a new stake in shares of Proto Labs during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $235,000. ARK Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Proto Labs by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC now owns 128,511 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,023,000 after purchasing an additional 4,750 shares during the period. Finally, Rice Hall James & Associates LLC bought a new position in Proto Labs in the fourth quarter worth $5,972,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.54% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Needham & Company LLC restated a “hold” rating on shares of Proto Labs in a report on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com raised shares of Proto Labs from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised their target price on shares of Proto Labs from $40.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, February 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $43.67.

Proto Labs Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:PRLB opened at $37.14 on Friday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $39.94 and a 200-day moving average price of $36.83. The company has a market capitalization of $899.89 million, a PE ratio of 57.13 and a beta of 1.45. Proto Labs, Inc. has a 1-year low of $25.76 and a 1-year high of $46.73.

Proto Labs declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Friday, February 7th that permits the company to repurchase $100.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the industrial products company to purchase up to 9.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

About Proto Labs

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.