Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) Updates Q3 2026 Earnings Guidance
by Kim Johansen · The Markets DailyProto Labs (NYSE:PRLB – Get Free Report) issued an update on its third quarter 2026 earnings guidance on Friday. The company provided earnings per share (EPS) guidance of 0.560-0.640 for the period, compared to the consensus earnings per share estimate of 0.480. The company issued revenue guidance of $145.0 million-$153.0 million, compared to the consensus revenue estimate of $145.9 million.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several research firms have issued reports on PRLB. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Proto Labs from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 18th. Zacks Research downgraded Proto Labs from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, July 3rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded Proto Labs from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Benchmark upped their price target on Proto Labs from $70.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Proto Labs currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $91.00.
Check Out Our Latest Stock Analysis on PRLB
Proto Labs Stock Performance
Shares of PRLB stock traded down $0.63 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $74.51. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 286,606 shares, compared to its average volume of 188,598. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $77.00 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.70. The company has a market cap of $1.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 70.29 and a beta of 1.38. Proto Labs has a 1-year low of $40.84 and a 1-year high of $83.15.
Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB – Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The industrial products company reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.07. Proto Labs had a net margin of 4.71% and a return on equity of 4.15%. The business had revenue of $149.34 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $144.53 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.41 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. Proto Labs has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.560-0.640 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Proto Labs will post 1.37 EPS for the current year.
Insider Buying and Selling
In other Proto Labs news, Director Sven Wehrwein sold 2,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $77.28, for a total value of $154,560.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 32,505 shares in the company, valued at $2,511,986.40. This represents a 5.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Michael R. Kenison sold 16,030 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $69.49, for a total value of $1,113,924.70. Following the transaction, the insider owned 18,683 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,298,281.67. This represents a 46.18% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last three months, insiders sold 25,663 shares of company stock valued at $1,804,727. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.
Key Proto Labs News
Here are the key news stories impacting Proto Labs this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Q2 results exceeded expectations. Proto Labs reported earnings of $0.60 per share, ahead of the $0.54 consensus estimate and up from $0.41 a year earlier. Revenue reached a record $149.3 million, exceeding expectations of $144.5 million and increasing approximately 10.5% year over year. Proto Labs Q2 Earnings and Revenues Top Estimates
- Positive Sentiment: Operating momentum remained healthy. Total revenue per customer contact rose 16.7% year over year, while CNC machining revenue increased 13.6%, supporting the company’s growth profile. Protolabs Reports Financial Results for the Second Quarter of 2026
- Positive Sentiment: Q3 EPS guidance was notably above expectations. Management forecast earnings of $0.56 to $0.64 per share, compared with the $0.48 analyst consensus, implying continued earnings strength.
- Neutral Sentiment: Revenue guidance was broadly in line. The Q3 revenue outlook of $145 million to $153 million has a midpoint slightly above the $145.9 million consensus, but does not signal a major upside surprise on sales.
- Negative Sentiment: Valuation may be limiting the reaction. Proto Labs trades at roughly 70 times earnings, leaving the stock vulnerable to profit-taking when forward revenue growth is moderate, even after the quarterly beat. The company’s net margin was 4.71%, which also underscores the importance of sustained margin improvement.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Proto Labs
A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN grew its stake in Proto Labs by 1.9% during the second quarter. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN now owns 2,722,011 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $108,989,000 after buying an additional 51,293 shares during the last quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP raised its stake in shares of Proto Labs by 8.6% in the third quarter. Rubric Capital Management LP now owns 1,123,338 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $56,201,000 after acquiring an additional 89,167 shares during the last quarter. American Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Proto Labs by 126.0% in the 4th quarter. American Capital Management Inc. now owns 631,311 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,938,000 after acquiring an additional 352,015 shares in the last quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership grew its position in Proto Labs by 3.0% during the 3rd quarter. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership now owns 460,618 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $23,045,000 after acquiring an additional 13,488 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in Proto Labs by 9.5% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 363,013 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $18,365,000 after acquiring an additional 31,585 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.54% of the company’s stock.
Proto Labs Company Profile
Proto Labs, Inc is a digital manufacturing company that offers on-demand production services for custom parts and prototypes. Utilizing technologies such as 3D printing (additive manufacturing), CNC machining and injection molding, the company transforms digital CAD designs into functional parts on accelerated timelines. Its platform-driven process combines automated quoting, rapid tool generation and manufacturing execution to serve product developers, engineers and small- to medium-sized production runs.
Founded in 1999 by Larry Lukis, Proto Labs has championed the application of digital workflows to traditional manufacturing methods.