Meeder Asset Management Inc. Increases Position in Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB)

Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB) by 192.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 13,036 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,571 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Proto Labs were worth $510,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in PRLB. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN raised its stake in Proto Labs by 5.7% during the third quarter. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN now owns 2,056,593 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $60,402,000 after buying an additional 110,244 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in shares of Proto Labs by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 965,426 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $28,355,000 after purchasing an additional 13,554 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Proto Labs by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 585,809 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $17,209,000 after purchasing an additional 4,285 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its position in Proto Labs by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 387,741 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $11,388,000 after purchasing an additional 23,696 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hotchkis & Wiley Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Proto Labs during the 3rd quarter valued at about $8,587,000. 84.54% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Proto Labs from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. 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 restated a “hold” rating on shares of Proto Labs in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $43.67.

Proto Labs Stock Down 1.9 %

Shares of Proto Labs stock opened at $35.06 on Tuesday. Proto Labs, Inc. has a twelve month low of $25.76 and a twelve month high of $46.73. The company has a market cap of $849.71 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 53.95 and a beta of 1.45. The company’s 50 day moving average is $39.82 and its 200 day moving average is $37.03.

Proto Labs announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback 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 reacquire up to 9.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.