Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) COO Hsueh-Chun Wang Sells 19,250 Shares

Photronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLAB) COO Hsueh-Chun Wang sold 19,250 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.30, for a total value of $872,025.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 113,560 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,144,268. The trade was a 14.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Hsueh-Chun Wang also recently made the following trade(s):

• On Thursday, April 9th, Hsueh-Chun Wang sold 11,875 shares of Photronics stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $44.25, for a total transaction of $525,468.75.
• On Wednesday, April 8th, Hsueh-Chun Wang sold 10,000 shares of Photronics stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.69, for a total transaction of $426,900.00.
• On Wednesday, April 1st, Hsueh-Chun Wang sold 10,000 shares of Photronics stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $42.08, for a total transaction of $420,800.00.

Photronics Stock Performance

PLAB stock opened at $45.84 on Friday. Photronics, Inc. has a one year low of $16.59 and a one year high of $46.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.70 billion, a PE ratio of 19.51 and a beta of 1.43. The company has a fifty day moving average of $38.75 and a 200-day moving average of $31.84.

Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The semiconductor company reported $0.61 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.54 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $225.07 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $220.09 million. Photronics had a net margin of 15.83% and a return on equity of 7.88%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.52 earnings per share. Photronics has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.490-0.550 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Photronics, Inc. will post 2.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Photronics News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Photronics this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat and constructive guidance — Photronics reported $0.61 EPS vs. $0.54 expected and revenue above estimates, and set Q2 FY26 guidance of $0.490–$0.550, giving near‑term earnings visibility that supports the stock. MarketBeat Q4 and guidance
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and valuation pick-up — Zacks recently moved PLAB to a stronger rank (strong‑buy on value lists) and other brokers (Lake Street, Craig Hallum, WallStreetZen) have buy/strong‑buy notes; coverage highlights PLAB trading below ~20x earnings versus some peers, which supports interest if semiconductor/AI demand continues. Zacks coverage
• Positive Sentiment: Momentum / screen recognition — PLAB showed up on Zacks’ “Best Value / Strong Buy” lists and other thematic screens, which can attract momentum and value-focused buyers into the name. Zacks list
• Neutral Sentiment: High institutional ownership / recent fund activity — Institutional investors hold a large share (~88%); recent reported inflows and rebalancings can amplify moves but also reduce retail-driven volatility. This makes stock moves more about fundamentals and less about small‑holder noise. Institutional holdings
• Negative Sentiment: Clustered insider selling — Multiple insiders have sold sizeable blocks in mid‑April (CFO Eric Rivera, Director Constantine Macricostas, COO Hsueh‑Chun Wang, Director Kang Jyh Lee and others). These large sales (e.g., 50,000 shares by a director; >41k by the CFO in earlier filings) create headline risk and potential short‑term selling pressure despite management saying trades are liquidity/rebalancing. Director Form 4
• Negative Sentiment: Media/analyst scrutiny on insider activity — Coverage highlighting the insider cash‑outs has drawn attention and debate (routine vs. signal), which can amplify volatility and invite short‑term trading. InsiderTrades alert

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Photronics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PLAB. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in Photronics by 699.0% during the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,305,610 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $52,914,000 after acquiring an additional 2,017,052 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Photronics by 395.9% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,536,374 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $49,164,000 after purchasing an additional 1,226,588 shares in the last quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. acquired a new stake in shares of Photronics in the first quarter valued at approximately $47,902,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its position in shares of Photronics by 2,201.5% in the fourth quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 621,448 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $19,883,000 after purchasing an additional 594,446 shares during the last quarter. Finally, LSV Asset Management increased its stake in shares of Photronics by 14.7% during the 4th quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 2,883,463 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $92,271,000 after purchasing an additional 370,489 shares in the last quarter. 88.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on PLAB. Craig Hallum reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $48.00 price target on shares of Photronics in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Zacks Research raised Photronics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Wall Street Zen upgraded Photronics from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, March 14th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Photronics in a report on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Lake Street Capital initiated coverage on shares of Photronics in a research report on Friday, March 20th. They set a “buy” rating and a $46.00 target price on the stock. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $46.33.

About Photronics

Photronics, Inc is a leading global supplier of photomask products used in the manufacture of integrated circuits, flat panel displays, microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), and advanced packaging applications. Photomasks, also known as reticles, are critical templates that carry the precise circuit patterns required for semiconductor lithography processes. The company offers a comprehensive range of mask solutions, including binary masks, attenuated phase-shift masks, reticles for micro-optics, and specialized products for high‐resolution applications.

Founded in 1969 and headquartered in Brookfield, Connecticut, Photronics has grown through organic expansion and strategic investments in high‐end lithography technology.