Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) Stock Breaks Above 50-Day Moving Average – Here’s Why

Photronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLAB)’s stock price crossed above its 50-day moving average during trading on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $29.25 and traded as high as $29.79. Photronics shares last traded at $29.34, with a volume of 551,069 shares changing hands.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Photronics to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 2nd. Wall Street Zen upgraded Photronics from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, October 17th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Photronics from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 22nd. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Photronics to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, August 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $49.33.

Photronics Stock Down 5.3%

The stock has a market cap of $1.63 billion, a PE ratio of 13.67 and a beta of 1.32. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $29.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $35.27.

Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 26th. The semiconductor company reported $0.50 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.40 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $216.05 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $208.75 million. Photronics had a net margin of 19.05% and a return on equity of 7.45%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.51 EPS. Photronics has set its Q4 2026 guidance at 0.400-0.560 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Photronics, Inc. will post 1.90 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Photronics

In related news, Director Kang Lee sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $30.75, for a total value of $307,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 337,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,373,512.50. This represents a 2.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, SVP Han Park sold 9,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, September 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $30.37, for a total transaction of $288,515.00. Following the sale, the senior vice president owned 66,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,004,420. This represents a 12.58% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last quarter, insiders sold 37,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,114,265. 3.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Photronics

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Photronics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $308,586,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its holdings in Photronics by 32.5% in the first quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 823,488 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $33,289,000 after buying an additional 202,040 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp acquired a new position in shares of Photronics during the 2nd quarter worth $12,374,000. Heartland Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Photronics in the second quarter valued at about $12,355,000. Finally, Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in shares of Photronics by 1.6% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 290,142 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $11,725,000 after acquiring an additional 4,540 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.38% of the company’s stock.

Photronics Company Profile

Photronics, Inc (NASDAQ: PLAB) is a manufacturer of photomasks, also known as photolithography masks, used in the production of semiconductors and flat-panel displays. Its products contain the patterns that are transferred onto silicon wafers or display substrates during the manufacturing process.

The company supplies photomasks for integrated circuits, including products used in advanced logic, memory, and other semiconductor applications. It also produces photomasks for flat-panel displays used in products such as televisions, monitors, smartphones, and other electronic devices.