KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Acquires Shares of 23,500 Photronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLAB)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS purchased a new position in Photronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLAB - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 23,500 shares of the semiconductor company's stock, valued at approximately $554,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. M&T Bank Corp acquired a new stake in shares of Photronics in the 3rd quarter valued at $252,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Photronics by 5.1% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,745,165 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $43,217,000 after buying an additional 85,160 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in Photronics by 36.0% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 135,208 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $3,348,000 after buying an additional 35,825 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Photronics by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,007,582 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $23,739,000 after buying an additional 40,579 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Photronics during the 4th quarter worth about $298,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.38% of the company's stock.

Photronics Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PLAB traded down $0.14 during trading on Monday, hitting $17.37. 1,085,570 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 490,182. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $21.40 and its 200-day moving average price is $23.30. Photronics, Inc. has a 12-month low of $15.71 and a 12-month high of $31.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $1.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.31 and a beta of 1.40.

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Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 26th. The semiconductor company reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $212.14 million during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $210.00 million. Photronics had a net margin of 15.07% and a return on equity of 9.10%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.48 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Photronics, Inc. will post 2.3 EPS for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, DA Davidson raised their target price on Photronics from $32.00 to $35.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 12th.

Insider Activity at Photronics

In other news, Director Walter M. Fiederowicz sold 10,000 shares of Photronics stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.63, for a total value of $216,300.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 29,548 shares of the company's stock, valued at $639,123.24. The trade was a 25.29 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, SVP Han Kyung Park sold 11,250 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.63, for a total transaction of $277,087.50. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 118,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,906,340. This trade represents a 8.70 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 45,000 shares of company stock valued at $1,011,688 in the last three months. 3.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Photronics Profile

Photronics, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of photomask products and services in the United States, Taiwan, China, Korea, Europe, and internationally. It offers photomasks that are used in the manufacture of integrated circuits and flat panel displays (FPDs); and to transfer circuit patterns onto semiconductor wafers, and FDP substrates.