Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB) Shares Bought by Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership

Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership lifted its stake in Proto Labs, Inc. (NYSE:PRLB - Free Report) by 348.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 212,914 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 165,396 shares during the period. Arrowstreet Capital Limited Partnership owned approximately 0.87% of Proto Labs worth $8,323,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Disciplined Growth Investors Inc. MN boosted its holdings in shares of Proto Labs by 5.7% in 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 acquiring an additional 110,244 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its position in Proto Labs by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 965,426 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $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% during 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 during the period. 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 worth $11,388,000 after purchasing an additional 23,696 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in Proto Labs by 76.0% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 244,987 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $9,711,000 after purchasing an additional 105,813 shares during the period. 84.54% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Proto Labs Trading Up 3.3 %

Shares of NYSE:PRLB traded up $1.11 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $34.77. The stock had a trading volume of 206,341 shares, compared to its average volume of 225,530. Proto Labs, Inc. has a 1 year low of $25.76 and a 1 year high of $46.73. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $38.14 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $37.24. The company has a market capitalization of $842.65 million, a PE ratio of 53.50 and a beta of 1.52.

Proto Labs announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Friday, February 7th that allows the company to repurchase $100.00 million in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the industrial products company to reacquire up to 9.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on PRLB shares. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of Proto Labs in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price objective on Proto Labs from $40.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded Proto Labs from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Proto Labs presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $43.67.

About Proto Labs

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.