Proto Labs (PRLB) Competitors

Proto Labs (NYSE:PRLB) and Albany International (NYSE:AIN) are both industrial products companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, media sentiment, community ranking, earnings, analyst recommendations, valuation, risk, dividends and institutional ownership.

Is PRLB or AIN more profitable?

Albany International has a net margin of 7.92% compared to Proto Labs' net margin of 4.76%. Albany International's return on equity of 12.20% beat Proto Labs' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Proto Labs	4.76%	3.49%	3.14%
Albany International	7.92%	12.20%	6.69%

Which has more risk & volatility, PRLB or AIN?

Proto Labs has a beta of 1.32, indicating that its share price is 32% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Albany International has a beta of 1.29, indicating that its share price is 29% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Do institutionals and insiders hold more shares of PRLB or AIN?

84.5% of Proto Labs shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 97.4% of Albany International shares are held by institutional investors. 1.2% of Proto Labs shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.8% of Albany International shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Does the MarketBeat Community believe in PRLB or AIN?

Proto Labs received 83 more outperform votes than Albany International when rated by MarketBeat users. Likewise, 62.88% of users gave Proto Labs an outperform vote while only 60.70% of users gave Albany International an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
Proto Labs	Outperform Votes 327 62.88%	Underperform Votes 193 37.12%
Albany International	Outperform Votes 244 60.70%	Underperform Votes 158 39.30%

Which has better valuation & earnings, PRLB or AIN?

Albany International has higher revenue and earnings than Proto Labs. Albany International is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Proto Labs, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Proto Labs	$503.88M	1.91	$17.22M	$0.94	41.76
Albany International	$1.27B	2.06	$111.12M	$3.20	26.12

Do analysts rate PRLB or AIN?

Proto Labs presently has a consensus price target of $40.33, indicating a potential upside of 2.76%. Albany International has a consensus price target of $85.50, indicating a potential upside of 2.28%. Given Proto Labs' stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities analysts clearly believe Proto Labs is more favorable than Albany International.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Proto Labs	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50
Albany International	1 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.25

Does the media refer more to PRLB or AIN?

In the previous week, Albany International had 8 more articles in the media than Proto Labs. MarketBeat recorded 10 mentions for Albany International and 2 mentions for Proto Labs. Proto Labs' average media sentiment score of 1.73 beat Albany International's score of 0.35 indicating that Proto Labs is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Proto Labs	1 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	0 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Very Positive
Albany International	3 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	3 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral

Summary

Albany International beats Proto Labs on 9 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.