Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) Trading Down 6.1% – Here’s What Happened

Photronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLAB) fell 6.1% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $31.10 and last traded at $31.3640. 434,830 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 62% from the average session volume of 1,144,054 shares. The stock had previously closed at $33.39.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. DA Davidson boosted their price target on shares of Photronics from $30.00 to $45.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Photronics in a report on Monday, December 29th. Zacks Research upgraded Photronics from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Craig Hallum raised their target price on Photronics from $36.00 to $42.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Photronics presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $43.50.

Photronics Price Performance

The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $28.32 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $24.22. The firm has a market capitalization of $1.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.74 and a beta of 1.52.

Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, December 10th. The semiconductor company reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $215.77 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $204.54 million. Photronics had a return on equity of 7.87% and a net margin of 16.06%.Photronics’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.59 EPS. Photronics has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.510-0.590 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Photronics, Inc. will post 2.3 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Mary Paladino sold 11,250 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $35.11, for a total transaction of $394,987.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 23,820 shares in the company, valued at $836,320.20. This trade represents a 32.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, SVP Han Kyung Park sold 13,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $37.99, for a total transaction of $522,362.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 89,250 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,390,607.50. The trade was a 13.35% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 147,500 shares of company stock worth $5,174,538 over the last three months. 3.20% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of PLAB. Royal Bank of Canada raised its stake in shares of Photronics by 30.1% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 219,290 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $4,553,000 after acquiring an additional 50,707 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its holdings in Photronics by 4.6% during the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 36,647 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $761,000 after acquiring an additional 1,600 shares during the period. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC boosted its holdings in Photronics by 14.4% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 96,752 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $2,009,000 after acquiring an additional 12,159 shares during the period. Intech Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Photronics by 6.0% in the 1st quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 62,441 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $1,296,000 after buying an additional 3,526 shares during the period. Finally, Strs Ohio purchased a new position in Photronics in the 1st quarter worth about $648,000. 88.38% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.