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PRPRLB

Proto Labs, Inc.

$PRLB·$1.8B·Manufacturing - Miscellaneous·Industrials
$76.95-0.5%YTD+51.4%1Y+95.4%
Mentions · last 7 days
2026-07-09: 1 posts2026-07-10: 3 posts2026-07-11: 2 posts2026-07-12: 0 posts2026-07-13: 0 posts2026-07-14: 0 posts2026-07-15: 0 posts60%
Price updated 12m ago·X counts updated 2d ago
PRPRLB
$PRLBProto Labs, Inc.
$76.95-0.53%6 posts0%
AI analysisFundamentalsVoices on X
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AI verdict & sentimentAI analysisGenerated by AI from underlying data

Today's AI verdict on what's driving $PRLB, plus how loud the X conversation is and which way it's leaning.

AI analysis

TickerTalks’ read on the fundamentals and what’s driving the move.

Proven numbersAcceleratingAI verdict · as of 2026-07-16

The move is getting stronger, with heavier trading behind it.

Digital-manufacturing platform building drone-programme momentum and stringing together beats into a 31 July fiscal-Q2 print.

Proto Labs runs a digital-manufacturing platform for on-demand injection molding, CNC machining, sheet metal, and additive processes — the current growth chapter is defence and drone-programme customers requiring rapid prototyping and small-lot production at rate.

  • Q1 revenue grew 10.4% year-on-year, following Q4's 12.1% — a two-quarter run of double-digit growth after several years of low-single-digit cadence.
  • The last two EPS surprises came in at 35% and 26% beats — Q1 EPS of $0.54 versus the $0.40 estimate, following Q4 at $0.44 versus $0.35.
  • Consensus models $573M of calendar-26 revenue at $2.02 EPS across three analysts, rising to $616M and $2.22 in 2027 — a mid-teens forward multiple against 10% growth.
  • Shares are up 96% over twelve months and 51% year-to-date, sitting at the 86th percentile of the 52-week range and 28% above the 200-day — the tape has already extended.

The 31 July Q2 print is the direct read on whether the drone-and-defence momentum extends the accelerating trajectory; a third double-digit topline quarter alongside another beat reinforces the multiple, and a decel back to mid-single digits reopens the additive-manufacturing category-fatigue overhang.

What to watch: The 31 July Q2 print — drone-programme customer revenue, defence-vertical growth, gross-margin trajectory across new-technology mix, and any customer-concentration disclosure. Watch also for capacity-expansion capex commentary.

On the calendar: Q2 earnings 31 July 2026

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  • One-line verdict on what's driving the move — fundamentals, momentum, both, or an event
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What it does

Plain-English summary of the business — what they sell and how they make money.

Operates an online digital manufacturing marketplace for CNC machining, injection molding, and 3D printing of custom parts.

Industry overviewAI analysisGenerated by AI from underlying data

Where Manufacturing - Miscellaneous sits in its cycle right now — and what that implies for $PRLB.

Manufacturing - Miscellaneous · Industrials

No material change from last week — Proto Labs' online marketplace for CNC machining, injection molding, and 3D printing serves prototyping and low-volume production for industrial customers who..

What this means for $PRLB

Direct beneficiary — Operates an online digital manufacturing marketplace for CNC machining, injection molding, and 3D printing of custom parts; core operations sit in the path of the Proto Labs online CNC/injection molding/3D printing marketplace agile demand.

Top industry ETF

$XLIIndustrial Select Sector SPDR
+15.8%YTD
+19.8%1Y

Fundamentals & catalyst

Profitability, valuation, and the next earnings event — at a glance, with rule-of-thumb signals.

Key ratios

P/E
67.2How much investors are paying per dollar of profit the company actually earned in the last 12 months. Lower means the stock looks cheaper relative to earnings.~15–25 is typical for the S&P 500; high-growth names trade 30+; hyper-growth or speculative can be 100+ or negative.
ROIC
3.3%What percentage return the business earns on every dollar of capital (equity + debt) deployed in operations. The cleanest measure of business quality.Above ~15% is high-quality; consistently above 25% suggests a real moat. Below the company's cost of capital is value-destroying.
Op margin
6.0%Operating profit (after sales, marketing, R&D, and overhead but before interest and taxes) as a percentage of revenue. The clearest view of how well the underlying business is run.Mature business above 20% is healthy; software businesses can run 30%+; commodity / retail businesses operate in single digits.
FCF yield
3.6%Free cash flow (operating cash flow minus capex) divided by the company's market cap. The cash-on-cash return you'd get owning the whole business at today's price.Above ~5% is attractive; below ~2% means you're paying up for growth. Capital-light businesses (software) run higher than capital-heavy ones (utilities).
P/S
3.2Same idea as P/E but per dollar of revenue. Useful for companies that aren't profitable yet, where P/E is meaningless.Under ~2 is cheap; software / SaaS often runs 8–15; well above 20 implies the market is pricing in very high future growth.
ROE
3.8%Net income as a percentage of shareholders' equity. Similar to ROIC but counts only the equity side.Above 20% is strong, but can be inflated by leverage — a heavily indebted company can show high ROE with weak underlying ROIC.
Gross margin
44.9%Revenue minus the direct cost of producing what was sold, as a percentage of revenue. The first read on whether the product is structurally profitable.Software / SaaS is typically 70%+; consumer goods 30–50%; commodity / hardware businesses can be under 20%.
D/E
0.0Total debt divided by shareholders' equity. Measures how much the business runs on borrowed money versus owner capital.Under 1 is conservative; 1–2 is typical for mature businesses; over 2 is leveraged and more sensitive to interest rates.

Past earnings

QuarterReportedActualEstimateSurprise
Q1 2026May 1, 2026$0.54$0.40+35.0%
Q4 2025Feb 6, 2026$0.44$0.35+25.7%
Q3 2025Oct 31, 2025$0.47$0.39+20.5%
Q2 2025Jul 31, 2025$0.41$0.33+24.2%
Next earningsFri, Jul 31·consensus EPS $0.54

Quarterly trend

QuarterRevenueYoYGrossOpEPSFCF
Q1 FY26$139.3M+10.4%45.6%8.1%$0.34$14.0M
Q4 FY25$136.5M+12.1%44.2%5.7%$0.25$8.4M
Q3 FY25$135.4M+7.8%45.3%6.5%$0.30$30.4M
Q2 FY25$135.1M+7.5%44.3%3.8%$0.19$9.1M

Forward consensus

2-year forecast · up to 3 analysts
FYRevenueRangeEPSRangeAnalysts
FY26$573.1M$571.0M – $575.1M$2.02$1.99 – $2.053
FY27$615.6M$613.4M – $617.7M$2.22$2.21 – $2.233

Setup & momentum

Volume, range, and moving-average position — the technical setup driving short-term moves.

Right now

Vol vs 30dToday's traded share volume divided by the average over the prior 30 trading days. ≥3× signals unusual interest; below 1× is quiet.0.7×Today's traded share volume divided by the average over the prior 30 trading days. ≥3× signals unusual interest; below 1× is quiet.
52w rangeWhere the latest close sits between the 52-week low (0%) and high (100%). Above 80% is extended; below 30% is basing or in a downtrend.87%Where the latest close sits between the 52-week low (0%) and high (100%). Above 80% is extended; below 30% is basing or in a downtrend.
vs 50d MALatest close vs the 50-day simple moving average. Positive = short-term trend is up.+2.8%Latest close vs the 50-day simple moving average. Positive = short-term trend is up.
vs 200d MALatest close vs the 200-day simple moving average. Positive = long-term trend is up.+27.8%Latest close vs the 200-day simple moving average. Positive = long-term trend is up.

Float & profile

FloatLow float · 23.4M shFree-float shares — the slice of issued stock actually available to trade. Lower buckets squeeze harder on a catalyst.Traded today0.8% of floatToday's volume as a percent of the free float. Above 5% on a single day is unusually high turnover for the available share count.β1.385-year weekly beta vs the S&P 500. Above 1.5 means the stock typically moves more than the index; below 0.8 moves less.

Insider activity

Recent open-market buys and sells by officers and directors — flagged when multiple insiders cluster.

Recent transactions

SellJun 2Sven WehrweinDirector2.0K sh$155KSellMay 12Michael R. KenisonChief Operations Officer16.0K sh$1.1MSellMay 11Michael R. KenisonChief Operations Officer7.4K sh$522KSellMay 7Michael R. KenisonChief Operations Officer200 sh$14KSellFeb 17Michael R. KenisonChief Operations Officer5.0K sh$332KSellFeb 6Michael R. KenisonChief Operations Officer2.5K sh$150K
+ 25 other (13 awards · 8 inkinds · 4 exempts) in window

See when $PRLB insiders are putting their own money in

  • Real-time open-market buys and sells from Form 4 filings
  • Cluster-buy detection when multiple insiders pile in at once
  • 30 / 60 / 180-day windows so you can spot building conviction
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SEC filings

Material 8-K, 13D, S-3, and 424B5 events from the last 180 days — the filings that actually move the price.

Recent material filings

3New insider — initial holdingsMay 223
AI summary

Bernardo Parlange, Chief Commercial Officer of Proto Labs, Inc. (PRLB), filed an initial Form 3 on May 18, 2026. No securities are listed in the beneficial ownership tables. This is a routine initial ownership statement required upon Parlange's appointment as a new officer at Proto Labs, the Maple Plain, Minnesota-based on-demand digital manufacturing company.

8-KOfficer or director changeMay 208-K — Item 5.02: Officer or director change · Item 5.07: Shareholder vote
AI summary

Proto Labs, Inc. (PRLB) filed an 8-K on May 19, 2026 disclosing a personnel change (Item 5.02) and annual shareholder meeting vote results (Item 5.07). Proto Labs is a Maple Plain, Minnesota-based on-demand digital manufacturing company listed on the NYSE. The excerpt does not identify the executive; annual meeting results are routine, but an officer change at a mid-cap manufacturing company is noteworthy depending on the seniority of the role.

8-KOfficer or director changeMay 78-K — Item 5.02: Officer or director change · Item 7.01: Press release / Reg FD
AI summary

PRLB disclosed a personnel change (8-K Item 5.02, dated 2026-05-07). An executive departure and a new appointment are both reported. Personnel changes are generally administrative; materiality depends on seniority and circumstances.

+ 15 other (6 13Gs · 3 earnings 8-Ks · 2 proxys · 1 SD) in window

Recent news

Latest headlines from major outlets, sourced and timestamped — context for whatever just moved.

Protolabs Named to TIME's 2026 List of America's Best Companiesbusinesswire.com·7d agoProtolabs Sets Conference Call to Discuss Second Quarter 2026 Financial Resultsbusinesswire.com·7d agoProtolabs Accelerates Growth and Drone Innovation with On-Demand Manufacturing Capabilitiesbusinesswire.com·10d ago4 Top Growth Stocks Worth Buying Under $100 Todayfool.com·14d agoTop 3D Printing Stocks to Buy Now for Solid Long-Term Returnszacks.com·25d ago

In themes

Explore the broader themes this ticker is being talked about under.

Robotics & Humanoids
Voices on X · last 7 days

No standout posts about $PRLB on X in the last 7 days.

TickerTalks is a research tool, not financial advice. We surface social-attention data; we do not make stock recommendations. Past attention is not predictive of future price movements.

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