Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) Cut to “Hold” at StockNews.com

Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) was downgraded by StockNews.com from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Friday.

Photronics Stock Up 2.7 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PLAB opened at $23.74 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $24.02 and its 200 day moving average is $26.14. The stock has a market cap of $1.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.99 and a beta of 1.40. Photronics has a 52-week low of $18.03 and a 52-week high of $34.16.

Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 29th. The semiconductor company reported $0.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.56 by ($0.05). The firm had revenue of $211.00 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $225.00 million. Photronics had a return on equity of 9.46% and a net margin of 16.22%. Photronics’s quarterly revenue was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.51 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Photronics will post 2.08 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Photronics

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its holdings in Photronics by 177.9% during the first quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 98,774 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $2,797,000 after buying an additional 63,228 shares during the period. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC lifted its stake in shares of Photronics by 19.0% during the 1st quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 308,856 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $8,746,000 after purchasing an additional 49,331 shares during the last quarter. LSV Asset Management boosted its position in Photronics by 13.7% during the first quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 1,714,964 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $48,568,000 after purchasing an additional 207,049 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC purchased a new position in Photronics in the first quarter valued at about $1,121,000. Finally, Wedge Capital Management L L P NC raised its holdings in Photronics by 11.4% in the second quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 228,950 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $5,648,000 after purchasing an additional 23,449 shares in the last quarter. 88.38% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About Photronics

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.