Virtu Financial LLC Acquires New Shares in Photronics, Inc. $PLAB

Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Photronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLAB) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 24,545 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock, valued at approximately $785,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. LSV Asset Management boosted its position in Photronics by 14.7% during the fourth quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 2,883,463 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $92,271,000 after purchasing an additional 370,489 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in shares of Photronics by 4.6% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 2,412,245 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $55,361,000 after buying an additional 106,069 shares in the last quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Photronics by 699.0% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 2,305,610 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock valued at $52,914,000 after buying an additional 2,017,052 shares in the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Photronics by 395.9% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,536,374 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $49,164,000 after buying an additional 1,226,588 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Photronics by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,023,766 shares of the semiconductor company’s stock worth $32,761,000 after buying an additional 33,573 shares during the last quarter. 88.38% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Photronics Stock Performance

PLAB opened at $34.06 on Tuesday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $43.36 and its 200 day simple moving average is $38.36. Photronics, Inc. has a 1 year low of $18.00 and a 1 year high of $56.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.01 billion, a PE ratio of 12.43 and a beta of 1.37.

Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 28th. The semiconductor company reported $0.42 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.53 by ($0.11). Photronics had a return on equity of 7.69% and a net margin of 18.47%.The company had revenue of $209.94 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $216.47 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.40 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .5% on a year-over-year basis. Photronics has set its Q3 2026 guidance at 0.390-0.450 EPS.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on PLAB shares. Craig Hallum reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Photronics in a research note on Friday, May 29th. Lake Street Capital restated a “buy” rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Photronics in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Photronics from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Photronics from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, June 13th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Photronics from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Photronics presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $49.33.

Insider Activity

In related news, COO Hsueh-Chun Wang sold 19,250 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.30, for a total transaction of $872,025.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 113,560 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,144,268. This represents a 14.49% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Constantine S. Macricostas sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $45.35, for a total value of $2,267,500.00. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 326,144 shares of company stock worth $14,313,759. Insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

Photronics Company Profile

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.