Key Points
- COO Hsueh‑Chun Wang sold 19,250 shares on April 14 at an average price of $45.30 for $872,025, reducing his stake by 14.49% to 113,560 shares (about $5.14M).
- Clustered insider selling in mid‑April — including the CFO and multiple directors — raises headline risk and could create short‑term selling pressure despite management saying the trades are for liquidity/rebalancing.
- Underlying fundamentals remain constructive: Photronics beat Q4 estimates (EPS $0.61 vs $0.54), set Q2 FY26 guidance of $0.49–$0.55, has ~88% institutional ownership, a market cap of ~$2.7B and a trailing P/E around 19.5 with positive analyst sentiment.
Photronics, Inc. (NASDAQ:PLAB - Get Free Report) COO Hsueh-Chun Wang sold 19,250 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, April 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.30, for a total value of $872,025.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer directly owned 113,560 shares of the company's stock, valued at $5,144,268. The trade was a 14.49% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink.
Hsueh-Chun Wang also recently made the following trade(s):
- On Thursday, April 9th, Hsueh-Chun Wang sold 11,875 shares of Photronics stock. The stock was sold at an average price of $44.25, for a total value of $525,468.75.
- On Wednesday, April 8th, Hsueh-Chun Wang sold 10,000 shares of Photronics stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.69, for a total value of $426,900.00.
- On Wednesday, April 1st, Hsueh-Chun Wang sold 10,000 shares of Photronics stock. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.08, for a total value of $420,800.00.
Photronics Trading Down 0.0%
Photronics stock opened at $45.84 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $38.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $31.84. Photronics, Inc. has a 52 week low of $16.59 and a 52 week high of $46.49. The stock has a market cap of $2.70 billion, a PE ratio of 19.51 and a beta of 1.43.
Photronics (NASDAQ:PLAB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 25th. The semiconductor company reported $0.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.54 by $0.07. Photronics had a net margin of 15.83% and a return on equity of 7.88%. The company had revenue of $225.07 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $220.09 million. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.52 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 6.1% on a year-over-year basis. Photronics has set its Q2 2026 guidance at 0.490-0.550 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Photronics, Inc. will post 2.3 EPS for the current year.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Photronics
A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PLAB. AlphaQuest LLC grew its stake in shares of Photronics by 323.1% during the 3rd quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 50,036 shares of the semiconductor company's stock valued at $1,148,000 after buying an additional 38,209 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC raised its position in shares of Photronics by 201.3% in the 3rd quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 62,556 shares of the semiconductor company's stock worth $1,436,000 after buying an additional 41,791 shares during the period. Belpointe Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Photronics in the 3rd quarter worth $864,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 2,017,052 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in Photronics by 4.6% during 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 acquiring an additional 106,069 shares during the period. 88.38% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.
Trending Headlines about Photronics
Here are the key news stories impacting Photronics this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat and constructive guidance — Photronics reported $0.61 EPS vs. $0.54 expected and revenue above estimates, and set Q2 FY26 guidance of $0.490–$0.550, giving near‑term earnings visibility that supports the stock. MarketBeat Q4 and guidance
- Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrades and valuation pick-up — Zacks recently moved PLAB to a stronger rank (strong‑buy on value lists) and other brokers (Lake Street, Craig Hallum, WallStreetZen) have buy/strong‑buy notes; coverage highlights PLAB trading below ~20x earnings versus some peers, which supports interest if semiconductor/AI demand continues. Zacks coverage
- Positive Sentiment: Momentum / screen recognition — PLAB showed up on Zacks’ “Best Value / Strong Buy” lists and other thematic screens, which can attract momentum and value-focused buyers into the name. Zacks list
- Neutral Sentiment: High institutional ownership / recent fund activity — Institutional investors hold a large share (~88%); recent reported inflows and rebalancings can amplify moves but also reduce retail-driven volatility. This makes stock moves more about fundamentals and less about small‑holder noise. Institutional holdings
- Negative Sentiment: Clustered insider selling — Multiple insiders have sold sizeable blocks in mid‑April (CFO Eric Rivera, Director Constantine Macricostas, COO Hsueh‑Chun Wang, Director Kang Jyh Lee and others). These large sales (e.g., 50,000 shares by a director; >41k by the CFO in earlier filings) create headline risk and potential short‑term selling pressure despite management saying trades are liquidity/rebalancing. Director Form 4
- Negative Sentiment: Media/analyst scrutiny on insider activity — Coverage highlighting the insider cash‑outs has drawn attention and debate (routine vs. signal), which can amplify volatility and invite short‑term trading. InsiderTrades alert
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
PLAB has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c+)" rating on shares of Photronics in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Photronics from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, March 14th. Zacks Research raised Photronics from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Lake Street Capital initiated coverage on Photronics in a research note on Friday, March 20th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $46.00 target price for the company. Finally, Craig Hallum reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $48.00 target price on shares of Photronics in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Photronics presently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $46.33.
View Our Latest Stock Report on Photronics
Photronics Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
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.
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