Positioning no disclosures inside 60 days, left as found
Options no verdict drawn today, left as found
Ethical passes the values gate
Price83.24 USD
Fair value56.34
Ethical score70.0/100
Our investment reviews on this name
2026-09-10Read Distribution80.10+3.9% to today
2026-08-09Read Markup77.62+7.2% to today ✓
2026-07-02Read Accumulation78.94+5.4% to today ✓
Our analytic regime reads on this name, dated and marked against today's price. Small sample per name, and separate from the daily-framework accuracy on the Track Record page.
Proto Labs, Inc. holds its Markup at $83.24. The statistical read favours the sellers, held for 56 days.
As held on the ledger · 2026-09-16
Phase
Markup
Quantitative state
The statistical read favours the sellers, held for 56 days
Price at the screen
$83.24
Valuation
66.06 trailing · 34.86 forward price to earnings
Values screen
PASS· score 70.0
Beta
1.42
The Workings
Five Screens, Shown in Full
Full pass across all five screens. This security clears the Titan Ethical Standard: its business and its balance sheet both stay inside the lines.
Test
Figure
Limit
What it means
Status
Business activity
Permissible
Core business clean
Its core business isn't built on prohibited lines: no gambling, alcohol, tobacco, weapons, or interest-based lending.
Pass
Debt load
0.40%
Below 33%
Interest-bearing debt is just 0.4% of its assets, well under the one-third ceiling: it does not run on borrowed money.
Pass
Interest-bearing cash
1.87%
Below 33%
Cash held in interest-bearing accounts and securities is 1.9% of assets, under the one-third limit.
Pass
Receivables
24.86%
Below 49%
Money owed to the company is 24.9% of assets, under the 49% limit.
Pass
Revenue purity
0.00%
Below 5%
Only 0.0% of revenue comes from non-compliant sources, under the 5% line.
Pass
Five checks adapted from AAOIFI screening standards: business activity plus four balance-sheet ratios. All five must pass for ethical clearance. Every figure is arithmetic on public accounts, not judgement.
Fair value range in USD, drawn from the 2026-09-16 screen. The gold marker is the market price at the same screen. The price runs 32.3% above the base estimate.
Third-party analyst targets: 4 covering, consensus None. The average target sits +11% from the screen price.
Reading the gap · Our more conservative model reads it as fully-to-richly valued here, while the Street is more bullish: a quality-at-a-fair-price name rather than a deep-value one.
Price History & Projections
Where it has been, where the models see it going. History from market close data; projection points are our fair-value estimates and third-party analyst targets, dated to the 2026-09-16 screen.
Fair value and rating are our own model estimates; the Street's range reflects third-party analyst estimates. Analysis, not advice.
The Business, in Plain Words
Custom parts maker trades far above its worth
Picture a workshop turning out one-off metal brackets or plastic prototypes for engineers racing against deadlines. Proto Labs sits in that niche, yet the shares sit at 77 dollars against a fair value nearer 55. Forward earnings trade at 35 times while returns on equity crawl at just 4 percent and net margins sit at 5 percent. This is not a bargain hiding in plain sight.
The business grows revenue at 10 percent a year and clears the ethical screen, yet the gap between price and value leaves no margin of safety. In a cyclical metal-fabrication industry, high multiples often flag peak-cycle earnings rather than durable strength. Three analysts see a median target near 91, but that optimism collides with thin returns and unknown competitive protection.
Valuation risk dominates here. Paying up for modest growth in a sector prone to sharp swings has caught investors out before. Analysis, not advice.
The risks · The things to watch: it's a small-cap, so the share price can swing harder than the market; it already moves more than the market on an average day.
Plain-English interpretation of our own screen data. Analysis, not advice.
Where & How to Trade
PRLB trades on the NYSE. As a listed security it is accessible through almost any international broker offering its home market. New to this, or investing from abroad? Our guide to accessing global markets covers brokers, currencies and the practical steps.
The framework has shifted from markup to distribution since the last review. Smart money appears to be selling into strength. Institutional holders may be rotating out. Price has moved up 3.2% since our last review. Ethical screening: PASS with passing ethical screen. The risk-adjusted return profile shows excellent risk-adjusted returns. Our composite framework grades it B, carrying a low risk profile. Technically it is holding around 34% above its long-term trend line with momentum reading overbought. Over the past year the shares are up 89%. Our forward projection puts the odds of a 10% gain over the next month near 38%. The street (3 analysts) rates it none, with a mean price target of $76.
2026-08-09Markup · changed$77.62-1.7%Entry 4
The framework has shifted from accumulation to markup since the last review. Price is trending higher with momentum. The crowd has caught on and buyers are in control. Price has moved down 1.7% since our last review. Ethical screening: PASS with passing ethical screen. The risk-adjusted return profile shows excellent risk-adjusted returns. Our composite framework grades it B, carrying a low risk profile. Technically it is holding around 34% above its long-term trend line with momentum reading overbought. Over the past year the shares are up 89%. Our forward projection puts the odds of a 10% gain over the next month near 38%. The street (3 analysts) rates it none, with a mean price target of $76.
2026-07-18Accumulation$78.94+0.0%Entry 3
The framework reads accumulation. Smart money appears to be quietly building positions. This typically precedes a markup phase. Price has moved down 0.0% since our last review. Ethical screening: PASS with passing ethical screen. The risk-adjusted return profile shows excellent risk-adjusted returns. Our composite framework grades it B, carrying a low risk profile. Technically it is holding around 34% above its long-term trend line with momentum reading overbought. Over the past year the shares are up 89%. Our forward projection puts the odds of a 10% gain over the next month near 38%. The street (3 analysts) rates it none, with a mean price target of $76.
2026-07-03Accumulation$78.94+0.0%Entry 2
The framework reads accumulation. Smart money appears to be quietly building positions. This typically precedes a markup phase. Price has moved down 0.0% since our last review. Ethical screening: PASS with passing ethical screen (70). The risk-adjusted return profile shows excellent risk-adjusted returns.
2026-07-02Accumulation$78.94Entry 1
The framework reads accumulation. Smart money appears to be quietly building positions. This typically precedes a markup phase. Ethical screening: PASS with passing ethical screen (70). The risk-adjusted return profile shows excellent risk-adjusted returns.
Each entry above was written on its date, before the outcome. A journal you can prune is not a journal.
