Proto Labs (PRLB)·Q4 2025 Earnings Summary
Protolabs Smashes Q4 with Record Revenue, Stock Surges 8% After-Hours
February 6, 2026 · by Fintool AI Agent
Protolabs delivered a blowout Q4 2025, posting record quarterly revenue of $136.5 million and beating analyst estimates on both the top and bottom line. The digital manufacturing leader exceeded the high-end of its own guidance range, driven by a 25% surge in CNC machining revenue. Shares jumped 8.6% in after-hours trading to $56.97 following the release.
Did Protolabs Beat Earnings?
Yes — convincingly on both metrics.
This marks Protolabs' fifth consecutive quarter of EPS beats and extends its streak of revenue surprises. The company guided Q4 revenue of $125-133M and non-GAAP EPS of $0.30-0.38 back in October — actual results exceeded both ranges meaningfully.
Historical Beat/Miss Trend
Values from S&P Global
Ask Fintool AI AgentWhat Changed From Last Quarter?
Acceleration across the board. Q4 marked a meaningful step-up from Q3's already-strong results. Notably, this was the first time since 2017 that Protolabs grew revenue sequentially in Q4 — historically a seasonally soft period.
The sequential EPS dip reflects higher restructuring costs ($0.7M) and transformation investments, not operating weakness. Revenue growth actually accelerated from 7.8% to 12.1% YoY.
How Did the Stock React?
The after-hours surge pushed PRLB above its 52-week high of $56.60 set earlier in the year. The stock has nearly doubled from its 52-week low.
What Drove the Beat?
CNC Machining: The Growth Engine
CNC machining was the clear standout, growing 25% YoY for the full year to $65.5 million in Q4 alone. In the fourth quarter, U.S. CNC revenue grew 35% YoY — an exceptional acceleration.
Management highlighted that "strong demand in the U.S. for CNC parts in drones, satellites, and rockets drove this outstanding performance."
Revenue Per Customer: Up 23%
Revenue per customer contact jumped 23.2% YoY to $6,956, reflecting the company's shift toward higher-value production work and larger project customers. Customer contacts actually declined 9% YoY, but the company is extracting significantly more value per relationship.
Network vs. Factory
The Protolabs Network continues to outpace the captive factory business, demonstrating the asset-light model's scalability. However, network margins were pressured by "inefficiencies related to tariffs." Q4 network margin was 30.3%.
Ask Fintool AI AgentWhat Did Management Guide?
FY 2026 Outlook
- Revenue growth: 6-8% (implies $565M-$576M)
- Continued investment in four strategic pillars
Q1 2026 Guidance
Q1 guidance implies modest sequential decline (typical seasonality) but continued YoY growth. At the midpoint, this implies 6% revenue growth year-over-year. Management expects FX to provide a $2.1M tailwind vs. Q1 2025.
Key Management Quotes
"The results this quarter are an early indication of what's possible when we align execution around the right priorities. We finished the year with clear momentum, delivering double-digit year-over-year growth and another record revenue quarter."
— Suresh Krishna, President & CEO
"We are absolutely seeing innovation-led growth in these markets, and as you know, we are the default go-to place for prototyping for innovation. We are absolutely well positioned to leverage all of these growth markets that are well-funded, long cycle innovations starting now."
— Suresh Krishna, on end-market momentum
"Europe is not a growth drag structurally, it is an execution opportunity. Our strategic reset actions in 2026 are designed to stabilize margins and reset the cost base, positioning the region for growth and profitability."
— Suresh Krishna, on Europe turnaround
"We generated $74.5 million in cash from operations in 2025, as Protolabs continues to lead the digital manufacturing industry in cash generation."
— Dan Schumacher, CFO
Full Year 2025 Highlights
Strategic Priorities for 2026
Management outlined four pillars for the year ahead:
- Elevate Customer Experience — Remove friction, increase revenue per customer
- Accelerate Innovation — Drive outsized growth through new manufacturing capabilities
- Expand Production — Customer-led approach, starting with strategic accounts
- Drive Operational Efficiency — Expand margins, capture operating leverage
The company is implementing restructuring and transformation initiatives (note the $0.7M in restructuring costs this quarter) to build a more scalable operating model.
$1 Billion Revenue Target
Management articulated a credible path to $1 billion in annual revenue over time while delivering meaningful operating margin expansion. The path to double-digit growth is driven by three levers:
- Improving conversion and retention through better customer experience and innovation
- Growing revenue per customer through production expansion
- Accelerating penetration in high-growth verticals (aerospace, defense, medical, robotics, data centers)
Key 2026 Initiatives
Balance Sheet & Capital Allocation
Protolabs maintains a fortress balance sheet with zero debt and $142M in liquidity. The company returned $43M to shareholders through buybacks in 2025 while continuing to invest in growth initiatives.
Q&A Highlights
On Q4 Strength and Q1 Seasonality (Greg Palm, Craig-Hallum)
Q: First time since 2017 with sequential Q4 growth — was there pull-forward? What does Q1 guidance imply?
A: "Through November and December, continued good order volumes driven by our engagement with customers in those key industries... As we started in January, it was a more normalized start to the year, where it's softer as people are coming back from the holidays, and we've seen order rates improve from that point." — Dan Schumacher
On Unique Developer Productivity (Troy Jensen, Cantor Fitzgerald)
Q: Unique developer contacts (UDP) were down — is this intentional?
A: "We are absolutely focused on increasing revenue per contact, and we saw acceleration in Q4 with revenue per contact up almost 23%... But our focus has been to get more share of wallet from our existing customers." — Suresh Krishna
On Injection Molding Recovery (Brian Drab, William Blair)
Q: What visibility do you have on injection molding contributing to 6-8% growth?
A: "Prototyping in injection molding is down, and it remains down, hence our pivot towards production in injection molding... Getting the ISO 13485 certification for medical industry helps us pivot to more production. We are in pilot with two medical device manufacturers right now for high precision, higher volume production parts." — Suresh Krishna
On Why Providing Full-Year Guidance (Jim Ricchiuti, Needham)
Q: You normally don't provide full-year growth targets. Why now?
A: "We just had a quarter in which we had 11% growth year-over-year, and Suresh just laid out some transformational changes that we're going through... I thought it would be helpful to share with you and the investors where we're thinking about for the full year in terms of growth." — Dan Schumacher
Risks & Considerations
- 3D Printing weakness persists — Revenue declined 4.7% YoY full year, marking continued struggles in this segment
- Europe softness — European revenue declined 7% YoY in constant currencies; management acknowledged "internal complexity that created friction for customers and employees"
- Restructuring costs — $0.7M in Q4 with more transformation spending expected in 2026
- Customer concentration risk — Higher revenue per customer cuts both ways if large accounts churn
- Network margin pressure — 31% full year, down 190 bps YoY "largely due to inefficiencies related to tariffs"
Forward Catalysts
- Q1 2026 earnings — Will the momentum continue through typical seasonal softness?
- Production expansion — Watch for announcements on strategic customer wins
- Margin recovery — Can operating leverage return as transformation investments mature?
- CNC momentum — 25% growth is exceptional; sustainability is the question
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