DDD vs PRLB Stock Comparison

3D Systems and Proto Labs Prices as of Oct 23, 2026 Peers: Industry group
DDD 3D Systems Corp
$3.04 -13.6% 1M -1.3% 1Y
Market cap
$440.95M
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$387.64M
Div. yield
–
3D Printing Industrials
PRLB Proto Labs Inc
$85.54 -4.2% 1M +54.8% 1Y
Market cap
$2.07B
P/E
67.8x
Revenue (TTM)
$560.54M
Div. yield
–
3D Printing Industrials
7 wins

Head to Head

7 decided of 12

Proto Labs leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Proto Labs 7). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionDDDPRLBLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $440.95M $2.07B PRLB
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only -8.0x 67.8x –
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS — 37.4x –
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months -6.2% +10.2% PRLB
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months -14.2% 5.4% PRLB
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital -17.8% — –
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.0x — –
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -1.3% +54.8% PRLB
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -35.3%/yr +3.7%/yr PRLB
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 84.0% 46.8% PRLB
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 32/100 59/100 PRLB

Percentile Scorecard

DDDPRLB

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisDDDPRLB
Valuation 16 #170 of 203 34 #135 of 203
Growth 59 #77 of 188 83 #32 of 188
Profitability 11 #166 of 187 52 #91 of 187
Financial Health 65 #79 of 222 96 #11 of 222
Shareholder Returns 6 #144 of 153 32 #104 of 153
Overall 32 59
  • DDD ranked among 222 companies in Machinery
  • PRLB ranked among 222 companies in Machinery

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodDDDPRLBSPY
1 month -13.6%-4.2% -1.0%
3 months +17.8%+9.2% +2.9%
6 months +34.5%+32.4% +6.4%
Year to date +71.8%+69.1% +11.4%
1 year -1.3%+54.8% +13.1%
3 years -31.1%+251.1% +79.4%
3 years, per year -11.7%+52.0% +21.5%
5 years -88.6%+19.7% +67.7%
5 years, per year -35.3%+3.7% +10.9%
10 years -77.9%+59.8% +255.2%
10 years, per year -14.0%+4.8% +13.5%

Risk

MeasureDDDPRLBSPY
Volatility, 1Y 84.0%46.8% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 75.3%38.7% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 2.802.03 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.021.17 1.03
Max drawdown, 5Y -96.0%-71.4% -25.4%
From 52-week high -21.6%-13.3% -2.5%
52-week high $3.88$98.64 $779.14
52-week low $1.77$46.81 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleDDDPRLB
P/E now vs peer median -8.3xmedian 25.9x 67.3xmedian 25.9x
P/S now vs peer median 1.3xmedian 1.9x 3.7xmedian 1.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median -12.1xmedian 13.7x 27.4xmedian 13.7x
P/FCF now vs peer median -9.6xmedian 21.1x 36.1xmedian 21.1x
P/B now vs peer median 1.8xmedian 2.3x 3.0xmedian 2.3x
PEG now vs peer median -0.31median 1.19 2.10median 1.19

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsDDDPRLB
Revenue $387.64M $560.54M
Gross profit $131.01M $254.60M
Operating income -$61.26M $36.81M
Net income -$54.85M $30.48M
Free cash flow -$52.40M $56.66M
R&D $47.60M $42.36M
EPS (diluted) $-0.37 $1.25
Cash & equivalents $127.95M $127.92M
Total debt $91.18M –
Shares (diluted) 148.97M 24.42M
Enterprise value $36.73M $1.54B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricDDDPRLB
P/E -8.3x 67.3x
P/FCF -9.6x 36.1x
P/Operating cash flow -11.9x 26.1x
P/S 1.3x 3.7x
P/B 1.8x 3.0x
P/Tangible book 2.0x 3.0x
EV/EBITDA -12.1x 27.4x
EV/EBIT -7.6x 51.7x
EV/Revenue 1.2x 3.4x
EV/FCF -8.9x 33.6x
EV/Operating cash flow -11.1x 24.2x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -0.31 2.10

Growth

14 metrics
MetricDDDPRLB
Revenue growth (1Y) -6.2% 10.2%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -9.0% 4.9%
Gross profit growth (1Y) -9.6% 13.3%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -13.8% 6.8%
Operating income growth (1Y) 76.7% 121.9%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 21.6% 33.2%
Net income growth (1Y) 62.1% 105.8%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 23.3% 31.6%
EPS growth (1Y) 53.6% 103.1%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 26.7% 32.0%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 38.0% 10.6%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 18.5% 7.7%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 36.8% -14.0%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 20.0% 11.9%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricDDDPRLB
Gross margin 33.8% 45.4%
EBITDA margin -10.0% 12.4%
Operating margin -15.8% 6.6%
Pretax margin -11.7% 7.6%
Net margin -14.2% 5.4%
FCF margin -13.5% 10.1%
Operating cash flow margin -10.9% 14.0%
Return on equity -21.7% 4.4%
Return on assets -10.5% 3.9%
Return on invested capital -17.8% –
Return on capital employed -14.7% 5.2%
Asset turnover 0.7x 0.7x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 0.8x 2.6x
Stock comp / revenue 3.5% 2.6%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricDDDPRLB
Debt / assets 17.0% –
Debt / equity 0.3x –
Net debt / EBITDA 1.0x –
Debt / FCF -1.7x –
Liabilities / assets 48.9% 12.6%
Equity / assets 51.1% 87.4%
Interest coverage – –
Current ratio 3.4x 3.6x
Quick ratio 1.9x 3.2x
Cash ratio 1.2x 2.0x
Altman Z-score -1.45 13.94

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricDDDPRLB
Dividend yield – –
Net buyback yield -10.5% 0.6%
Shareholder yield -10.5% 0.6%
Payout ratio (earnings) – –
Payout ratio (FCF) – –
Dividend growth (1Y) – –
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – –

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusDDDPRLB
Forward P/E – 37.4xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $-0.14FY2026 $2.29FY2026
EPS growth, next FY – +38.0%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after – +9.6%
Revenue, next fiscal year $368.77MFY2026 $612.12MFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY -4.7%FY2026 +14.8%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +7.8% +4.8%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersDDDPRLB
Held by institutions 71.1% 93.7%
Institutions holding 210 276
Change in shares held, QoQ +34.8% +1.7%
Institutions buying 126 145
Institutions selling 37 89
Buyers to sellers 3.41 1.63

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

DDDPRLB
DDD 1.00 0.47
PRLB 0.47 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, DDD and PRLB?

Proto Labs (PRLB) is the largest by market capitalisation: 3D Systems (DDD) $440.95M, Proto Labs (PRLB) $2.07B.

Which company is growing faster?

Proto Labs (PRLB) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: 3D Systems (DDD) -6.2%, Proto Labs (PRLB) +10.2%.

Which company is more profitable?

Proto Labs (PRLB) has the highest net margin (3D Systems (DDD) -14.2%, Proto Labs (PRLB) 5.4%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Proto Labs (PRLB) returned the most: 3D Systems (DDD) -1.3%, Proto Labs (PRLB) +54.8%. Over five years, Proto Labs (PRLB) compounded fastest (3D Systems (DDD) -35.3%/yr, Proto Labs (PRLB) +3.7%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Proto Labs (PRLB) has been the steadiest (3D Systems (DDD) 84.0%, Proto Labs (PRLB) 46.8%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Do DDD and PRLB move together?

Their daily returns over the past year have a correlation of 0.47, a moderate positive relationship. Holding both diversifies more than two closely linked stocks would.

Which is the better stock, DDD and PRLB?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Proto Labs (PRLB) leads on 7. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.