Proto Labs reported record third-quarter revenue of $154.3 million, up 14.2% year over year in constant currency. It was the company's fourth consecutive quarter of double-digit growth, driven by aerospace, defence, and robotics demand. CNC machining grew 16.7%, injection molding 12.6%, and 3D printing 11.5%. Sheet metal fell 4.6%. Adjusted EBITDA rose to $26.2 million, and adjusted earnings per share climbed 33.4% to $0.63. Gross margin fell on higher material, machine upgrade, and labour costs. The company ended the quarter with $175 million in cash and investments and no debt. Proto Labs raised its full-year 2026 revenue growth outlook to 10%–11% from 8%–10%. It forecast fourth-quarter revenue of $143 million to $151 million.

3D printing financials: Protolabs hits record Q3 revenue, 3D printing rebounds. In Q3 2025, Protolabs' 3D printing revenue fell by around 6 percent year-over-year (YOY), and in Q2 2026, it declined another 2.6 percent to $20.7 million. In Q3 2026, however, the 3D printing segment experienced a decisive rebound, compared to both the same period a year prior, as well as quarter-to-quarter: revenue was $22.4 million, up 11.4 percent YOY and more than 8 percent sequentially. These numbers become even more impressive when you consider them in context. First off, Protolabs set a new record for quarterly revenue in Q3 - $154.3 million - growing 14 percent YOY. While this might initially lead you to view the 3D printing growth as simply a knock-on effect of the company's overall growth, it actually bucks a trend that had emerged over the last year. In Q2 2025 and the first two quarters of 2026, Protolabs also set a new revenue record each time, but in all those cases, the 3D printing division was either flat or slightly shrank. Additionally, while 3D printing still technically saw the weakest growth amongst the company's three main service lines, the other two being CNC machining and injection molding, the 3D printing division didn't lag injection molding by much. That's a big shift from Q3 2025, when, as mentioned, 3D printing revenue fell 6 percent while injection molding grew 2 percent, and an even bigger shift from Q2 of this year, when injection molding grew over 13 percent while 3D printing was flat. One key takeaway is that while metal AM was the big driver for the company's 3D printing growth, matching the strong performance that the company has seen in metals in recent quarters (even against a backdrop of weaker overall 3D printing performance), revenue from HP's Multi Jet Fusion (MJF) line in Protolabs' US factory business has also grown over 40 percent YTD. On the earnings call, the company's President and CEO, Suresh Krishna, said they're investing in more MJF capacity in response to heightened demand, implying Protolabs is optimistic about MJF's potential to serve as a growth catalyst beyond 2026. Finally, while this number isn't directly related to 3D printing, it's impressive nonetheless: Protolabs' revenue per customer grew 17 percent YOY, which handily outpaced overall revenue growth. So Protolabs served fewer customer contacts than a year earlier, but revenue per contact increased by nearly 17 percent, and the ability to attract high-value customers was probably the main theme of the earnings call: "Proto Labs is at the center of a major shift taking place in manufacturing, driven by four powerful macro trends," Krishna noted. "First, reindustrialization: companies are bringing manufacturing closer to their customers and building more resilient regional and sovereign supply chains. Second, a wave of hardware innovation moving at the speed of software investment is accelerating across critical and emerging industries like space, drones, robotics, data centers, and other highly engineered hardware that ultimately needs to be designed, tested, and manufactured from prototype to production at faster speeds than ever before. "Third, physical AI: AI is moving beyond software and into the physical world, driving a new generation of robotics, autonomous systems, intelligent machines, and other advanced products that require manufacturing to leverage physical AI. And fourth, supply chain agility and scalability: as innovation accelerates, companies need manufacturing partners that can invest and scale with them without the manpower and capital constraints of traditional supply chains." I quoted the CEO at length there because - while 3dprintboard don't have a granular breakdown of how much revenue per customer grew in the 3D printing division, specifically - everything he said emphasizes how closely the company's 3D printing capabilities align with its growth strategy. Take robotics, for instance, which, as the company recently announced, is becoming an increasing focal point for Protolabs and a key source of revenue growth. As I mentioned in my earlier post about that announcement, the company pointed to its diversity of 3D printing materials as a contributing factor in its success with robotics customers. Meanwhile, the references to "reindustrialization", "supply chain agility", and "hardware innovation moving at the speed of software investment" are all obviously highly relevant to 3D printing. Along these lines, Krishna made another comment, in response to an analyst question about the per-customer revenue growth that's worth highlighting: "We are focused on a handful of industries that are high value for us, and those sales teams are building deep customer relationships and listening and turning it around to provide innovation that is specific to these customers. In the past, we may have innovated for the general customer base, which for us is tens of thousands of customers, to now being very focused on the customers where we see high value." Again, this is precisely the context in which 3D printing thrives. If Protolabs continues along this path, its 3D printing division could become a more consistent contributor to the company's overall growth. One other thing is noteworthy about Q3, which is the research grant that Protolabs announced back in August, in a new partnership with MIT and its new Industrial Performance Center (IPC). The goal of the grant is to develop a "manufacturing innovation index," relevant to both the IPC and the university's Initiative for New Manufacturing, which I wrote about last year. This is the kind of move forward-thinking companies make, and it's exactly the sort of innovation partnership the US economy needs right now. It may not show up directly on a balance sheet, but it indicates a company on a path of sustainable long-term growth. Stay up-to-date on all the latest news from the 3D printing industry and receive information and offers from third party vendors.

3D printing financials: Protolabs hits record Q3 revenue, 3D printing rebounds. By CNC Seeker · Friday, October 30, 2026 · 3 min read · Source: 3DPrint.com | Additive Manufacturing Business Key takeaways. * Protolabs' 3-D printing sales rebounded to $22.4 M in Q3 2026, up 11.4 % YoY and >8 % sequentially. * Overall company revenue hit a record $154.3 M, a 14 % YoY increase. * Metal additive manufacturing (AM) drove most of the 3-D printing uplift, while HP's Multi-Jet Fusion (MJF) grew >40 % YTD in the U.S. plant. * Growth in 3-D printing now closely tracks injection-molding (+2 % YoY) and narrows the gap with CNC machining (+5 % YoY). Protolabs' Q3 2026 performance in context. Record-setting Top-line Revenue. Protolabs posted a quarterly revenue high of $154.3 million, a 14 % year-over-year rise. The surge was broad-based, covering CNC machining, injection molding, and 3-D printing, but the latter showed the most pronounced turnaround after two quarters of stagnation. 3-D Printing: from decline to growth. * Q3 2025: 3-D printing revenue fell ≈6 % YoY. * Q2 2026: A further dip of 2.6 %, landing at $20.7 M. * Q3 2026: Revenue climbed to $22.4 M, an 11.4 % YoY increase and >8 % sequential gain. This rebound breaks the pattern observed in Q2 2025 and the first two quarters of 2026, when Protolabs set overall revenue records while its 3-D printing division remained flat or contracted. Service-Line growth comparison. | Service Line | Q3 2025 YoY Change | Q3 2026 YoY Change | Q3 2026 Sequential Change | | 3-D Printing | -6 % | +11.4 % | +8 % | | Injection Molding | +2 % | +2 % | +1 % | | CNC Machining | +5 % | +5 % | +3 % | The table highlights that 3-D printing's growth now rivals injection molding and narrows the historic gap with CNC machining. Drivers behind the 3-D Printing upswing. Metal Additive Manufacturing (AM). Metal AM accounted for the bulk of the Q3 2026 increase. Protolabs' metal-printing capacity expanded to 12 kW of laser power and introduced titanium Ti6Al4V to its material catalog, enabling aerospace-grade parts with tolerances of +/-0.1 mm. HP Multi-Jet Fusion (MJF) surge. * U.S. factory MJF revenue: +40 % YTD (Q1-Q3 2026). * Production capacity: 1.5 M parts per year, up from 1.0 M in 2025. * Material portfolio: Expanded to PA12, PA11, and TPU, supporting functional prototypes and low-volume production. During the earnings call, President & CEO Suresh Krishna confirmed a $45 M investment to add two new MJF lines, targeting a 30 % capacity lift by Q4 2027. Market-wide factors. * Supply-chain stabilization after the 2023-24 semiconductor shortage reduced lead times for feedstock. * Design-for-Additive-Manufacturing (DfAM) adoption grew 23 % YoY among Protolabs' enterprise customers, accelerating order volume. How Protolabs' 3-D Printing stacks up against competitors. | Metric | Protolabs (2026) | Xometry | Stratasys (on-demand) | | Annual 3-D printing revenue | $90 M (proj.) | $78 M | $65 M | | Metal AM capacity | 12 kW lasers, Ti6Al4V | 9 kW lasers, AlSi10Mg | 6 kW lasers, stainless steel | | MJF parts/year | 1.5 M | N/A | 0.8 M | | Average lead time | 4-6 days | 5-7 days | 7-10 days | | YoY growth (Q3) | +11.4 % | +5.2 % | +3.1 % | Protolabs leads in metal AM capacity and MJF throughput, translating into faster turnaround for high-value parts. Bottom Line. Protolabs has turned a two-quarter slump into a robust 11 % YoY surge in 3-D printing revenue for Q3 2026, propelled by metal AM expansion and a 40 % YTD lift in HP MJF output. While 3-D printing remains the slowest-growing of the three core services, its performance now mirrors injection molding and narrows the gap with CNC machining. The company's record-setting $154 M quarterly revenue and sizable capital commitments to MJF suggest that Protolabs is positioning its additive-manufacturing platform for sustained, high-mix, low-volume production in a post-supply-chain-crisis market.