Sifting through countless of stocks in the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in Photronics, Inc. or Silicon Laboratories Inc. because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how Photronics, Inc. and Silicon Laboratories Inc. compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About Photronics, Inc. and Silicon Laboratories Inc.

Photronics, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of photomask products and services in the United States, Taiwan, China, Korea, Europe, and internationally. It offers photomasks that are used in the manufacture of integrated circuits and flat panel displays (FPDs); and to transfer circuit patterns onto semiconductor wafers, and FDP substrates. The company offers electrical and optical components. It sells its products to semiconductor and FPD designers, manufacturers, and foundries, as well as to other high-performance electronics manufacturers through its sales personnel and customer service representatives. The company was formerly known as Photronic Labs, Inc. and changed its name to Photronics, Inc. in 1990. Photronics, Inc. was incorporated in 1969 and is based in Brookfield, Connecticut.

Silicon Laboratories Inc., a fabless semiconductor company, provides analog-intensive mixed-signal solutions in the United States, China, Taiwan, and internationally. The company’s products include wireless microcontrollers and sensor products. Its products are used in various electronic products in a range of applications for the industrial Internet of Things (IoT), including connected home and security, industrial automation and control, smart metering and agriculture, smart street lighting, renewable energy, electric vehicle supply equipment, industrial wearables and equipment, commercial building automation, consumer electronics, asset tracking, and medical instrumentation; and commercial IoT applications, including smart buildings and lighting, access controls, asset tracking, electronic shelf labels, theft protection, power tools, and enterprise access points. The company’s smart home applications comprise smart home cameras, locks, gateways, residential lighting, window shades/blinds, heating, ventilation, air conditioning, switches, smoke/CO detectors, and sensors, as well as home security panels; and connected health applications include diabetes management, consumer health and fitness, elderly care, patient monitoring, and activity tracking. It sells its products through its direct sales force, as well as a network of independent sales representatives and distributors. The company was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Austin, Texas.

Latest Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment and Photronics, Inc., Silicon Laboratories Inc. Stock News

As of December 10, 2025, Photronics, Inc. had a $2.2 billion market capitalization, compared to the Semiconductors & Semiconductor Equipment median of $2.8 million. Photronics, Inc.’s stock is up 66.5% in 2025, up 63.3% in the previous five trading days and up 5.89% in the past year.

Currently, Photronics, Inc.’s price-earnings ratio is 14.5. Photronics, Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $856.2 million with a 16.1% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was -0.3%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $1.870 per share for the current fiscal year. Photronics, Inc. does not currently pay a dividend.

As of December 10, 2025, Silicon Laboratories Inc. had a $4.8 billion market cap, putting it in the 68th percentile of all stocks. Silicon Laboratories Inc.’s stock is up 16.5% in 2025, up 4.3% in the previous five trading days and up 25.35% in the past year.

Currently, Silicon Laboratories Inc. does not have a price-earnings ratio. Silicon Laboratories Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $742.8 million with a -11.6% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 23.8%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $0.906 per share for the current fiscal year. Silicon Laboratories Inc. does not currently pay a dividend.

How We Compare Photronics, Inc. and Silicon Laboratories Inc. Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at Photronics, Inc. and Silicon Laboratories Inc.’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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Photronics, Inc. and Silicon Laboratories Inc. Growth Grades

Company	Ticker	Growth
Photronics, Inc.	PLAB	A
Silicon Laboratories Inc.	SLAB	C

The foundation of growth investing is seeking out stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth that is expected to continue into the future.

In order to compute the growth score and assign it a letter grade, the percentile ranks for each of three components‐consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations‐must be determined. These three rank figures are added together, and the sum is ranked against the entire stock universe to arrive at a company’s Growth Score to create an equal distribution of grades.

The companies in the bottom 20% of the stock universe receive Growth Grades of F, considered to be very weak, while those in the top 20% receive A grades, which are considered very strong.

Photronics, Inc. has a Growth Score of 87, which is Very Strong. Silicon Laboratories Inc. has a Growth Score of 42, which is Average.

The Growth Grade Winner: Photronics, Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Growth Grade breakdown above, Photronics, Inc. has a more attractive growth grade than Silicon Laboratories Inc.. For investors who focus solely on how a company is growing relative to other companies in the same industry, Photronics, Inc. could be a good stock to add to their portfolio. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Photronics, Inc. and Silicon Laboratories Inc.’s Quality Grades

Company	Ticker	Quality
Photronics, Inc.	PLAB	A
Silicon Laboratories Inc.	SLAB	B

Like the Value Grade, AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the percentile rank of key metrics. Specifically, the Quality Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and the F-Score.

The score is variable, meaning it can consider all eight measures or, should any of the eight measures not be valid, the remaining measures that are valid. To be assigned a Quality Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) measure and corresponding ranking for at least four of the eight quality measures.

The Quality Score is used to assess the underlying “quality” of a particular stock. A higher-quality stock possesses traits associated with upside potential and reduced downside risk. Backtesting of the Quality Grade shows that stocks with higher grades, on average, outperformed stocks with lower grades over the period of 1998 through 2019.

Stocks receive better grades (higher scores) for having higher scores for the quality subcomponents and worse grades (lower scores) for lower scores for the subcomponents.

Photronics, Inc. has a Quality Score of 88, which is Very Strong. Silicon Laboratories Inc. has a Quality Score of 75, which is Strong.

The Quality Grade Winner: Photronics, Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Quality Grade breakdown above, Photronics, Inc. has a better overall quality grade than Silicon Laboratories Inc.. For investors who are looking for companies with higher quality than others in the same industry, Photronics, Inc. could be a good stock to add to their portfolios. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Photronics, Inc. and Silicon Laboratories Inc.’s Estimate Revisions Grades

Company	Ticker	Earnings Estimate
Photronics, Inc.	PLAB	C
Silicon Laboratories Inc.	SLAB	B

Earnings estimate revisions scores consider the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, positive surprises beget further positive surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

Estimate revisions offer an indication of what analysts are thinking about the short-term prospects of a firm. Estimate revisions are based on the statistical significance of a firm’s last two quarterly earnings surprises and the percentage change in its consensus estimate for the current fiscal year over the past month and past three months.

Photronics, Inc. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 56, which is Neutral. Silicon Laboratories Inc. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 62, which is Positive.

The Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade Winner: Silicon Laboratories Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade breakdown above, Silicon Laboratories Inc. has a better Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade than Photronics, Inc.. For those who are specifically looking for companies with better short-term prospects when compared to other companies in the same industry, Silicon Laboratories Inc. could be a good stock to invest in. However, it’s important to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Other Photronics, Inc. and Silicon Laboratories Inc. Grades

In addition to Estimate Revisions, Quality and Growth, A+ Investor also provides grades for Value and Momentum.

Momentum grades help uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming.

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection. Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether Photronics, Inc. and Silicon Laboratories Inc. pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, Photronics, Inc. or Silicon Laboratories Inc. Stock?

Overall, Photronics, Inc. stock has a Growth Score of 87, Estimate Revisions Score of 56 and Quality Score of 88.

Silicon Laboratories Inc. stock has a Growth Score of 42, Estimate Revisions Score of 62 and Quality Score of 75.

Comparing Photronics, Inc. and Silicon Laboratories Inc.’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.