UPDATE: Jefferies Initiates Coverage on ExOne as Best Early Play on Mass Manufacturing Ramp

In a report published Wednesday, Jefferies analyst Peter Misek initiated coverage on ExOne Co. (NASDAQ: XONE) with a Buy rating and $72.00 price target.

In the report, Jefferies noted, “ExOne is well positioned for the near-term mass manufacturing opportunity in aerospace followed by the auto mass manufacturing opportunity. Making direct parts (or castings for casts as the casting is destroyed in the process) is the big long-term opportunity for 3D printing. Wohlers notes that the ratio of prototypes to production parts is often 1:1000 or much greater. While 3D printers will need further productivity gains to penetrate mass manufacturing, the TAM is orders of magnitude higher. ExOne and voxeljet are the two pure plays on powder bed binder printers (3D Systems also is a major player in the space is mainly in the low-end and mid-range vs. >$1M ASPs for ExOne and voxeljet). Powder bed binder printers have the advantages of speed, large build bed, and the ability to work with metal.”

ExOne Co. closed on Tuesday at $55.67.