Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB) Trading Down 2.3%

Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. (NASDAQ:PACB)’s stock price dropped 2.3% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $1.88 and last traded at $1.90. Approximately 1,843,193 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 82% from the average daily volume of 10,185,592 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1.94.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Pacific Biosciences of California to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein lowered their price target on Pacific Biosciences of California from $9.00 to $2.50 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Barclays decreased their price target on Pacific Biosciences of California from $3.00 to $2.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, May 10th. UBS Group cut their target price on Pacific Biosciences of California from $12.50 to $12.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California from $10.00 to $4.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $6.59.

Pacific Biosciences of California Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 8.36 and a current ratio of 9.28. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $2.53 and a 200-day moving average price of $5.64.

Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 9th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.26) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of ($0.26). Pacific Biosciences of California had a negative net margin of 148.13% and a negative return on equity of 40.26%. The company had revenue of $38.81 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $38.78 million. On average, equities analysts expect that Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. will post -0.91 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director David W. Meline bought 40,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were bought at an average price of $4.40 per share, for a total transaction of $176,000.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 40,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $176,000. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 1.90% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pacific Biosciences of California

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its position in Pacific Biosciences of California by 67.8% during the 4th quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,094,724 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $10,739,000 after purchasing an additional 442,250 shares during the last quarter. Moody Aldrich Partners LLC purchased a new position in Pacific Biosciences of California in the 4th quarter worth $4,103,000. ARK Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Pacific Biosciences of California by 15.7% during the 4th quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC now owns 34,504,273 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $338,487,000 after acquiring an additional 4,681,833 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in Pacific Biosciences of California by 37.5% during the 3rd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 149,131 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,255,000 after purchasing an additional 40,667 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its stake in Pacific Biosciences of California by 452.8% during the 3rd quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 330,331 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $2,758,000 after purchasing an additional 270,573 shares during the last quarter.

Pacific Biosciences of California Company Profile

Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc designs, develops, and manufactures sequencing solution to resolve genetically complex problems. The company provides sequencing systems; consumable products, including single molecule real-time (SMRT) technology; long-red sequencing; and various reagent kits designed for specific workflow, such as preparation kit to convert DNA into SMRTbell double-stranded DNA library formats, including molecular biology reagents, such as ligase, buffers, and exonucleases.