Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB) Hits New 12-Month Low at $3.46

Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. (NASDAQ:PACB)’s stock price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $3.46 and last traded at $3.49, with a volume of 3143159 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $3.61.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Pacific Biosciences of California in a research report on Wednesday, December 13th. They set a “peer perform” rating on the stock. Stephens started coverage on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California in a research report on Thursday, December 14th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $11.00 target price for the company. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California from $12.50 to $12.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 16th. Guggenheim began coverage on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California in a research note on Thursday, December 14th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Pacific Biosciences of California to a “sell” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $11.90.

Pacific Biosciences of California Stock Up 0.8 %

The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $5.45 and its 200-day moving average price is $7.36. The company has a quick ratio of 7.21, a current ratio of 7.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27. The company has a market capitalization of $1.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.11 and a beta of 1.87.

Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.27) earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.29) by $0.02. Pacific Biosciences of California had a negative return on equity of 40.23% and a negative net margin of 152.97%. The firm had revenue of $58.36 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $57.96 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned ($0.35) earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 113.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. will post -1.01 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Oene Mark Van sold 31,012 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $7.77, for a total transaction of $240,963.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 910,171 shares in the company, valued at $7,072,028.67. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, insider Oene Mark Van sold 31,012 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $7.77, for a total value of $240,963.24. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 910,171 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,072,028.67. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director David W. Meline bought 40,000 shares of Pacific Biosciences of California stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was bought at an average price of $4.40 per share, for a total transaction of $176,000.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 40,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $176,000. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 68,371 shares of company stock worth $459,806. Insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pacific Biosciences of California

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. increased its stake in Pacific Biosciences of California by 4.7% in the second quarter. Ameritas Investment Partners Inc. now owns 20,816 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $277,000 after purchasing an additional 925 shares in the last quarter. Ambassador Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Pacific Biosciences of California by 5.6% in the second quarter. Ambassador Advisors LLC now owns 19,000 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $219,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. Amalgamated Bank grew its stake in Pacific Biosciences of California by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Amalgamated Bank now owns 29,945 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $245,000 after acquiring an additional 1,057 shares during the period. Prudential Financial Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California by 6.6% during the first quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 17,212 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $77,000 after acquiring an additional 1,060 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California by 5.3% during the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 24,606 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $285,000 after purchasing an additional 1,238 shares during the period.

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.