Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB) Reaches New 1-Year Low at $3.46

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Pacific Biosciences of California Price Performance

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 cap of $1.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -3.11 and a beta of 1.87. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $5.45 and its 200 day simple moving average is $7.36.

Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.27) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.29) by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $58.36 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $57.96 million. Pacific Biosciences of California had a negative net margin of 152.97% and a negative return on equity of 40.23%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 113.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned ($0.35) EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. will post -1.01 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Pacific Biosciences of California

In other news, Director David W. Meline bought 40,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $4.40 per share, with a total value of $176,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 40,000 shares in the company, valued at $176,000. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Pacific Biosciences of California news, Director David W. Meline bought 40,000 shares of Pacific Biosciences of California stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $4.40 per share, for a total transaction of $176,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 40,000 shares in the company, valued at $176,000. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Oene Mark Van sold 31,012 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,072,028.67. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 68,371 shares of company stock worth $459,806 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pacific Biosciences of California

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Fairfield Bush & CO. acquired a new position in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its holdings in Pacific Biosciences of California by 217.2% in the second quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 6,163 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 4,220 shares in the last quarter. Comerica Bank purchased a new position in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California in the 3rd quarter valued at $46,000. KBC Group NV acquired a new stake in Pacific Biosciences of California during the 4th quarter worth $53,000. Finally, Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Pacific Biosciences of California during the 3rd quarter worth $59,000.

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.