Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB) Shares Gap Up to $1.76

Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. (NASDAQ:PACB) shares gapped up prior to trading on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $1.76, but opened at $1.87. Pacific Biosciences of California shares last traded at $1.90, with a volume of 3,423,121 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PACB has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California from $8.00 to $3.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered Pacific Biosciences of California from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $7.00 to $2.50 in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded Pacific Biosciences of California from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 22nd. TD Cowen decreased their target price on Pacific Biosciences of California from $12.00 to $2.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, Scotiabank cut their price target on Pacific Biosciences of California from $15.00 to $8.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Pacific Biosciences of California has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $7.77.

Pacific Biosciences of California Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $498.38 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.51 and a beta of 1.99. 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’s fifty day moving average is $3.31 and its two-hundred day moving average is $6.14.

Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.27) earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 company had revenue of $58.36 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $57.96 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted ($0.35) EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 113.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. will post -1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director David W. Meline acquired 40,000 shares of Pacific Biosciences of California stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $4.40 per share, with a total value of $176,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 40,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $176,000. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, insider Oene Mark Van sold 33,560 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.96, for a total value of $200,017.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 876,611 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,224,601.56. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director David W. Meline acquired 40,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 6th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $4.40 per share, for a total transaction of $176,000.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 40,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $176,000. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 37,359 shares of company stock worth $218,843. Insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Interchange Capital Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California by 11.9% during the fourth quarter. Interchange Capital Partners LLC now owns 18,709 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $184,000 after purchasing an additional 1,991 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its stake in Pacific Biosciences of California by 11.4% in the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 19,740 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $165,000 after buying an additional 2,027 shares in the last quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets boosted its holdings in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 582,974 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $5,719,000 after buying an additional 2,832 shares during the period. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California by 18.4% in the third quarter. China Universal Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 20,227 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $169,000 after buying an additional 3,149 shares during the period. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank increased its position in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California by 6.1% during the third quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 58,886 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $492,000 after acquiring an additional 3,391 shares in the last quarter.

About Pacific Biosciences of California

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.