Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB) Trading Down 5.1% – Should You Sell?

Shares of Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. (NASDAQ:PACB) dropped 5.1% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as low as $1.79 and last traded at $1.7850. Approximately 1,827,647 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 80% from the average daily volume of 9,124,740 shares. The stock had previously closed at $1.88.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a “sell (e+)” rating on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California from $1.80 to $2.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, November 10th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California from $1.50 to $2.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Pacific Biosciences of California from $1.50 to $2.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $2.08.

Pacific Biosciences of California Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $534.38 million, a P/E ratio of -0.80 and a beta of 2.32. The company has a current ratio of 6.24, a quick ratio of 5.40 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 17.88. The company’s 50-day moving average is $2.04 and its two-hundred day moving average is $1.60.

Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, March 29th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.23) earnings per share for the quarter. Pacific Biosciences of California had a negative net margin of 325.02% and a negative return on equity of 101.49%. The company had revenue of $3.34 million during the quarter. As a group, equities analysts predict that Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. will post -0.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Pacific Biosciences of California

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PACB. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Pacific Biosciences of California by 6.8% in the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 16,263,464 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $19,191,000 after acquiring an additional 1,036,606 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Pacific Biosciences of California by 100.6% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 524,643 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $619,000 after purchasing an additional 263,067 shares during the period. Nuveen LLC bought a new position in Pacific Biosciences of California during the first quarter worth about $319,000. Jump Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California in the first quarter worth about $25,000. Finally, Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. raised its position in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California by 2.4% in the first quarter. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. now owns 21,855,180 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $25,789,000 after purchasing an additional 508,700 shares during the period.

About Pacific Biosciences of California

Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc develops, manufactures and sells high-performance DNA sequencing systems for genetic and genomic analysis. The company’s proprietary single-molecule, real-time (SMRT) sequencing technology is designed to enable long-read sequencing, offering high accuracy for applications such as de novo genome assembly, transcriptome characterization and structural variation analysis. Pacific Biosciences markets a suite of instruments, including the Sequel and Sequel IIe systems, alongside reagents, consumables and data analysis software to support a range of life science research.

Founded in 2004 and headquartered in Menlo Park, California, Pacific Biosciences has expanded its global reach by serving academic institutions, biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies, and government research centers across North America, Europe and Asia.