Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Lowers Position in Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. $PACB

Key Points

• Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group trimmed its PACB stake by 10% in Q4, selling 868,978 shares and now holding 7,808,580 shares (about 2.59%) valued at $14.6 million per its SEC filing.
• Significant insider selling has occurred recently — insiders sold 729,711 shares (~$1.16M) in the last 90 days and insider ownership is only 2.50%, which may concern investors about insider sentiment.
• Analyst views are mixed: PACB's consensus rating is "Hold" with an average target of $1.67, while reports range from Zacks upgrading to a "strong-buy" to Barclays lowering its target to $1.00 and keeping an "underweight" rating.

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. cut its position in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. (NASDAQ:PACB - Free Report) by 10.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,808,580 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 868,978 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. owned about 2.59% of Pacific Biosciences of California worth $14,602,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. SteelPeak Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Pacific Biosciences of California by 172.0% in the fourth quarter. SteelPeak Wealth LLC now owns 81,422 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $152,000 after purchasing an additional 51,492 shares in the last quarter. Mirador Capital Partners LP boosted its holdings in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Mirador Capital Partners LP now owns 591,005 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,105,000 after buying an additional 9,612 shares in the last quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California by 42.6% during the 4th quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 100,751 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $188,000 after buying an additional 30,078 shares in the last quarter. Green Alpha Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California by 5.4% in the 4th quarter. Green Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 183,466 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $343,000 after buying an additional 9,441 shares during the period. Finally, CIBC Bancorp USA Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California in the 3rd quarter worth about $38,000.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Pacific Biosciences of California from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California from $1.50 to $1.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "sell (e+)" rating on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating, one has given a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Pacific Biosciences of California currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $1.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Pacific Biosciences of California

In other news, insider Oene Mark Van sold 55,107 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.63, for a total value of $89,824.41. Following the transaction, the insider owned 1,742,638 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,840,499.94. This represents a 3.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Christian O. Henry sold 140,874 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $1.63, for a total transaction of $229,624.62. Following the sale, the insider owned 2,673,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,357,805. The trade was a 5.01% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 729,711 shares of company stock worth $1,161,951. 2.50% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Pacific Biosciences of California Trading Up 3.7%

NASDAQ PACB opened at $1.69 on Friday. Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. has a 12 month low of $0.85 and a 12 month high of $2.73. The company has a current ratio of 5.15, a quick ratio of 4.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 120.65. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $1.50 and its 200-day moving average price is $1.82. The stock has a market cap of $510.38 million, a P/E ratio of -0.92 and a beta of 2.33.

Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 12th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.12) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.19) by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $44.65 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $44.60 million. Pacific Biosciences of California had a negative return on equity of 326.43% and a negative net margin of 341.47%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. will post -0.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.

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