Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB) Sets New 1-Year Low at $3.15

Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. (NASDAQ:PACB - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week low on Friday . The stock traded as low as $3.15 and last traded at $3.16, with a volume of 3951001 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $3.38.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on PACB. 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. Stephens began 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 price objective on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price objective on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California from $9.00 to $7.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group decreased their price objective 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. Finally, 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 report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $9.78.

Pacific Biosciences of California Stock Performance

The business's fifty day moving average price is $4.63 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $6.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27, a quick ratio of 7.21 and a current ratio of 7.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $849.40 million, a P/E ratio of -2.62 and a beta of 1.83.

Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB - Get Free Report) last posted its 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 net margin of 152.97% and a negative return on equity of 40.23%. The firm had revenue of $58.36 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $57.96 million. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.35) EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 113.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. will post -1.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Pacific Biosciences of California

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pacific Biosciences of California

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in PACB. Green Alpha Advisors LLC boosted its position in Pacific Biosciences of California by 20.5% in the 1st quarter. Green Alpha Advisors LLC now owns 49,947 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $187,000 after buying an additional 8,512 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Pacific Biosciences of California by 15.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 26,789,552 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $262,806,000 after buying an additional 3,514,792 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Pacific Biosciences of California in the 4th quarter valued at about $177,000. Exome Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Pacific Biosciences of California in the 4th quarter valued at about $739,000. Finally, Faithward Advisors LLC boosted its position in Pacific Biosciences of California by 30.4% in the 4th quarter. Faithward Advisors LLC now owns 30,000 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $294,000 after buying an additional 7,000 shares during the period.

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.