Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB) Price Target Raised to $1.50

Key Points

• Barclays raised its price target on Pacific Biosciences of California to $1.50 from $1.00, while keeping an underweight rating on the stock. The new target implies about 8.3% upside from the current share price.
• Analyst sentiment remains weak overall, with the stock carrying a consensus rating of Reduce and a consensus price target of $1.83. Recent moves also included downgrades and sell ratings from other firms.
• PACB reported quarterly EPS of -$0.12, beating expectations, but revenue of $37.18 million came in below estimates. The stock was trading around $1.39, well below its 52-week high of $2.73.

Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB - Get Free Report) had its target price hoisted by Barclays from $1.00 to $1.50 in a research note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an "underweight" rating on the biotechnology company's stock. Barclays's price target would suggest a potential upside of 8.30% from the company's current price.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on PACB. Zacks Research cut shares of Pacific Biosciences of California from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (e+)" rating on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and two have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $1.83.

Pacific Biosciences of California Price Performance

NASDAQ PACB traded down $0.03 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $1.39. The company had a trading volume of 954,320 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,716,285. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $1.48 and a 200-day moving average price of $1.83. The company has a market capitalization of $430.03 million, a PE ratio of -3.22 and a beta of 2.40. The company has a current ratio of 5.15, a quick ratio of 4.47 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 120.65. Pacific Biosciences of California has a twelve month low of $0.85 and a twelve month high of $2.73.

Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.12) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.17) by $0.05. Pacific Biosciences of California had a negative return on equity of 438.14% and a negative net margin of 80.35%.The company had revenue of $37.18 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $39.94 million. As a group, analysts anticipate that Pacific Biosciences of California will post -0.54 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Pacific Biosciences of California

In other news, insider Christian O. Henry sold 140,874 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.63, for a total value of $229,624.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 2,673,500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,357,805. This represents a 5.01% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Oene Mark Van sold 55,107 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction 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 sale, the insider directly owned 1,742,638 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,840,499.94. This trade represents a 3.07% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 729,711 shares of company stock worth $1,161,951 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 2.40% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Pacific Biosciences of California

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PACB. Zacks Investment Management acquired a new position in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California in the third quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd boosted its position in Pacific Biosciences of California by 891.1% during the 3rd quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd now owns 22,776 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 20,478 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. bought a new stake in Pacific Biosciences of California during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Outlook Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Pacific Biosciences of California during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Cibc World Markets Corp acquired a new position in Pacific Biosciences of California in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000.

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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