Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB) Shares Gap Up to $1.87

Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. (NASDAQ:PACB)’s share price gapped up before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $1.87, but opened at $1.91. Pacific Biosciences of California shares last traded at $1.86, with a volume of 766,366 shares traded.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PACB has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. StockNews.com upgraded Pacific Biosciences of California to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 13th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Pacific Biosciences of California from $4.00 to $2.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 12th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Pacific Biosciences of California in a research report on Monday, June 3rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $4.00 price objective for the company. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $3.50 price objective on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their price objective on Pacific Biosciences of California from $3.50 to $3.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $4.50.

Pacific Biosciences of California Stock Up 5.7 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $555.96 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of -1.79 and a beta of 2.03. The company has a current ratio of 8.01, a quick ratio of 7.14 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $1.67 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $2.13.

Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.20) earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.24) by $0.04. The business had revenue of $36.01 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $40.52 million. Pacific Biosciences of California had a negative return on equity of 40.98% and a negative net margin of 211.99%. On average, equities analysts expect that Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. will post -0.95 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Oene Mark Van sold 38,011 shares of Pacific Biosciences of California stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.66, for a total value of $63,098.26. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,630,815 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,707,152.90. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, insider Oene Mark Van sold 38,011 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.66, for a total transaction of $63,098.26. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,630,815 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,707,152.90. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jeff Eidel sold 26,760 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.59, for a total value of $42,548.40. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 869,730 shares in the company, valued at $1,382,870.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 1.90% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Pacific Biosciences of California

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in Pacific Biosciences of California during the 1st quarter worth approximately $32,000. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S bought a new stake in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Quest Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $168,000. Kennedy Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Pacific Biosciences of California during the 1st quarter worth $64,000. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in Pacific Biosciences of California during the 4th quarter worth $177,000.

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.