Michele Farmer Sells 24,349 Shares of Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. (NASDAQ:PACB) Stock

Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. (NASDAQ:PACB) insider Michele Farmer sold 24,349 shares of Pacific Biosciences of California stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $1.88, for a total transaction of $45,776.12. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 187,592 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $352,672.96. This trade represents a 11.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website.

Pacific Biosciences of California Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PACB opened at $1.64 on Friday. Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. has a 1-year low of $1.16 and a 1-year high of $6.09. The company has a current ratio of 9.74, a quick ratio of 8.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $1.77 and a 200 day moving average price of $1.79.

Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.20) earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of ($0.20). Pacific Biosciences of California had a negative net margin of 200.40% and a negative return on equity of 42.89%. The business had revenue of $39.22 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $39.20 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.27) earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. will post -0.72 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on PACB. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $2.50 price target on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California in a research note on Friday, February 14th. StockNews.com raised Pacific Biosciences of California to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price target on Pacific Biosciences of California from $1.75 to $1.50 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday. Scotiabank cut their price objective on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California from $7.00 to $6.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, November 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $2.00 target price (down previously from $2.50) on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California in a report on Thursday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Pacific Biosciences of California currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $2.79.

Institutional Trading of Pacific Biosciences of California

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. ARK Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California by 7.9% in the fourth quarter. ARK Investment Management LLC now owns 36,044,362 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $65,961,000 after acquiring an additional 2,637,961 shares in the last quarter. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. lifted its position in Pacific Biosciences of California by 5.1% in the fourth quarter. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. now owns 21,346,480 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $39,064,000 after purchasing an additional 1,038,600 shares during the period. Softbank Group CORP. purchased a new stake in Pacific Biosciences of California in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,426,000. Millennium Management LLC increased its position in Pacific Biosciences of California by 66.9% during the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 17,065,331 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $31,230,000 after purchasing an additional 6,840,953 shares during the period. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 6,327,906 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $10,759,000 after buying an additional 225,034 shares in the last quarter.

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.