Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. (NASDAQ:PACB) Sees Significant Decline in Short Interest

Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. (NASDAQ:PACB - Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest during the month of March. As of March 15th, there was short interest totalling 53,410,000 shares, a decline of 13.8% from the February 28th total of 61,980,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 10,840,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 4.9 days. Currently, 20.0% of the company's stock are sold short.

Insider Activity at Pacific Biosciences of California

In related news, insider Michele Farmer sold 24,349 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 represents a 11.49 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Oene Mark Van sold 34,405 shares of Pacific Biosciences of California stock in a transaction on Friday, January 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $2.03, for a total transaction of $69,842.15. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 1,597,454 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,242,831.62. This represents a 2.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 2.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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Institutional Trading of Pacific Biosciences of California

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California during the 3rd quarter valued at about $190,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California by 4.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,040,303 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $3,469,000 after purchasing an additional 82,807 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in shares of Pacific Biosciences of California by 641.3% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 408,151 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $694,000 after purchasing an additional 353,092 shares during the last quarter. Paloma Partners Management Co bought a new stake in Pacific Biosciences of California in the third quarter worth $63,000. Finally, Atom Investors LP bought a new position in Pacific Biosciences of California during the third quarter valued at about $30,000.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PACB has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Pacific Biosciences of California from $1.75 to $1.50 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 18th. Piper Sandler reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $2.00 price objective (down from $2.50) on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. Scotiabank reduced their target price on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California from $6.00 to $2.00 and set a "sector outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $2.50 price target on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California in a report on Friday, February 14th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Pacific Biosciences of California to a "sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $2.46.

Pacific Biosciences of California Stock Up 7.3 %

Shares of Pacific Biosciences of California stock traded up $0.09 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $1.32. The company's stock had a trading volume of 11,803,133 shares, compared to its average volume of 10,198,780. The firm has a market capitalization of $393.16 million, a P/E ratio of -0.80 and a beta of 2.04. Pacific Biosciences of California has a 1-year low of $1.08 and a 1-year high of $3.70. The company has a quick ratio of 8.64, a current ratio of 9.74 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.97. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $1.42 and a 200-day simple moving average of $1.74.

Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 13th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.20) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.20). The business had revenue of $39.22 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $39.20 million. Pacific Biosciences of California had a negative net margin of 200.40% and a negative return on equity of 42.89%. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned ($0.27) earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Pacific Biosciences of California will post -0.72 earnings per share for the current year.

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.