Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. (NASDAQ:PACB)

Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. (NASDAQ:PACB) by 64.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 20,782 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,168 shares during the quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Pacific Biosciences of California were worth $204,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in Pacific Biosciences of California by 37.5% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 149,131 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,255,000 after buying an additional 40,667 shares during the period. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd boosted its stake in Pacific Biosciences of California by 452.8% during the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 330,331 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $2,758,000 after buying an additional 270,573 shares during the period. TD Asset Management Inc boosted its stake in Pacific Biosciences of California by 68.0% during the third quarter. TD Asset Management Inc now owns 704,700 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $5,884,000 after buying an additional 285,343 shares during the period. Jump Financial LLC boosted its stake in Pacific Biosciences of California by 227.6% during the third quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 395,203 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $3,300,000 after buying an additional 274,582 shares during the period. Finally, State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D boosted its stake in Pacific Biosciences of California by 15.2% during the third quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 222,871 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $1,861,000 after buying an additional 29,347 shares during the period.

Insider Activity at Pacific Biosciences of California

In related news, insider Oene Mark Van sold 33,560 shares of Pacific Biosciences of California stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $5.96, for a total value of $200,017.60. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 876,611 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,224,601.56. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Pacific Biosciences of California news, insider Oene Mark Van sold 33,560 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $5.96, for a total value of $200,017.60. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 876,611 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,224,601.56. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director David W. Meline bought 40,000 shares of Pacific Biosciences of California stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 6th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $4.40 per share, with a total value of $176,000.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 40,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $176,000. The disclosure for this purchase 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 1.40% of the company’s stock.

Pacific Biosciences of California Stock Performance

Shares of PACB opened at $1.36 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 7.81, a quick ratio of 7.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.27. The firm has a market cap of $364.41 million, a PE ratio of -1.12 and a beta of 1.83. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $3.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $6.46. Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. has a 12-month low of $1.25 and a 12-month high of $14.55.

Pacific Biosciences of California (NASDAQ:PACB) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 15th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.27) earnings per share (EPS) 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 business had revenue of $58.36 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $57.96 million. During the same period last year, the firm posted ($0.35) earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 113.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Pacific Biosciences of California, Inc. will post -1.01 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on PACB. UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California from $12.50 to $12.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, February 16th. 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 research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Scotiabank reduced their price target on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California from $15.00 to $8.00 and set a “sector outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of Pacific Biosciences of California from $12.00 to $2.50 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of Pacific Biosciences of California from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Pacific Biosciences of California currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $7.77.

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.