BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. Raises Holdings in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL)

BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. raised its stake in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL) by 4.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,079,048 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after purchasing an additional 47,108 shares during the period. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A.’s holdings in Vericel were worth $45,590,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Moran Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Vericel by 42.4% in the third quarter. Moran Wealth Management LLC now owns 10,755 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $454,000 after acquiring an additional 3,204 shares in the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in Vericel by 4.0% during the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 16,890 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $714,000 after acquiring an additional 644 shares in the last quarter. Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. increased its position in shares of Vericel by 60.2% in the 3rd quarter. Global Alpha Capital Management Ltd. now owns 23,383 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $988,000 after purchasing an additional 8,791 shares during the last quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC raised its holdings in shares of Vericel by 49.2% in the 3rd quarter. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC now owns 115,334 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $4,873,000 after purchasing an additional 38,031 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Premier Fund Managers Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Vericel in the 3rd quarter valued at $781,000.

Vericel Trading Down 1.0 %

Shares of NASDAQ VCEL opened at $56.71 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $2.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 945.32 and a beta of 1.66. Vericel Co. has a twelve month low of $32.31 and a twelve month high of $58.49. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $45.86 and a two-hundred day moving average of $46.94.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.02) EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.05) by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $57.91 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.32 million. Vericel had a net margin of 1.56% and a return on equity of 1.48%. As a group, research analysts predict that Vericel Co. will post 0.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other Vericel news, CEO Dominick Colangelo sold 17,500 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $41.38, for a total transaction of $724,150.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 220,937 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,142,373.06. This trade represents a 7.34 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Steven C. Gilman sold 5,833 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.35, for a total value of $235,361.55. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $443,850. The trade was a 34.65 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 29,166 shares of company stock valued at $1,200,764. Insiders own 5.20% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VCEL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of Vericel in a report on Tuesday. TD Cowen increased their price objective on Vericel from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Stephens boosted their target price on Vericel from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $60.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Vericel from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Vericel currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $58.14.

About Vericel

Vericel Corporation, a commercial-stage biopharmaceutical company, engages in the research, development, manufacture, and distribution of cellular therapies for sports medicine and severe burn care markets in North America. The company markets autologous cell therapy products comprising MACI, an autologous cultured chondrocytes on porcine collagen membrane for the repair of symptomatic, and single or multiple full-thickness cartilage defects of the knee; Epicel, a permanent skin replacement humanitarian use device for the treatment of adult and pediatric patients with deep-dermal or full-thickness burns; and NexoBrid, a biological orphan product for eschar removal in adults with deep partial-thickness and/or full-thickness thermal burns.