Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) Reaches New 12-Month High – Here’s Why

Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT)’s share price hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $41.93 and last traded at $41.89, with a volume of 176589 shares. The stock had previously closed at $41.10.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on VCYT. UBS Group upped their price objective on Veracyte from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Veracyte in a report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $50.00 price target on the stock. Scotiabank lifted their price target on shares of Veracyte from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “sector outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Needham & Company LLC raised their price target on shares of Veracyte from $37.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Guggenheim started coverage on shares of Veracyte in a report on Thursday, October 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $40.00 price target on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Veracyte currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $41.25.

Veracyte Stock Performance

The firm has a market cap of $3.27 billion, a P/E ratio of -274.00 and a beta of 1.67. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $35.04 and a 200 day simple moving average of $28.50.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The biotechnology company reported $0.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.03 by $0.16. Veracyte had a negative net margin of 2.18% and a positive return on equity of 3.02%. The firm had revenue of $115.86 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.81 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.03) EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 28.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that Veracyte, Inc. will post 0.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Veracyte

In related news, insider John Leite sold 5,479 shares of Veracyte stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.78, for a total transaction of $163,164.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 76,174 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,268,461.72. This trade represents a 6.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Evan/ Fa Jones sold 5,173 shares of Veracyte stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.23, for a total transaction of $182,244.79. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 34,343 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,209,903.89. The trade was a 13.09 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 1.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Veracyte

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Veracyte by 2,331.6% during the 2nd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,386 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 1,329 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC grew its stake in Veracyte by 168.3% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,516 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 951 shares during the last quarter. Point72 Asia Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Veracyte in the 2nd quarter valued at $58,000. Signature Resources Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Veracyte in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $83,000. Finally, nVerses Capital LLC purchased a new position in Veracyte during the 2nd quarter worth $85,000.

About Veracyte

Veracyte, Inc operates as a diagnostics company in the United States and internationally. The company offers Afirma Genomic Sequencing Classifier for cancerous thyroid nodules; Decipher Prostate Biopsy and Radical Prostatectomy for prostate cancer diagnosis; Prosigna Breast Cancer Assay for breast cancer diagnosis; Percepta Nasal Swab Test for lung cancer diagnosis; and Envisia Genomic Classifier for diagnosing interstitial lung disease, including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.