Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) Trading 5.3% Higher – Here’s Why

Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL)’s stock price rose 5.3% during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $59.44 and last traded at $59.44. Approximately 106,520 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 75% from the average daily volume of 424,401 shares. The stock had previously closed at $56.46.

Analyst Ratings Changes

VCEL has been the topic of several research analyst reports. HC Wainwright restated a “buy” rating and issued a $60.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Canaccord Genuity Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Vericel in a research report on Tuesday, November 19th. StockNews.com cut Vericel from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Thursday, December 12th. BTIG Research lifted their price objective on Vericel from $56.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Stephens upgraded Vericel to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, December 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vericel has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $59.71.

Vericel Stock Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $50.54 and a 200 day moving average of $48.00. The firm has a market cap of $2.80 billion, a P/E ratio of 941.00 and a beta of 1.71.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.02) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of ($0.05) by $0.03. Vericel had a return on equity of 1.48% and a net margin of 1.56%. The company had revenue of $57.91 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $55.32 million. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Vericel Co. will post 0.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vericel

In other Vericel news, Director Paul K. Wotton sold 2,600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.72, for a total value of $152,672.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 27,402 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,609,045.44. The trade was a 8.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert L. Md Zerbe sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total value of $150,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 26,595 shares in the company, valued at $1,595,700. The trade was a 8.59 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 44,266 shares of company stock worth $2,090,636 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 5.20% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vericel

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Vericel by 14.0% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 33,543 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,412,000 after purchasing an additional 4,117 shares in the last quarter. Synovus Financial Corp boosted its position in Vericel by 38.5% in the 3rd quarter. Synovus Financial Corp now owns 11,576 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $489,000 after buying an additional 3,219 shares during the last quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Vericel in the 3rd quarter valued at $185,000. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Vericel by 0.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,154,053 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $48,768,000 after acquiring an additional 9,613 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Vericel by 145.4% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 111,527 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $4,712,000 after acquiring an additional 66,082 shares during the last quarter.

Vericel Company Profile

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.