Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) Short Interest Down 14.1% in December

Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) was the recipient of a significant decline in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 2,550,000 shares, a decline of 14.1% from the November 30th total of 2,970,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 782,700 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.3 days.

Veracyte Stock Performance

Shares of VCYT opened at $40.00 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $3.10 billion, a PE ratio of -266.67 and a beta of 1.69. Veracyte has a 52-week low of $18.61 and a 52-week high of $46.00. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $39.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $32.13.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) last released its earnings results 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. The company had revenue of $115.86 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.81 million. Veracyte had a negative net margin of 2.18% and a positive return on equity of 3.02%. Veracyte’s quarterly revenue was up 28.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned ($0.03) EPS. Research analysts predict that Veracyte will post 0.38 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on VCYT shares. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Veracyte from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Scotiabank lifted their target price on Veracyte from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the stock a “sector outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. Guggenheim started coverage on Veracyte in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $40.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Veracyte from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, November 18th. Finally, Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Veracyte in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $50.00 target price for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Veracyte presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $41.13.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CAO Jonathan Wygant sold 956 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.36, for a total transaction of $41,452.16. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now owns 40,270 shares in the company, valued at $1,746,107.20. The trade was a 2.32 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CFO Rebecca Chambers sold 7,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.23, for a total value of $302,610.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 114,037 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,929,819.51. The trade was a 5.78 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 14,038 shares of company stock valued at $605,297. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Veracyte

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in Veracyte by 0.3% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 2,916,515 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $99,278,000 after acquiring an additional 7,920 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Veracyte by 1.0% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,844,713 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $62,806,000 after purchasing an additional 17,921 shares during the period. William Blair Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 67.4% in the 2nd quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,241,671 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $26,907,000 after purchasing an additional 500,020 shares in the last quarter. Granite Investment Partners LLC grew its position in Veracyte by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. Granite Investment Partners LLC now owns 934,994 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $20,261,000 after purchasing an additional 19,244 shares during the period. Finally, Eventide Asset Management LLC increased its stake in Veracyte by 20.2% during the 3rd quarter. Eventide Asset Management LLC now owns 677,883 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $23,075,000 after purchasing an additional 113,883 shares in the last quarter.

About Veracyte

Veracyte, Inc engages in the research, development and commercialization of diagnostic products. The firm’s portfolio includes Afirma, Percepta, and Envisia. It intends to treat thyroid cancer, improve lung cancer screening, and clarify the diagnosis of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. The company was founded by Bonnie H.