Proficio Capital Partners LLC Makes New $1.18 Million Investment in Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT)

Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 29,779 shares of the biotechnology company's stock, valued at approximately $1,179,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Principal Securities Inc. increased its stake in shares of Veracyte by 34.1% during the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,909 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $76,000 after buying an additional 485 shares during the period. KBC Group NV lifted its stake in shares of Veracyte by 13.7% in the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,677 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $91,000 after purchasing an additional 323 shares during the period. Venturi Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Veracyte in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $91,000. Bellevue Group AG bought a new stake in shares of Veracyte during the third quarter valued at approximately $123,000. Finally, Virtus Fund Advisers LLC grew its stake in Veracyte by 32.9% in the third quarter. Virtus Fund Advisers LLC now owns 4,798 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $163,000 after purchasing an additional 1,189 shares during the period.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on VCYT shares. Guggenheim restated a "buy" rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of Veracyte in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. StockNews.com cut shares of Veracyte from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 26th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Veracyte from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Monday, November 18th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Veracyte from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Veracyte in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Veracyte presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $43.00.

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Veracyte Price Performance

Shares of VCYT traded up $0.72 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $31.10. The stock had a trading volume of 1,285,833 shares, compared to its average volume of 811,508. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.42 billion, a PE ratio of -207.33 and a beta of 1.80. Veracyte, Inc. has a 12 month low of $18.61 and a 12 month high of $47.32. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $40.42 and a 200 day moving average price of $37.72.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 24th. The biotechnology company reported $0.36 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.29 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $118.63 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $110.73 million. Veracyte had a negative net margin of 2.18% and a positive return on equity of 3.02%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.39) EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Veracyte, Inc. will post 0.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Veracyte

In other Veracyte news, Director Karin Eastham sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, January 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $40.30, for a total value of $403,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 18,497 shares in the company, valued at $745,429.10. This represents a 35.09 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Veracyte Profile

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.