Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL) Shares Purchased by Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL - Free Report) by 21.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 42,915 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after buying an additional 7,625 shares during the quarter. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC owned approximately 0.09% of Vericel worth $2,356,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI purchased a new stake in Vericel during the fourth quarter worth approximately $48,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Vericel by 511.1% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,265 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 1,058 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in Vericel by 826.6% in the fourth quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,511 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $138,000 after purchasing an additional 2,240 shares during the period. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in shares of Vericel during the third quarter worth about $146,000. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of Vericel by 82.5% in the fourth quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,707 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $149,000 after buying an additional 1,224 shares during the period.

Vericel Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of VCEL traded down $0.35 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $46.07. The stock had a trading volume of 422,894 shares, compared to its average volume of 370,907. The company has a market cap of $2.31 billion, a PE ratio of 767.96 and a beta of 1.78. Vericel Co. has a fifty-two week low of $39.12 and a fifty-two week high of $63.00. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $53.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $51.71.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Robert L. Md Zerbe sold 2,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.50, for a total transaction of $156,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 26,595 shares in the company, valued at $1,662,187.50. This represents a 8.59 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jonathan Siegal sold 3,908 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total value of $242,256.92. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 1,206 shares in the company, valued at $74,759.94. The trade was a 76.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 34,092 shares of company stock valued at $1,683,582 over the last 90 days. 5.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently weighed in on VCEL. Truist Financial reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $61.00 price target (down from $67.00) on shares of Vericel in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on Vericel from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $65.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Vericel from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vericel currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $62.29.

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.