Profund Advisors LLC Sells 14,534 Shares of Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL)

Profund Advisors LLC cut its stake in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL - Free Report) by 50.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 14,311 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 14,534 shares during the period. Profund Advisors LLC's holdings in Vericel were worth $657,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Sei Investments Co. lifted its stake in shares of Vericel by 25.9% in the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 62,139 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $2,851,000 after purchasing an additional 12,799 shares during the period. XTX Topco Ltd lifted its position in Vericel by 36.9% during the second quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 8,265 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $379,000 after buying an additional 2,229 shares during the period. First Washington CORP boosted its holdings in shares of Vericel by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. First Washington CORP now owns 126,356 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $5,797,000 after buying an additional 2,412 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in shares of Vericel by 3.1% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 661,018 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $30,329,000 after buying an additional 19,803 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Vericel by 4.5% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 158,205 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $7,258,000 after acquiring an additional 6,873 shares in the last quarter.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com lowered shares of Vericel from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Friday, September 20th. Stephens boosted their price target on Vericel from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. BTIG Research reduced their price objective on Vericel from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, July 15th. TD Cowen boosted their target price on Vericel from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group initiated coverage on Vericel in a research note on Friday, August 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $57.00 target price on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $55.75.

Vericel Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VCEL traded down $0.54 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $44.20. 276,557 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 440,306. Vericel Co. has a one year low of $30.18 and a one year high of $54.10. The company has a market cap of $2.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4,415.58 and a beta of 1.67. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $47.92 and a 200 day moving average of $47.41.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The biotechnology company reported ($0.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of ($0.10). Vericel had a net margin of 0.37% and a return on equity of 0.35%. The business had revenue of $52.70 million for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $52.59 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned ($0.11) EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 14.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that Vericel Co. will post 0.12 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Vericel

In other news, CEO Dominick Colangelo sold 17,500 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.40, for a total transaction of $899,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 220,937 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,356,161.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, CEO Dominick Colangelo sold 17,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $51.40, for a total transaction of $899,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 220,937 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,356,161.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Sean C. Flynn sold 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $52.18, for a total value of $782,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 707 shares in the company, valued at $36,891.26. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 38,045 shares of company stock worth $1,956,725 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 5.20% of the company's stock.

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.