Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL) Shares Sold by New York State Common Retirement Fund

New York State Common Retirement Fund lessened its stake in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL - Free Report) by 0.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 854,902 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 7,762 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned about 1.73% of Vericel worth $46,943,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Vericel by 214.0% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 587,857 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $24,837,000 after purchasing an additional 400,667 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp increased its holdings in Vericel by 40.0% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 28,073 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,186,000 after purchasing an additional 8,020 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Vericel by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,154,053 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $48,768,000 after purchasing an additional 9,613 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Vericel in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $563,000. Finally, Louisiana State Employees Retirement System boosted its position in Vericel by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 23,900 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,312,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period.

Insider Transactions at Vericel

In related news, insider Jonathan Siegal sold 3,908 shares of Vericel stock in a transaction on Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total transaction of $242,256.92. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 1,206 shares in the company, valued at $74,759.94. This trade represents a 76.42 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Jonathan Mark Hopper sold 10,000 shares of Vericel stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.72, for a total transaction of $587,200.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 58,371 shares in the company, valued at $3,427,545.12. This represents a 14.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 20,100 shares of company stock valued at $1,206,072. Insiders own 5.20% of the company's stock.

Vericel Price Performance

Shares of Vericel stock traded down $2.31 during trading on Friday, hitting $52.00. 414,572 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 321,010. The stock has a market cap of $2.57 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 866.81 and a beta of 1.72. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $57.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $51.58. Vericel Co. has a 12-month low of $39.12 and a 12-month high of $63.00.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $60.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. StockNews.com raised shares of Vericel from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 24th. Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $65.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Vericel from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price target on shares of Vericel from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $63.14.

Vericel 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.