Phocas Financial Corp. Reduces Position in Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT)

Phocas Financial Corp. reduced its position in Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT - Free Report) by 84.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 7,906 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 44,613 shares during the quarter. Phocas Financial Corp.'s holdings in Veracyte were worth $313,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in Veracyte by 9.4% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 243,452 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $9,641,000 after purchasing an additional 20,906 shares during the last quarter. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd purchased a new position in Veracyte in the fourth quarter valued at about $846,000. O Neil Global Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Veracyte in the fourth quarter valued at about $751,000. Ieq Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Veracyte during the fourth quarter worth about $580,000. Finally, Convergence Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Veracyte during the fourth quarter worth about $320,000.

Insider Transactions at Veracyte

In related news, Director Karin Eastham sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, January 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.30, for a total transaction of $403,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 18,497 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $745,429.10. This represents a 35.09 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Rebecca Chambers sold 7,000 shares of the 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 114,037 shares in the company, 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. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 19,533 shares of company stock worth $815,584. 1.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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Veracyte Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VCYT traded up $0.92 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $34.76. 1,193,066 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 896,397. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -231.73 and a beta of 1.71. Veracyte, Inc. has a 52-week low of $18.61 and a 52-week high of $47.32. The company's 50-day moving average is $41.40 and its 200-day moving average is $37.66.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Veracyte in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $50.00 price target on the stock. Scotiabank boosted their price target on Veracyte from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a report on Friday, November 8th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a "neutral" rating and issued a $37.00 price target (down from $38.00) on shares of Veracyte in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Needham & Company LLC reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $51.00 target price on shares of Veracyte in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on Veracyte from $26.00 to $28.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research report on Monday, November 18th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $43.00.

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.