Raymond James Financial Inc. Invests $28.13 Million in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 512,219 shares of the biotechnology company's stock, valued at approximately $28,126,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned about 1.04% of Vericel at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI acquired a new position in Vericel in the 4th quarter worth about $48,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in shares of 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 last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Vericel by 8.4% during the 4th quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,357 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $129,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Vericel by 826.6% in the 4th 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 last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 1,224 shares in the last quarter.

Vericel Trading Up 4.7 %

VCEL stock traded up $1.86 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $41.28. 87,087 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 391,227. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $46.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $51.37. Vericel Co. has a twelve month low of $37.76 and a twelve month high of $63.00. The company has a market capitalization of $2.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 688.11 and a beta of 1.61.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their price objective on Vericel from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Vericel from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, March 8th. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $65.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Truist Financial cut their target price on shares of Vericel from $61.00 to $51.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $60.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a research report on Friday, February 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $60.86.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vericel news, insider Jonathan Siegal sold 3,908 shares of Vericel stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $74,759.94. The trade was a 76.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO Dominick Colangelo sold 24,850 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.89, for a total value of $1,040,966.50. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 260,354 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,906,229.06. This represents a 8.71 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 58,942 shares of company stock valued at $2,724,548 over the last ninety days. 5.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.