SG Americas Securities LLC Trims Stock Position in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL)

SG Americas Securities LLC lessened its position in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL - Free Report) by 60.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 9,706 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 14,780 shares during the quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC's holdings in Vericel were worth $533,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its position in shares of Vericel by 214.0% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 587,857 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $24,837,000 after buying an additional 400,667 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Vericel by 40.0% during the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 28,073 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,186,000 after acquiring an additional 8,020 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position 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 acquiring an additional 9,613 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Vericel in the third quarter worth $563,000. Finally, BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. lifted its position in shares of Vericel by 4.6% during the third quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 1,079,048 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $45,590,000 after purchasing an additional 47,108 shares during the last quarter.

Vericel Stock Performance

Vericel stock traded up $0.37 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $59.43. 304,295 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 421,713. The firm has a market cap of $2.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 990.67 and a beta of 1.72. The business has a fifty day moving average of $57.70 and a 200 day moving average of $50.91. Vericel Co. has a 12-month low of $39.12 and a 12-month high of $61.99.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.02) earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.05) by $0.03. Vericel had a return on equity of 1.48% and a net margin of 1.56%. The company had revenue of $57.91 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $55.32 million. Sell-side analysts predict that Vericel Co. will post 0.14 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Robert L. Md Zerbe sold 2,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $60.00, for a total value of $150,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 26,595 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,595,700. This trade represents a 8.59 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jonathan Mark Hopper sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.72, for a total value of $587,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 58,371 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,427,545.12. This trade represents a 14.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 19,008 shares of company stock worth $1,132,129. Corporate insiders own 7.20% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently commented on VCEL. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $65.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $60.00 target price on shares of Vericel in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. StockNews.com upgraded Vericel from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Vericel from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, BTIG Research upped their target price on Vericel from $56.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price 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.