Stifel Financial Corp Sells 19,420 Shares of Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT)

Stifel Financial Corp trimmed its holdings in shares of Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT - Free Report) by 59.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 13,092 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 19,420 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp's holdings in Veracyte were worth $446,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of VCYT. KBC Group NV grew its holdings in Veracyte by 13.7% during the 3rd quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,677 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $91,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares during the period. Inspire Investing LLC increased its holdings in Veracyte by 2.1% in the second quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 16,462 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $357,000 after purchasing an additional 340 shares during the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Veracyte by 21.7% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 2,778 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $94,000 after purchasing an additional 496 shares during the last quarter. Arizona State Retirement System lifted its stake in Veracyte by 3.7% in the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 20,806 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $451,000 after buying an additional 733 shares during the period. Finally, Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its holdings in Veracyte by 5.7% during the second quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 21,823 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $473,000 after buying an additional 1,173 shares during the last quarter.

Veracyte Price Performance

VCYT stock traded down $0.83 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $40.12. 425,887 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 767,829. The firm's 50-day moving average is $39.16 and its 200-day moving average is $31.93. Veracyte, Inc. has a 12 month low of $18.61 and a 12 month high of $46.00. The company has a market cap of $3.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -267.47 and a beta of 1.69.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 6th. The biotechnology company reported $0.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.03 by $0.16. The business had revenue of $115.86 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $109.81 million. Veracyte had a positive return on equity of 3.02% and a negative net margin of 2.18%. Veracyte's quarterly revenue was up 28.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned ($0.03) earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Veracyte, Inc. will post 0.38 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on VCYT shares. Leerink Partners increased their price target on shares of Veracyte from $35.00 to $40.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Veracyte from $43.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Veracyte in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $50.00 price target on the stock. Scotiabank upped their price objective on shares of Veracyte from $40.00 to $44.00 and gave the company a "sector outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, November 8th. Finally, Guggenheim assumed coverage on Veracyte in a report on Thursday, October 10th. They set a "buy" rating and a $40.00 target price on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, one has issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Veracyte has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $41.13.

Insider Activity

In other Veracyte news, CAO Jonathan Wygant sold 5,032 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $42.89, for a total transaction of $215,822.48. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 42,313 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,814,804.57. This represents a 10.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Rebecca Chambers sold 7,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.23, for a total transaction of $302,610.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 14,038 shares of company stock worth $605,297 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.30% of the company's stock.

Veracyte Company 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.