Brokerages Set Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) PT at $43.40

Shares of Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT - Get Free Report) have earned an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" from the ten ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, one has assigned a hold recommendation and eight have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $42.60.

A number of research firms have recently commented on VCYT. Craig Hallum started coverage on shares of Veracyte in a report on Thursday, March 20th. They set a "buy" rating and a $45.00 price objective for the company. Guggenheim decreased their price objective on Veracyte from $45.00 to $37.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $45.00 target price on shares of Veracyte in a research report on Wednesday, March 26th. StockNews.com lowered Veracyte from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on Veracyte from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th.

Veracyte Trading Up 5.1 %

Veracyte stock traded up $1.55 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $31.80. 1,002,547 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 861,309. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $34.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $37.48. Veracyte has a 1-year low of $18.61 and a 1-year high of $47.32. The stock has a market cap of $2.48 billion, a P/E ratio of -212.00 and a beta of 2.03.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 24th. The biotechnology company reported $0.36 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.29 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $118.63 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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 previous year, the company earned ($0.39) earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Veracyte will post 0.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Veracyte

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. HighTower Advisors LLC bought a new position in Veracyte in the third quarter valued at about $554,000. Neo Ivy Capital Management acquired a new position in Veracyte in the third quarter valued at about $820,000. Zacks Investment Management bought a new stake in Veracyte during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,123,000. Ieq Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Veracyte during the fourth quarter worth $580,000. Finally, Barclays PLC lifted its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 138.6% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 146,402 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $4,983,000 after purchasing an additional 85,033 shares in the last quarter.

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.