Prudential Financial Inc. Buys 104,639 Shares of Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT)

Prudential Financial Inc. boosted its position in Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT - Free Report) by 602.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 122,003 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after purchasing an additional 104,639 shares during the quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. owned about 0.16% of Veracyte worth $4,831,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Veracyte by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 8,211,612 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $325,180,000 after buying an additional 463,098 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC boosted its position in shares of Veracyte by 116.3% during the 4th quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 833,754 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $33,017,000 after acquiring an additional 448,251 shares during the last quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC purchased a new position in shares of Veracyte during the third quarter worth about $9,498,000. Jane Street Group LLC increased its position in shares of Veracyte by 276.4% in the third quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 301,652 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $10,268,000 after purchasing an additional 221,504 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Castleark Management LLC purchased a new stake in Veracyte in the third quarter valued at approximately $6,010,000.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Veracyte from $46.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. StockNews.com cut Veracyte from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 26th. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $45.00 price target on shares of Veracyte in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Needham & Company LLC reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $51.00 price objective on shares of Veracyte in a research report on Tuesday, February 25th. Finally, Craig Hallum initiated coverage on Veracyte in a report on Thursday, March 20th. They set a "buy" rating and a $45.00 price objective on the stock. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $43.40.

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Veracyte Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ VCYT traded down $1.66 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $28.47. The stock had a trading volume of 874,161 shares, compared to its average volume of 837,933. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $36.81 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $37.72. Veracyte, Inc. has a 1 year low of $18.61 and a 1 year high of $47.32. The firm has a market cap of $2.22 billion, a P/E ratio of -189.80 and a beta of 2.03.

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

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.