Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL) Receives Average Recommendation of "Buy" from Analysts

Shares of Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL - Get Free Report) have earned an average recommendation of "Buy" from the seven ratings firms that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 1-year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $62.29.

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Truist Financial reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $61.00 price target (down previously from $67.00) on shares of Vericel in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their price target on shares of Vericel from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded Vericel from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 8th. HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Stephens reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $65.00 target price on shares of Vericel in a report on Wednesday, January 15th.

Vericel Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of VCEL traded down $0.35 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $46.07. The company's stock had a trading volume of 422,894 shares, compared to its average volume of 370,907. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $53.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $51.71. Vericel has a 1-year low of $39.12 and a 1-year high of $63.00. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 767.96 and a beta of 1.78.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Jonathan Siegal sold 3,908 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total transaction of $242,256.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 1,206 shares of the company's stock, valued at $74,759.94. This represents a 76.42 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Dominick Colangelo sold 26,592 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.78, for a total transaction of $1,217,381.76. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 259,997 shares in the company, valued at $11,902,662.66. This represents a 9.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 34,092 shares of company stock valued at $1,683,582 in the last quarter. 5.20% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI acquired a new position in shares of Vericel in the 4th quarter valued at about $48,000. GF Fund Management CO. LTD. acquired a new position in Vericel during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $57,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Vericel by 511.1% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,265 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $70,000 after buying an additional 1,058 shares during the period. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Vericel by 8.4% in the fourth quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,357 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $129,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised 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 acquiring an additional 2,240 shares during the period.

Vericel Company 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.