Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL) Receives Consensus Rating of "Buy" from Brokerages

Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL - Get Free Report) has received a consensus recommendation of "Buy" from the seven ratings firms that are covering the stock, Marketbeat reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating. The average 1-year target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $63.14.

Several research firms have recently issued reports on VCEL. Truist Financial lifted their price target on Vericel from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 18th. Stephens restated an "overweight" rating and set a $65.00 target price on shares of Vericel in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Vericel from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Friday. HC Wainwright restated a "buy" rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a research report on Friday. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group increased their target price on Vericel from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd.

Insider Buying and Selling at Vericel

In related news, Director Paul K. Wotton sold 2,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.72, for a total value of $152,672.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 27,402 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,609,045.44. This trade represents a 8.67 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Jonathan Mark Hopper sold 10,000 shares of the business's 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 sale, the insider now directly 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 20,100 shares of company stock worth $1,206,072. Insiders own 5.20% of the company's stock.

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Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vericel

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of VCEL. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its stake in Vericel by 119.3% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,288,921 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $70,775,000 after buying an additional 701,064 shares during the period. Champlain Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Vericel during the 4th quarter worth $34,233,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Vericel in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,126,000. William Blair Investment Management LLC raised its position in Vericel by 66.3% in the fourth quarter. William Blair Investment Management LLC now owns 1,258,416 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $69,100,000 after purchasing an additional 501,736 shares during the period. Finally, Geneva Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Vericel by 61.4% in the third quarter. Geneva Capital Management LLC now owns 1,104,386 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $46,660,000 after buying an additional 420,078 shares during the period.

Vericel Stock Performance

VCEL stock traded up $1.67 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $51.29. 607,063 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 406,768. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $57.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $51.83. The stock has a market cap of $2.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 854.98 and a beta of 1.72. Vericel has a fifty-two week low of $39.12 and a fifty-two week high of $63.00.

About Vericel

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.