Loomis Sayles & Co. L P Sells 29,524 Shares of Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL)

Loomis Sayles & Co. L P cut its position in shares of Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL - Free Report) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,010,546 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 29,524 shares during the quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P owned 2.05% of Vericel worth $55,489,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of Vericel by 214.0% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 587,857 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $24,837,000 after purchasing an additional 400,667 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp increased its holdings in Vericel by 40.0% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 28,073 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,186,000 after buying an additional 8,020 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Vericel by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 1,154,053 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $48,768,000 after buying an additional 9,613 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System raised its stake in shares of Vericel by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 23,900 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $1,312,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Vericel during the 3rd quarter worth about $563,000.

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Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

VCEL has been the subject of several recent research reports. Canaccord Genuity Group increased their price target on shares of Vericel from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Truist Financial restated a "buy" rating and set a $61.00 target price (down previously from $67.00) on shares of Vericel in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Stephens reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $65.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. StockNews.com raised Vericel from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, March 8th. Finally, HC Wainwright reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $60.00 target price on shares of Vericel in a report on Friday, February 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vericel has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $62.29.

Vericel Price Performance

Shares of VCEL stock traded down $1.57 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $44.50. 298,050 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 377,899. The stock's 50-day moving average is $53.23 and its 200-day moving average is $51.73. Vericel Co. has a 52 week low of $39.12 and a 52 week high of $63.00. The stock has a market cap of $2.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 741.79 and a beta of 1.78.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Dominick Colangelo sold 26,592 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $45.78, for a total value of $1,217,381.76. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 259,997 shares in the company, valued at $11,902,662.66. This trade represents a 9.28 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Jonathan Siegal sold 3,908 shares of Vericel stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, January 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $61.99, for a total value of $242,256.92. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 1,206 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $74,759.94. The trade was a 76.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 34,092 shares of company stock worth $1,683,582 in the last quarter. Insiders own 5.20% of the company's stock.

Vericel 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.