Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $10.64 Million Position in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL)

Principal Financial Group Inc. trimmed its position in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL - Free Report) by 26.7% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 251,858 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after selling 91,834 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned about 0.51% of Vericel worth $10,641,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Vericel by 4,126.7% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 634 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 619 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Vericel by 48.1% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,247 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 405 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its position in shares of Vericel by 22.2% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 1,773 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $77,000 after acquiring an additional 322 shares during the last quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Vericel in the 3rd quarter valued at $92,000. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new position in shares of Vericel in the 3rd quarter worth $146,000.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. HC Wainwright reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a $60.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a report on Friday, November 8th. Canaccord Genuity Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $60.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a research note on Tuesday, November 19th. BTIG Research increased their price target on shares of Vericel from $56.00 to $66.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Truist Financial boosted their price objective on shares of Vericel from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Vericel from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, December 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $61.14.

Vericel Stock Performance

NASDAQ VCEL traded down $0.39 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $54.91. The stock had a trading volume of 351,788 shares, compared to its average volume of 422,948. The company has a market capitalization of $2.71 billion, a PE ratio of 915.32 and a beta of 1.71. Vericel Co. has a 12 month low of $32.31 and a 12 month high of $61.49. The company's 50-day moving average price is $53.87 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $48.90.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, November 7th. The biotechnology company reported ($0.02) EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of ($0.05) by $0.03. The business had revenue of $57.91 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $55.32 million. Vericel had a net margin of 1.56% and a return on equity of 1.48%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Vericel Co. will post 0.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Vericel

In related news, insider Jonathan Mark Hopper sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.72, for a total transaction of $587,200.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 58,371 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,427,545.12. The trade was a 14.63 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul K. Wotton sold 2,600 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.72, for a total transaction of $152,672.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 27,402 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,609,045.44. This represents a 8.67 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 44,266 shares of company stock worth $2,090,636 in the last three months. Insiders own 5.20% of the company's stock.

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.