LPL Financial LLC Acquires 12,268 Shares of Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL)

LPL Financial LLC grew its stake in Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL - Free Report) by 27.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 56,674 shares of the biotechnology company's stock after purchasing an additional 12,268 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned approximately 0.11% of Vericel worth $3,271,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Arcadia Investment Management Corp MI bought a new stake in shares of Vericel in the 4th quarter worth about $48,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Vericel by 511.1% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,265 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $70,000 after acquiring an additional 1,058 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its position in Vericel by 826.6% during the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,511 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $138,000 after acquiring an additional 2,240 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV raised its position in Vericel by 82.5% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 2,707 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $149,000 after purchasing an additional 1,224 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Vericel during the third quarter worth $185,000.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

VCEL has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a report on Friday, February 28th. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $65.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Canaccord Genuity Group lifted their target price on Vericel from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com upgraded Vericel from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, March 8th. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Vericel from $61.00 to $51.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Vericel presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $60.86.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Robert L. Md Zerbe sold 2,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.50, for a total value of $156,250.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 26,595 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,662,187.50. The trade was a 8.59 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Dominick Colangelo sold 26,592 shares of the 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,902,662.66. This trade represents a 9.28 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 58,942 shares of company stock worth $2,724,548. Corporate insiders own 5.20% of the company's stock.

Vericel Stock Performance

NASDAQ:VCEL traded up $0.78 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $42.01. The stock had a trading volume of 437,192 shares, compared to its average volume of 390,755. The business's 50 day moving average is $48.80 and its 200-day moving average is $51.46. The company has a market cap of $2.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 700.28 and a beta of 1.61. Vericel Co. has a one year low of $37.76 and a one year high of $63.00.

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.