Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) Rating Lowered to "Sell" at StockNews.com

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL - Get Free Report) was downgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report issued on Friday.

VCEL has been the topic of several other reports. BTIG Research raised their price target on Vericel from $56.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 26th. Truist Financial raised their target price on Vericel from $61.00 to $67.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, December 18th. Stephens reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $65.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. HC Wainwright reissued a "buy" rating and set a $60.00 price objective on shares of Vericel in a research note on Friday. Finally, Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on shares of Vericel from $64.00 to $67.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Vericel presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $62.29.

Vericel Trading Up 3.3 %

Shares of VCEL traded up $1.63 on Friday, reaching $51.14. 456,307 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 418,912. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $57.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $51.90. Vericel has a 12 month low of $39.12 and a 12 month high of $63.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $2.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 852.48 and a beta of 1.72.

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Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Vericel news, insider Jonathan Siegal sold 3,908 shares of Vericel stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 1,206 shares of the company's stock, valued at $74,759.94. The trade was a 76.42 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Paul K. Wotton sold 2,600 shares of the company's 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 transaction, the director now owns 27,402 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,609,045.44. This represents a 8.67 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 10,100 shares of company stock valued at $618,872 over the last 90 days. 5.20% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Vericel

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of VCEL. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Vericel by 8.4% during 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 during the last quarter. Atria Investments Inc increased its stake in shares of Vericel by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 7,952 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $437,000 after purchasing an additional 184 shares during the period. Captrust Financial Advisors increased its position in Vericel by 3.4% during the 4th quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 6,111 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $336,000 after buying an additional 199 shares during the period. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of Vericel by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Louisiana State Employees Retirement System now owns 23,900 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $1,312,000 after buying an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Avantax Advisory Services Inc. boosted its position in shares of Vericel by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 13,803 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $758,000 after acquiring an additional 234 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.