Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) Hits New 12-Month High After Strong Earnings

Vericel Co. (NASDAQ:VCEL - Get Free Report)'s stock price reached a new 52-week high during trading on Friday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock traded as high as $54.47 and last traded at $53.94, with a volume of 225594 shares. The stock had previously closed at $50.03.

The biotechnology company reported ($0.02) earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of ($0.05) by $0.03. The company had revenue of $57.91 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $55.32 million. Vericel had a return on equity of 0.35% and a net margin of 0.37%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on VCEL shares. BTIG Research dropped their price objective on shares of Vericel from $56.00 to $55.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 15th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on Vericel from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 16th. Canaccord Genuity Group began coverage on Vericel in a research note on Friday, August 9th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $57.00 price objective on the stock. TD Cowen raised their target price on Vericel from $55.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 27th. Finally, Stephens boosted their price target on Vericel from $56.00 to $58.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. 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 MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $57.71.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Steven C. Gilman sold 5,833 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.35, for a total value of $235,361.55. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 11,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $443,850. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO Dominick Colangelo sold 17,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $41.38, for a total value of $724,150.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 220,937 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,142,373.06. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Steven C. Gilman sold 5,833 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $40.35, for a total value of $235,361.55. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 11,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $443,850. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 29,166 shares of company stock worth $1,200,764 in the last three months. Insiders own 5.20% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Vericel

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Vericel by 1.2% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 3,413,442 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $177,567,000 after acquiring an additional 39,349 shares during the last quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Vericel by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,075,730 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $87,700,000 after purchasing an additional 34,360 shares during the last quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. boosted its stake in shares of Vericel by 37.4% in the 3rd quarter. Congress Asset Management Co. now owns 1,291,720 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $54,575,000 after purchasing an additional 351,550 shares during the last quarter. Geneva Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Vericel by 61.4% during the 3rd 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. Finally, BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. raised its stake in shares of Vericel by 1.0% during the second quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 1,031,940 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $47,346,000 after buying an additional 10,245 shares during the last quarter.

Vericel Stock Up 7.9 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $2.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 900.00 and a beta of 1.66. The company's fifty day moving average is $44.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $46.40.

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.