Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) Upgraded by Zacks Research to “Strong-Buy” Rating

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) was upgraded by equities researchers at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on VCEL. BTIG Research cut Vericel from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 17th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $67.00 price target on shares of Vericel in a report on Monday, June 16th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on Vericel from $46.00 to $41.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Canaccord Genuity Group dropped their price target on Vericel from $61.00 to $58.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Vericel in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, one has assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $58.40.

Vericel Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:VCEL opened at $33.59 on Tuesday. Vericel has a 12 month low of $29.24 and a 12 month high of $63.00. The stock has a market cap of $1.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 279.94 and a beta of 1.39. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $33.74 and its 200 day moving average price is $38.41.

Vericel (NASDAQ:VCEL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 31st. The biotechnology company reported ($0.01) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of ($0.04) by $0.03. The company had revenue of $63.24 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $64.61 million. Vericel had a return on equity of 2.47% and a net margin of 2.85%.The firm’s revenue was up 20.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned ($0.10) earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Vericel will post 0.14 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Vericel

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Vericel during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $30,000. CWM LLC grew its position in Vericel by 101.3% during the 2nd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 1,379 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 694 shares in the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC purchased a new position in shares of Vericel during the 2nd quarter valued at $60,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Vericel by 34.8% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,895 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $129,000 after acquiring an additional 748 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Vericel by 13.7% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 2,937 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $125,000 after acquiring an additional 353 shares in the last quarter.

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.