Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) has received a consensus rating of “Hold” from the seven ratings firms that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $44.20.

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Veracyte from $48.00 to $37.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 5th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Veracyte in a research report on Friday. Zacks Research downgraded Veracyte from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Veracyte in a research report on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Veracyte from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 27th.

Veracyte Stock Up 5.8%

Shares of Veracyte stock opened at $32.21 on Wednesday. Veracyte has a 52 week low of $22.61 and a 52 week high of $50.71. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $35.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $38.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.81 and a beta of 1.91.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 25th. The biotechnology company reported $0.53 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $140.64 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $135.79 million. Veracyte had a net margin of 12.83% and a return on equity of 8.05%. The company’s revenue was up 18.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.06 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Veracyte will post 0.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Veracyte

In other news, CFO Rebecca Chambers sold 18,341 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.14, for a total transaction of $662,843.74. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 131,196 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,741,423.44. This trade represents a 12.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, SVP Annie Mcguire sold 6,658 shares of Veracyte stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $35.55, for a total transaction of $236,691.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president directly owned 94,706 shares in the company, valued at $3,366,798.30. The trade was a 6.57% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 75,782 shares of company stock valued at $2,722,097 over the last ninety days. 1.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc grew its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 34.8% during the third quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc now owns 409,601 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $14,062,000 after buying an additional 105,721 shares during the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. raised its stake in Veracyte by 667.9% during the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 435,761 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $14,960,000 after acquiring an additional 379,014 shares during the last quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. raised its stake in Veracyte by 178.4% during the 2nd quarter. Prudential Financial Inc. now owns 37,118 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $1,003,000 after acquiring an additional 23,785 shares during the last quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership lifted its position in Veracyte by 16.6% during the 3rd quarter. Artisan Partners Limited Partnership now owns 7,370,467 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $253,028,000 after acquiring an additional 1,048,692 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in Veracyte by 23.6% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,324,965 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $45,486,000 after acquiring an additional 253,033 shares during the period.

About Veracyte

Veracyte, Inc is a genomic diagnostics company focused on improving diagnostic accuracy and patient care through advanced molecular testing. Founded in 2008 and headquartered in South San Francisco, California, the company develops and commercializes minimally invasive genomic tests that aid in the diagnosis of thyroid, lung and other diseases. Veracyte’s proprietary platform analyzes gene expression patterns in clinical samples to help physicians make more informed treatment decisions, reducing unnecessary surgeries and improving patient outcomes.

The company’s flagship product, the Afirma Genomic Sequencing Classifier, is designed to assess thyroid nodules with indeterminate cytology, helping clinicians distinguish benign from suspicious nodules.