Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) Upgraded to Strong-Buy at Zacks Research

Zacks Research upgraded shares of Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) from a hold rating to a strong-buy rating in a report issued on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts also recently issued reports on VCYT. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of Veracyte from $66.00 to $54.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 4th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Veracyte from $47.00 to $44.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, August 4th. Guggenheim raised their price target on shares of Veracyte from $45.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Veracyte in a report on Tuesday, June 2nd. They set an “outperform” rating and a $55.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on Veracyte from $57.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 31st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, six have assigned a Buy rating, two have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Veracyte currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $54.33.

Veracyte Trading Down 3.7%

VCYT opened at $44.68 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $3.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.69 and a beta of 1.95. The company’s 50 day moving average is $53.63 and its 200-day moving average is $42.52. Veracyte has a 1-year low of $28.25 and a 1-year high of $60.91.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The biotechnology company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.13. Veracyte had a return on equity of 9.26% and a net margin of 20.37%.The business had revenue of $150.32 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $144.59 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.44 EPS. Veracyte’s quarterly revenue was up 15.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Veracyte will post 1.32 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Veracyte

In related news, Director Karin Eastham sold 3,729 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $52.89, for a total transaction of $197,226.81. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 15,097 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $798,480.33. This trade represents a 19.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, CFO Rebecca Chambers sold 3,561 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.73, for a total transaction of $177,088.53. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer owned 173,280 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,617,214.40. This trade represents a 2.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 196,492 shares of company stock worth $9,680,897. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Veracyte

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of VCYT. Osaic Holdings Inc. increased its position in shares of Veracyte by 289.9% during the second quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,201 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 893 shares during the last quarter. Torren Management LLC bought a new position in Veracyte during the fourth quarter valued at about $37,000. Empowered Funds LLC bought a new position in Veracyte during the fourth quarter valued at about $42,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in Veracyte by 159.8% during the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,104 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $47,000 after buying an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP purchased a new stake in Veracyte during the second quarter worth about $50,000.

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.