Lisanti Capital Growth LLC Purchases Shares of 63,400 Veracyte, Inc. $VCYT

Lisanti Capital Growth LLC bought a new position in Veracyte, Inc. (NASDAQ:VCYT) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 63,400 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,723,000. Lisanti Capital Growth LLC owned approximately 0.08% of Veracyte at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Torren Management LLC bought a new position in Veracyte in the 4th quarter valued at $37,000. Empowered Funds LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Veracyte in the fourth quarter valued at $42,000. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 159.8% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 1,104 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $47,000 after buying an additional 679 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Veracyte by 21.2% in the second quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,121 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock valued at $66,000 after buying an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Osaic Holdings Inc. lifted its position in Veracyte by 289.9% during the 2nd quarter. Osaic Holdings Inc. now owns 1,201 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 893 shares in the last quarter.

Veracyte Trading Up 3.7%

Veracyte stock opened at $42.19 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.92 and a beta of 1.95. Veracyte, Inc. has a 1 year low of $28.25 and a 1 year high of $60.91. The business has a 50-day moving average of $52.94 and a 200-day moving average of $42.59.

Veracyte (NASDAQ:VCYT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The biotechnology company reported $0.54 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.41 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $150.32 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $144.59 million. Veracyte had a net margin of 20.37% and a return on equity of 9.26%. Veracyte’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $0.44 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Veracyte, Inc. will post 1.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Veracyte news, CFO Rebecca Chambers sold 3,561 shares of Veracyte 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 directly owned 173,280 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,617,214.40. The trade was a 2.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 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. Also, CEO Marc Stapley sold 138,051 shares of Veracyte stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.12, for a total value of $6,919,116.12. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 440,494 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,077,559.28. This represents a 23.86% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 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. Insiders have sold 186,492 shares of company stock worth $9,240,797 over the last ninety days. Insiders own 1.60% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VCYT has been the subject of several research reports. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Veracyte from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Veracyte from $47.00 to $44.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note 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 report on Monday, June 29th. Needham & Company LLC boosted their price objective on shares of Veracyte from $57.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 31st. Finally, Stephens cut their price target on Veracyte from $68.00 to $55.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. 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 assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Veracyte has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $54.33.

Veracyte Company Profile

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.